Editing Michael Grade (section)

====''Doctor Who'' controversy====
Grade announced on 27 February 1985 that [[Doctor Who season 23|season 23]] of ''[[Doctor Who]]'', which was scheduled to be transmitted from January to March 1986, would be postponed as he had decided that the programme's budget would be better spent on other drama productions.<ref>{{cite news |first=Stephen |last=Cook |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2012/feb/28/doctor-who-television |title=From the archive, 28 February 1985: Doctor Who fans upset as BBC postpones new series |work=The Guardian |date=28 February 2012}}</ref> What became an 18-month hiatus for ''Doctor Who'' (the series did not resume transmission until September 1986) prompted a strong reaction from viewers. Grade was also noted for his strong dislike of the series, such as in an interview in 2004, where he said: "I thought it was horrible, awful. I thought it was so outdated. It was just a little show for a few pointy head ''Doctor Who'' fans. It was also very violent and it had lost its magic".<ref>{{cite news | url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/norfolk/content/articles/2005/04/25/feature_michael_grade_feature.shtml | title= Michael Grade interview | work=BBC News | access-date=22 April 2014}}</ref> In an appearance on the BBC's ''[[Room 101 (British TV series)|Room 101]]'' in 2002, Grade chose the series as one of his hates, criticised its production values and said that he had little interest in, or sympathy for, science fiction.

[[Eric Saward]], the [[script editor]] of ''Doctor Who'' at the time of its suspension, responded to Grade's criticism a few years later. In his view, Grade's comments were unfair because he was in the position to allocate more resources to the programme and thus improve its quality.<ref>During the [[audio commentary]] of the 2008 DVD of the ''Doctor Who'' serial ''[[Warriors of the Deep]]''.</ref> Actress [[Katy Manning]], who had portrayed [[Jo Grant|a companion]] of [[Jon Pertwee]]'s Doctor, praised Grade's treatment of the series on the DVD commentary for ''[[The Mind of Evil]]'' (1971). In her view, Grade "was actually doing the right thing", and she credited the long break prior to 2005 with rejuvenating the series.<ref>Voice-over commentary on the BBC DVD "[[The Mind of Evil]]" (1971, 2013)</ref>

The decision in the autumn of 1986 that [[Doctor Who season 24|season 24]] of ''Doctor Who'' could only happen on the condition that [[Colin Baker]] was removed from the [[The Doctor (Doctor Who)|title role]] has been attributed to Grade, with him reportedly describing Baker's portrayal as "absolutely God-awful". It has also been suggested that Grade was influenced by a romantic relationship with Baker's ex-wife, [[Liza Goddard]].<ref name="Telegraph">{{cite news |title=He eats, sleeps and breathes television – and at last he's got round to watching some |work=The Telegraph |date=3 January 2009 |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-view/3638380/He-eats-sleeps-and-breathes-television-and-at-last-hes-got-round-to-watching-some.html |access-date=12 January 2009  |first=William |last=Langley}}</ref> In 2022, Grade denied both that the decision to fire Baker was his and any personal relationship with Goddard.<ref name=Conversation>{{cite AV media |date=2022 |title=''Doctor Who'': The Collection Season 22 |chapter=Michael Grade in Conversation |type=special feature |publisher=[[BBC Studios]]}}</ref> Baker's immediate predecessor in the role, [[Peter Davison]], argued in 2018 that the decision to dismiss the actor was more to do with the executives wanting to get rid of the series' producer, [[John Nathan-Turner]], saying: "I was upset about what happened, really – because, first of all, it wasn't to do with Colin, I know that. It was to do with other issues. The power structure in the BBC had changed and they didn't want John Nathan-Turner around is the truth of it."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/a871595/peter-davison-doctor-who-exit-dodged-bullet/ |title=Doctor Who star Peter Davison thinks he 'dodged a bullet' by quitting when he did |work=[[Digital Spy]] |first=Cameron K. |last=McEwan |date=3 December 2018 |access-date=11 June 2020}}</ref>

Following the end of the [[Doctor Who series 1|first series]] of the revived ''Doctor Who'' in 2005, Grade wrote a letter to [[Mark Thompson (media executive)|Mark Thompson]], the [[Director-General of the BBC]], congratulating all involved in the production on its success, signing-off with "PS <!--sic-->never dreamed I would ever write this. Must be going soft!"<ref>{{cite news |first=Jason |last=Dean |title=Doctor Who's greatest enemy finally surrenders |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk_news/story/0,3604,1511605,00.html |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=22 June 2005 |access-date=30 November 2006}}</ref> In an interview for ''[[Radio Times]]'' in 2012, Grade commented: "From clunky [[Dalek]]s that couldn't go up and down stairs to the filmic qualities today of ''Doctor Who'', it's a transformation... The show still leaves me cold, but I admire it, which I never did before."<ref name="Midgley"/>