Doctor Who (series 1) months of speculation. In the April 2004 issue of "Doctor Who Magazine", Davies announced that Eccleston's Doctor would indeed be the Ninth Doctor, relegating Richard E. Grant's Shalka Doctor to non-official status. Russell T Davies revealed that Eccleston asked for the role in an e-mail. After the announcement that the show would be returning, Davies revealed that the new companion would "probably" be called Rose Tyler in an edition of "Doctor Who Magazine" published in November 2003. This name was confirmed in March 2004, and it was announced at the same time that former pop star Billie Piper was being
Doctor Who (series 1) considered for the role. Piper was announced as portraying Rose Tyler on 24 May, a character which fulfilled the role of permanent companion during the series, and was welcomed by fans of the show. Actress Georgia Moffett, daughter of Fifth Doctor actor Peter Davison and who would later appear as the title role in the fourth series episode "The Doctor's Daughter", also auditioned for the role. The original conception of Tyler was slightly different. Paul Abbott was scheduled to write an episode for the series which would have revealed that Rose's entire life had been manipulated by the Doctor in