Piper Who Spinoff Scuttled

[Whitestar]

I just found this out at the Sci-Fi Channel website. Here is the link:

http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index...ory=0&id=37608

And here is the article:

"The BBC reported that it has scrapped plans for a Doctor Who spinoff show that would have starred Billie Piper, who played Rose Tyler in the show's previous two seasons in the United Kingdom. (The second season of Doctor Who will air in the United States on SCI FI Channel, starting on Sept. 29.) 'It was actually commissioned by the controller of BBC One and budgeted,' series creator Russell T Davies told Doctor Who magazine, according to a report on the BBC Web site. But Davies later decided that the show, Rose Tyler: Earth Defence, was 'a spinoff too far' and called it off. Piper, 23, left Doctor Who at the end of the second season, which wrapped in the United Kingdom earlier this year. She will be replaced by Freema Agyeman, 27, in the third season, which has just begun filming. A separate spinoff series, Torchwood, stars John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness and is still going ahead. It will be shown on BBC Three this autumn."

Hmmm.... I'm not surprise this project is dead considering that Piper doesn't want to be typecast.

Whitestar

[I, Brian]

That's what I thought - if Piper left Doctor Who to escape the role, why on earth would she agree to a spin-off?

[ray gower]

Think Ms Piper has enough to worry about with The Ruby in the Dark, before signing for anything more. I suspect that (and its sequels) will define whether she actually becomes an actress, or ends up relegated to Eastenders

[Robertbert]

Russel T. Davies scrapped the idea not the BBC..It's in an interview with him in Doctor Who Monthly...HE decided that what with Torchwood, the Rose spin-off was one too many...They'd not actually gone to ask Billie yet anyways - by the sound of it - before it was pulled...

[Eoghann]

It sounds like sense prevailed then. Torchwood looks to be distinct enough to be more than just a Doctor Who spinoff, but Rose Tyler: Earth Defence? It just screams cheap ratings cash in.

Besides I'm not sure that the character of Rose is developed enough that you could base a whole show just around her.

[pianoabuser]

To be honest, I'm relieved they scrapped it. I remember reading the press release when this was rumoured, and thinking "oh God, I thought I'd seen the last of her". Personally, I believe Billie Piper was the worst Doctor Who companion I've ever seen.

[ray gower]

Think you must have missed Bonnie Langford

[pianoabuser]

No, I didn't, and looking back I know exactly what you mean.

Second worst, then.

[lordoftime]

I think there are already enough spinoffos focusing on individual characters out or in planning stages -Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures, and that K9 cartoon or whatever it is. RTD is in overdrive and if he is not careful, he will overkill. At least JN-T knew how to hold back.