Doctor Who star Christopher Eccleston has opened up about the troubled production on the sci-fi series’ relaunch a decade ago.

Eccleston played the Ninth Doctor for just one year and his departure was announced after the first episode aired in March 2005. He later declined the invitation to return as the Doctor in 2013’s 50^th anniversary special.

Over the years it has emerged that the making of 2005’s season was fraught with problems, with Eccleston now openly talking about his clashes with the show’s producers at the time.

The actor chatted to 774 ABC Melbourne’s Drive program to promote the launch of BBC One’s autism drama The A Word in Australia.

Looking back on his time in Doctor Who, Eccleston commented: “The first series of any show is always very difficult to sell to the audience and I’m very proud that through what was a really badly organised and certainly badly produced first series… I hope they have [acknowledged this since], they certainly didn’t acknowledge it at the time and I wish they would’ve done, because then things would have worked out very differently. But I’m very proud that I managed to find a way through the chaos they imposed and get us picked up.”

He explained: “It’s very important on a first series that you make a very informed and intelligent choice, even if it means breaking the budget, about getting the first director who is going to set the tone for the season, for the way the actors relate, and that did not happen. Disaster.”

The Leftovers actor added: “But the show has survived, thank God. And Capaldi and Matt and David are just brilliant. And I know how brilliant they are because I’ve been inside it. And it is difficult, because you’re doing the same thing in each episode, and you’ve got to keep that fresh and you’ve got to suggest alien and you’ve got to suggest human – under a very, very tight schedule.”

Eccleston has also discussed his regrets about only doing one season in the interview.

The new season of Doctor Who is currently filming in Cardiff and will begin on BBC One in April 2017.

Here’s everything we know so far about Season 10.

Are you a fan of the Ninth Doctor’s era? Let us know below…