and would be produced by BBC Wales via a BBC press release. The format of the programme was changed to 45-minute episodes, lightening the pace. Davies was inspired by American series such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Smallville, in particular by using Buffy structure of season-long story arcs around a "Big Bad" villain. It was announced in March 2004 that Christopher Eccleston would be playing the Doctor. Jane Tranter, BBC Controller of Drama Commissioning, stated that casting an actor of Eccleston's reputation signaled "our intention to take Doctor Who into the 21st century, as well as retaining its core traditional values — to be surprising, edgy and eccentric." Eccleston had previously worked with Davies on The Second Coming and requested that Davies consider him for the role. Eccleston was attracted to the role as a way of shedding the image of him as a serious actor only. Eccleston was the tenth actor to play the Doctor in canon broadcasts since the programme started in 1963. New actors are able to take over the role through a plot device of regeneration, introduced in 1966, in which the character of the Doctor changes body and identity. Russell T Davies decided to begin the revived series with a new Doctor rather than show the regeneration, as he believed it was "madness" to start with someone and then change him before the audience could build a relationship with him. Davies wanted to initially approach the revival as a "new programme". Eccleston's character is more "down-to-earth" than previous Doctors; Davies referred to him as "stripped down", while still having "fun and humour". Eccleston's costume of a battered leather jacket was in Davies' original pitch, but the clothing also went with Eccleston's desire not to have clothes dominating his time on the show. The Ninth Doctor's clothes do not dominate him, but rather create a simple silhouette and an "action man" vibe. Billie Piper's casting as Rose Tyler was announced in May 2004. According to executive producer Julie Gardner, former pop star Piper "fits the bill perfectly" as a "unique, dynamic partner for Christopher Eccleston". Davies described Rose as "the ordinary person who stumbles into something extraordinary and finds herself their equal." Camille Coduri and Noel Clarke were also cast to play Rose's mother and boyfriend then named Judy and Muggsy respectively; Davies wanted to include these characters to "make her real" and to "give