A Matter of Time: The Fires of Pompeii

ORIGINAL BROADCAST: 12/04/2008

Two years ago today, the Doctor and his new companion Donna travelled to the past for her first proper trip in the TARDIS, when they landed in Pompeii. However, they discover that it’s the day before the great eruption of Vesuvius, and must soon make the most terrible choice. This story starred David Tennant as the tenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble.

Executive Producer Russell T Davies originally planned to include a story set in Pompeii in the first series of Doctor Who, starring Christopher Eccleston. However, due to financial costs, that episode’s position was replaced with ‘Boom Town’, and the idea was shelved for three years. The episode was eventually written by James Moran, who had previously written the Torchwood episode ‘Sleeper’.

The episode was filmed at the Cinecittà studios in Rome in September 2007. The filming reused some of the sets from the show ‘Rome’. Other locations suggested were in Malta and Wales, but the size of the project resulted in production taking place in Italy. Cinecittà had accepted the BBC's request in order to promote the studios, despite the show’s small budget.

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