Thursday 7 January 2010

Doctor Who "Ginger" Comments 6th January 2009

Complaints have been received over "ginger" comments made during The End Of Time, causing the BBC to issue a statement:
Complaint

We've received complaints from viewers who believed a line in the second part of Doctor Who: The End of Time was insulting to people with ginger hair.

The BBC's response

We would like to reassure viewers that Doctor Who doesn't have an anti ginger agenda whatsoever. This was a reprise of the line in the Christmas Invasion episode in 2005, when David Tennant discovers that he's not ginger, and here he is, missing out again - disappointed he's still not ginger.

In addition, the Doctor's previous companion Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) and his new one Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) are both redheads.

Unsurprisingly, the Media has taken quite an interest in the story:

The Guardian(7th) - Doctor, Doctor! Gingerism's gone nuts
Sky News(7th) - Doctor Who Accused Of Anti-Ginger Agenda
The Metro(7th) - Doctor Who accused of being 'anti-ginger'
Anglophenia(7th) - Doctor Who Has No "Anti-Ginger" Agenda, says BBC
The Daily Mail(7th) - Doctor Who fans see red over Matt Smith's ginger joke
The Guardian(6th) - Doctor Who: Tardiscrimination?
The Times(6th) - BBC denies Doctor Who 'anti-ginger' regeneration
ATV News(6th) - BBC denies “anti-ginger” remarks in Doctor Who

You can also find details on the clarification from The Doctor Who News Page.