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{{Infobox Doctor Who episode
| number             = 162
| serial_name        = The Long Game
| show               = DW
| type               = episode
| image              = The Long Game.jpg
| image_size         = 275px
| caption            = The Jagrafess looms over the Doctor, Rose, and the Editor. The Jagrafess was intended to look like "a lump of meat on the ceiling" and behave like a shark.
| doctor             = [[Christopher Eccleston]] – [[Ninth Doctor]]
| companions         =
* [[Billie Piper]] – [[Rose Tyler]]
* [[Bruno Langley]] – [[Adam Mitchell (Doctor Who)|Adam Mitchell]]
| guests             =
* [[Colin Prockter]] – Head Chef
* [[Christine Adams (actress)|Christine Adams]] – Cathica
* [[Anna Maxwell Martin|Anna Maxwell-Martin]] – Suki
* [[Simon Pegg]] – The Editor
* [[Tamsin Greig]] – Nurse
* [[Judy Holt]] – Adam's mother
| director           = [[Brian Grant (director)|Brian Grant]]
| writer             = [[Russell T Davies]]
| producer           = [[Phil Collinson]]
| executive_producer = [[Russell T Davies]]<br />[[Julie Gardner]]<br />[[Mal Young]]
| composer           = [[Murray Gold]]
| production_code    = 1.7
| series             = [[Doctor Who (series 1)|Series 1]]
| length             = 44 minutes
| date               = {{Start date|2005|5|7|df=y}}
| preceding          = "[[Dalek (Doctor Who episode)|Dalek]]"
| following          = "[[Father's Day (Doctor Who)|Father's Day]]"
}}
"'''The Long Game'''" is the seventh episode of the [[Doctor Who (series 1)|first series]] of the British [[science fiction television]] programme ''[[Doctor Who]]'' that was first broadcast on 7 May 2005 on [[BBC One]]. It was written by executive producer [[Russell T Davies]] and directed by [[Brian Grant (director)|Brian Grant]].

In the episode, the alien time traveller the [[Ninth Doctor]] ([[Christopher Eccleston]]) and his [[Companion (Doctor Who)|companion]] [[Rose Tyler]] ([[Billie Piper]]), having been joined by near-future genius [[Adam Mitchell (Doctor Who)|Adam Mitchell]] ([[Bruno Langley]]), land on Satellite 5 in the year 200,000. Satellite 5 is a space station that broadcasts news across the entire human empire. However, the Doctor notices that the station is suspicious: there are no aliens, and those who are promoted to Floor 500 seem to disappear. The Doctor and Rose discover that the Editor ([[Simon Pegg]]) and an alien are controlling the rest of humanity by way of the press. Meanwhile, Adam makes a mistake that forces the Doctor and Rose to take him home.

The concept of "The Long Game" was long believed—including by Davies himself—to have been submitted to the ''Doctor Who'' script office by Davies in the 1980s, although in 2020 he said he was mistaken. Davies had also been interested in doing a storyline about a failed companion. In addition, critics have pointed out that the story is a [[satire]] on the media. Production for the episode took place in [[Newport, Wales|Newport]] in November and December 2004 and in [[Coryton, Cardiff]] in December. "The Long Game" was watched by 8.01 million viewers in the UK and received generally mixed reviews from critics.

==Plot==
The [[Ninth Doctor]], [[Rose Tyler|Rose]], and [[Adam Mitchell (Doctor Who)|Adam]] arrive on Satellite 5, a space station orbiting Earth in the year 200,000. The Doctor gets Adam and Rose some credits to buy food while he looks around the station. The Doctor meets a woman named Cathica, a reporter who tells him that the station is a giant broadcast tower transmitting news across Earth. Cathica leads them to a room where she sits down in a chair located in the centre of a round table. The reporters are connected to the computer via a special port installed directly into the brain. The Doctor believes there is a malevolent purpose to the station that is holding back human development. He learns from Cathica that a select few are invited to Floor 500, which is believed to be the highest promotion that can be earned on the station.

The Doctor, with Rose, hacks into the computer systems of the station and is detected by the Editor. The Editor allows the Doctor and Rose to travel to Floor 500, with Cathica following soon after. On Floor 500 the Doctor and Rose find the Editor directing control over the station through a number of dead humans. On the ceiling resides the Editor-in-Chief, the Jagrafess, to whom the Editor answers. The Doctor learns that the Jagrafess controls the lives of the people on the planet below by manipulating the news.

Meanwhile, Adam discovers that he can gain access to information about Earth's future. He has an information port installed in his brain and uses Rose's phone to call his answering machine at home and transfer data to it. The port also allows the Jagrafess into Adam's mind. The Jagrafess learns about the Doctor and makes plans to kill him. The Doctor, aware of Cathica's presence outside the room, loudly comments on how altering the environmental systems will likely kill the Jagrafess. Cathica reverses the cooling system, causing Floor 500 to overheat, killing the Jagrafess and the Editor. As the humans on board the station and on Earth come to wake from the stupor they have been in, the Doctor congratulates Cathica and gives her hope for the future. The Doctor discovers Adam's duplicity and takes him to his home on Earth. The Doctor destroys Adam's answering machine and tells Adam he is no longer welcome in the [[TARDIS]]. The Doctor leaves with Rose, just as Adam's mother arrives at home; she accidentally activates his port.

==Production==
[[File:Simon Pegg by Gage Skidmore.jpg|thumb|200px|right|"The Long Game" features a guest appearance by Simon Pegg, who played the main villain.]]
In the book ''The Shooting Scripts'', [[Russell T Davies]] claims that he had originally set out to write this episode from Adam's perspective, watching the adventure unfolding from his point of view (exactly as Rose did in "Rose") and seeing both the Doctor and Rose as enigmatic, frightening characters. He even gave this outline a working title: "Adam".<ref name="shooting scripts">{{cite book |last = Davies |first = Russell T |author-link = Russell T Davies |title = Doctor Who: The Shooting Scripts | publisher = [[BBC Books]] |year=2005 |isbn=0-563-48641-4 }}</ref> Another working title for this story was "The Companion Who Couldn't".<ref name="4thdimension">{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b007vvcq/features/the-long-game-fourth-dimension|title=The Fourth Dimension: The Long Game|publisher=BBC|access-date=18 February 2013}}</ref> According to Davies, the concept of "The Long Game" was originally written in the 1980s and submitted to the ''Doctor Who'' production office. Whether it was ever read by the production team of the time is unclear, as Davies received a rejection from the BBC Script Unit, who advised him to write more realistic television about "a man and his mortgage" instead.<ref name="production notes"/> In 2004 Davies said he reworked the story for the new series,<ref name="production notes">{{cite journal|title=Production Notes|author=Davies, Russell T|journal=[[Doctor Who Magazine]]|publisher=[[Panini Comics]]|location=[[Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent]]|issue=350|date=8 December 2004}}</ref> but when he rediscovered his first spec script in 2020, he tweeted that he was mistaken about this.<ref>{{Cite tweet |user=russelldavies63 |number=1340024260539142145 |title=HERE IT IS. In preparation for today's tweetalong, I went through some old papers to find the script and found... the VERY FIRST DOCTOR WHO SCRIPT I ever wrote!! On a manual typewriter! In 1985! 1986? Sixth Doctor and Mel! #SantasARobot }}</ref><ref>{{Cite tweet |user=russelldavies63 |number=1340024260539142145 |title=MIND OF THE HODIAC. I think I sent this to the Doctor Who production office. I've always said in interviews that I sent in a rough version of The Long Game... but  think I misremembered, I think it was this. Must have been. I's not bad, I like it! #SantasARobot }}</ref>

In the [[DVD]] commentary for this episode, director [[Brian Grant]] and actor [[Bruno Langley]] refer to an additional motivation for Adam's actions. Apparently, in earlier drafts of the script, Adam's father suffered from a disease that was incurable in his time (2012) and he hoped to learn about a cure which had been discovered between that year and 200,000.<ref name="commentary"/> In the shooting script, the condition is [[arthritis]].<ref name="shooting scripts"/> No trace of this motivation remains in the finished programme, although Grant discusses it as if it were still present.<ref name="commentary">{{cite video|people=[[Christine Adams (actress)|Christine Adams]], [[Brian Grant (director)|Brian Grant]], [[Bruno Langley]]|title=Commentary for ''Doctor Who'' episode "The Long Game"|medium=DVD (Region 2)|location=United Kingdom|publisher=BBC|date=2005}}</ref> Langley and Grant also reveal that the "frozen vomit" that Adam spits out in one scene was in fact a "kiwi and orange ice cube".<ref name="commentary" />

[[Simon Pegg]] had grown up with ''Doctor Who'' and considered it a "great honour" to guest star.<ref name="Pegg press"/> He was pleased at being cast as a bad guy.<ref name="Pegg press"/> Pegg had previously played Don Chaney in the [[Eighth Doctor]] audio play ''[[Invaders from Mars (audio drama)|Invaders from Mars]]''.<ref name="Pegg press"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bigfinish.com/28-Doctor-Who-Invaders-from-Mars|title=28. Doctor Who&nbsp;– Invaders from Mars|publisher=[[Big Finish Productions|Big Finish]]|access-date=20 February 2012}}</ref> When the Editor announces the Jagrafess's name to the Doctor and Rose, he pronounces it as "The Mighty Jagrafress of the Holy Hadrajassic Maxaraddenfoe." Pegg has stated during interviews that he found this an extremely difficult line to say.<ref name="Pegg press">{{cite press release|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2005/05_may/04/who.shtml|title=Simon Pegg plays The Editor|publisher=BBC|date=4 May 2005|access-date=27 March 2012}}</ref> Voice artist [[Nicholas Briggs]] had recorded voice work for the Jagrafess, but his contribution was not used because it sounded too similar to the [[Auton|Nestene Consciousness]] (which Briggs had voiced in "[[Rose (Doctor Who episode)|Rose]]").<ref>{{cite video|people=[[Nicholas Briggs]]|title=Commentary for ''Doctor Who'' episode "[[Dalek (Doctor Who episode)|Dalek]]"|medium=DVD (Region 2)|location=United Kingdom|publisher=BBC|date=2005}}</ref> "The Long Game" was produced singularly in the series' fourth production block.<ref>Russell, p. 81</ref> Filming in the studio took place at the Unit Q2 warehouse in [[Newport, Wales|Newport]] from 30 November to 3 December, on 7 December, and from 10 to 15 December 2004.<ref>Ainsworth, ed. (2017). ''Doctor Who: The Complete History''. Volume 49, pp. 114 – 120.</ref> The spike room set (used for Floors 139 and 500), the control room set, and the suburban house set were recorded at the former [[BT Group|BT]] building in [[Coryton, Cardiff]] on 6, 8, and 9 December.<ref>Ainsworth, ed. (2017). ''Doctor Who: The Complete History''. Volume 49, pp. 116 – 118.</ref> The house set was later rebuilt for recording in the Newport warehouse on 15 December.<ref>Ainsworth, ed. (2017). ''Doctor Who: The Complete History''. Volume 49, p. 120.</ref> The Jagrafress was entirely made of [[computer-generated imagery]] animated by [[The Mill (post-production)|The Mill]]. It was given a [[shark]]-like design, with the intention that it would "snap out" like a shark.<ref name="mill design">{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00hv71d|title=The Mill – Designing|format=Video|publisher=BBC|date=28 June 2011|access-date=18 February 2013}}</ref> The initial design was also described as a "lump of meat on the ceiling".<ref name="mill design"/>

==Broadcast and reception==
"The Long Game" was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on [[BBC One]] on 7 May 2005.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0074dr5/broadcasts|title=The Long Game: Broadcasts|publisher=BBC|access-date=13 March 2013}}</ref> Overnight ratings showed that the episode had been watched by 7.51 million viewers live, a 38.9% audience share.<ref name="overnight">{{cite web|url=http://www.gallifreyone.com/newstv.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050519023520/http://www.gallifreyone.com/newstv.php|archive-date=19 May 2005 |title=Weekend Series Roudup|date=8 May 2005|access-date=25 August 2013|publisher=[[Outpost Gallifrey]]}}</ref> It received a final rating of 8.01 million viewers in the UK, the sixth highest-rated broadcast on BBC One for the week.<ref name="barb">{{cite web|url=http://www.barb.co.uk/viewing/weekly-top-30?|title=Top 30 Programmes|publisher=[[Broadcasters' Audience Research Board]]|access-date=19 March 2013}} Note: Information is in the section titled "w/e May 02–08, 2005", listed under BBC1</ref><ref>Russell, p. 139</ref> The episode received an [[Audience Appreciation Index]] score of 81.<ref name="index">{{Cite web|url=https://guide.doctorwhonews.net/info.php?detail=ratings&start=100&type=date&order=|title=Ratings Guide|website=Doctor Who News|access-date=February 17, 2020}}</ref> "The Long Game" was released on DVD in Region 2 alongside the following episodes "[[Father's Day (Doctor Who)|Father's Day]]", "[[The Empty Child]]", and "[[The Doctor Dances]]" on 1 August 2005.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbcshop.com/christopher-eccleston/doctor-who-the-new-series-volume-3-dvd/invt/bbcdvd1757/|title=Doctor Who&nbsp;– The New Series: Volume 3 (DVD)|publisher=BBC Shop|access-date=19 March 2013}}</ref> It was then re-released as part of the first series boxset on 21 November 2005.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbcshop.com/christopher-eccleston/doctor-who-the-complete-first-series-boxset-dvd/invt/bbcdvd1770/|title=Doctor Who: The Complete First Series Boxset (DVD)|publisher=BBC Shop|access-date=19 March 2013}}</ref>

The episode received generally mixed reviews. ''[[SFX (magazine)|SFX]]'' described it as an "okay" episode that was reminiscent of the earlier episode "The End of the World." Despite praising Pegg, the theme of "media control," and the Jagrafess, they criticised it for "[failing] to capture the imagination" because there was "no real palpable sense of threat" and that human culture looked identical to modern day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfx.co.uk/tv_reviews/doctor_who_the_long_game |title=Doctor Who: The Long Game |work=SFX |date=7 May 2005 |access-date=23 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060527014720/http://www.sfx.co.uk/tv_reviews/doctor_who_the_long_game |archive-date=27 May 2006 }}</ref> Rupert Smith of ''[[The Guardian]]'' wrote, "Anything that satirises the profession of journalism is all right with me, but this did it with style."<ref>{{cite web|first=Rupert |last=Smith |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv_and_radio/story/0,,1479624,00.html |title=Music to my ears |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=9 May 2005 |access-date=25 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060110182444/http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv_and_radio/story/0%2C%2C1479624%2C00.html |archive-date=10 January 2006 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Arnold T Blumburg of ''[[Now Playing (magazine)|Now Playing]]'' gave "The Long Game" a grade of B−, describing it as "entertaining" and a welcome throwback to the classic series. However, he questioned the developing tradition of the Doctor not being the hero of the episode and noted that there were some dangling threads.<ref>{{cite web|first=Arnold T|last=Blumburg|url=http://www.nowplayingmag.com/content/view/1453/47/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050618085147/http://www.nowplayingmag.com/content/view/1453/47/|archive-date=18 June 2005|title=Doctor Who&nbsp;– "The Long Game"|work=[[Now Playing (magazine)|Now Playing]]|date=11 May 2005|access-date=17 March 2013}}</ref> Reviewing the episode in 2013, Patrick Mulkern of ''[[Radio Times]]'' was more positive, writing that it "acts brilliantly as a satire of the media." He also praised the guest cast and characters and Adam's departure.<ref name="Radio Times">{{cite web|first=Patrick|last=Mulkern|url=http://www.radiotimes.com/blog/2013-03-11/doctor-who-the-long-game|title=Doctor Who: The Long Game|work=[[Radio Times]]|date=11 March 2013|access-date=11 March 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130904194331/http://www.radiotimes.com/blog/2013-03-11/doctor-who-the-long-game|archive-date=4 September 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref> In 2011, Den of Geek's Mark Harrison wrote that "In retrospect, 'The Long Game' is an underrated and perfectly enjoyable mid-series episode," praising Adam's departure.<ref>{{cite web|first=Mark|last=Harrison|url=http://www.denofgeek.com/television/1061763/doctor_who_10_great_companion_farewell_scenes.html|title=Doctor Who: 10 great companion farewell scenes|publisher=Den of Geek|date=20 September 2011|access-date=31 March 2012}}</ref>

Reviewing "The Long Game" for ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' in 2013, Alasdair Wilkins gave it a grade of "B−". He found it "inessential" and commented that it was not very clear on the motives of the Editor and Jagrafess, but Pegg's performance was almost enough to make up for it. Overall he felt that the story "presents a few too many simple ideas, with the cumulative effect that this is a story that feels slight at best, underdeveloped at worst. The episode is hardly a failure, but it could have been so much more."<ref>{{cite web|first=Alasdair|last=Wilkins|url=http://www.avclub.com/review/the-long-gamefathers-day-106387|title=Doctor Who: "The Long Game"/"Father's Day"|work=[[The A.V. Club]]|date=15 December 2013|access-date=6 January 2014}}</ref> In ''Who Is the Doctor'', a guide to the revived series, Graeme Burk described the episode as "entertaining, if unspectacular."<ref name="burk">Burk and {{sic|hide=y|Smith?}}, pp. 33–34</ref> He called Pegg the best guest star so far, and stated that Langley did a "superb job" at conveying Adam, but he felt that the episode did not have much else beside the failed companion storyline. Burk criticised the satire for not being subtle enough and borrowing from other stories such as ''[[Nineteen Eighty-Four]]''. He also remarked that it was a shame Adam's motives were cut, as well as development between Rose and Adam.<ref name="burk"/> Burk's coauthor Stacey {{sic|hide=y|Smith?}} was more positive, opining that a satire did not have to be subtle to be effective, and that viewers could still relate it to the news media today.<ref name="smith?">Burk and {{sic|hide=y|Smith?}}, pp. 34–35</ref> {{sic|hide=y|Smith?}} also praised the way "The Long Game" showed the Ninth Doctor as an "inspirational figure."<ref name="smith?"/> The two also questioned the decision to leave Adam in the 21st century with future technology.<ref name="bs32">Burk and {{sic|hide=y|Smith?}}, p. 32</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Bibliography===
*{{cite book |editor1-last=Ainsworth |editor1-first=John |date=2017 |title=Doctor Who: The Complete History |volume=49 |publisher=[[Panini Comics|Panini Magazines]]/[[Hachette (publisher)|Hachette Partworks Ltd]] |issn=2057-6048 }}
*{{Cite book|last1=Burk|first1=Graeme|last2=Smith?<!--This "?" is party of his nomme de plume-->|first2=Robert|title=Who Is the Doctor: The Unofficial Guide to Doctor Who-The New Series|chapter=Series 1|edition=1st|date=6 March 2012|publisher=[[ECW Press]]|pages=[https://archive.org/details/whoisdoctorunoff0000burk/page/3 3–62]|isbn=978-1-55022-984-4|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/whoisdoctorunoff0000burk/page/3}}
*{{Cite book |last=Russell |first=Gary |title=Doctor Who: The Inside Story |url=https://archive.org/details/doctorwhoencyclo0000russ |url-access=registration |publisher=[[BBC Books]] |location=London |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-563-48649-7 |author-link=Gary Russell}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote|Ninth Doctor}}

*{{BBCDWnew|year=2005|id=longgame|title=The Long Game}}
* {{DoctorWhoTV}}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.gallifreyone.com:80/episode.php?id=2005-07|title=The Long Game|publisher=[[Outpost Gallifrey]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080331033144/http://www.gallifreyone.com:80/episode.php?id=2005-07|archive-date=31 March 2008}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}
*''[https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/doctorwho/ram/confidential7?size=16x9&bgc=CC0000&nbram=1&bbram=1&nbwm=1&bbwm=1 Doctor Who Confidential]''&nbsp;— Episode 7: The Dark Side
*[https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/doctorwho/ram/ep7trail?size=16x9&bgc=CC0000&nbram=1&bbram=1 "I'm the Editor."]&nbsp;— Episode trailer for "The Long Game"
*{{IMDb episode|0562999}}

{{Doctor Who episodes|N1}}
{{Doctor Who episodes by Russell T Davies |state=autocollapse}}
{{Ninth Doctor stories}}

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