The Irony: Doctor Who Confidential Voted Best BBC Three Show

By Christian Cawley, February 10, 2013 - Doctor Who - 4 comments

There was, of course, some fuss when Doctor Who Confidential was axed back in 2011, so came as a surprise to find that the show had won the prestigious recognition as BBC Three’s most popular show in a recent Radio Times poll.

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For those of you new to Who, Doctor Who Confidential was like a weekly DVD extra that started on BBC Three a few moments after the main show had ended on BBC One, providing glimpses into the fascinating worlds of special FX and script meetings.

We shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that perhaps some Doctor Who fans voted on the poll (although we certainly weren’t aware of it) just as we shouldn’t ignore the stark reality that Doctor Who Confidential had lost its way by the time it was cancelled. Perhaps if incoming BBC Three controller Zai Bennett had outlined this as a (very good) reason instead of making outlandish claims about wanting to make his mark on the channel (the channel’s only real ratings success under his stewardship has been Olympic Games coverage that couldn’t be squeezed onto BBC One and BBC Two), it wouldn’t look so ridiculous now to find the behind-the-scenes show topping this Radio Times poll.

  1. Doctor Who Confidential (23%)
  2. Pramface (11.4%)
  3. Being Human (11.2%)
  4. Torchwood (10.48%)
  5. The Mighty Boosh (7.76%)
  6. Lee Nelson’s Well Good Show (5.92%)
  7. Gavin & Stacey (4.56%)
  8. 60 Second News (3.2%)
  9. Russell Howard’s Good News (2.56%)
  10. Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents (1.68%)

You will of course notice that Torchwood is in the mix, as well as the soon-to-end Being Human, a remnant of the pre-Zai Bennett BBC Three era. Only Pramface (which features The Sarah Jane Adventures‘ Yasmin Paige among its regulars) can be counted as a success for the post-DWC BBC Three.

Time, at last, for a change?

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About the author

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A long-term Doctor Who fan, Christian grew up watching the show and has early memories of the Graham Williams era. His favourite stories are Inferno, The Seeds of Doom and Human Nature (although The Empty Child, Blink and Utopia all come close). When he’s not bossing around the news team, Christian is a freelance writer specialising in mobile technology and domestic computing, and enjoys classic rock, cooking and spending time in the countryside with his wife and young children. You can find him on Twitter, Facebook and Google+.