Russell T Davies Brands BBC Boss’ AI Doctor Who Comments ‘Clumsy’

During an interview on BBC Radio 4’s The Media Show, Russell was asked about Matt Brittin’s claim last month that “somebody” had sent him “a 50-minute episode of Doctor Who that was AI-generated the other day” that was “pretty good”.

“I mean, it’s not going to replace humans,” he quickly clarified. “So, everyone’s a creator.”

“I want to be really clear: Humans are leading, and I believe in human creativity, enhanced by whatever tools.”

Sharing his view on Radio 4, Russell suggested: “That’s a clumsy thing to say in an industry where he’s got writers and artists and it specifically affects people, they’re the first to take the blow.”

Claiming the director general “hasn’t worked in television for that long and might not be so fruity with an opinion in future”, the Tip Toe creator quipped: “My inbox went, ‘ping ping ping ping ping’, so God knows what his was like.”

Russell T Davies on Lorraine earlier this monthKen McKay/ITV/ShutterstockRussell announced his departure from Doctor Who after two seasons back at the helm earlier this year, coinciding with the news the show was being put out to creative tender by the BBC.

This led to the cancellation of a planned Christmas special, which the Bafta winner has elaborated on more in his new memoir The Queerest Of Folk, which centres around his career in TV.