Dr Who writer - Primeval 'too white'

Doctor Who writer Russell T Davies has hit out at ITV's sci-fi show Primeval - for being too white.

ITV1's rival programme about time-travelling dinosaurs was announced within weeks of Doctor Who's return to the BBC.

The Swansea-born writer told TV trade magazine Broadcast that he deplored the lack of non-white faces on the show: "Its [lack of] ethnic casting is shameful. I've never seen such a white show in all my born days."

But he added: "Apart from that I think it's excellent... I absolutely love it."

Russell said that ITV's decision to launch its own sci-fi show was a compliment, adding 'although you can't swear it wouldn't have been made anyway'.

The £6 million show stars Douglas Henshall as a scientist battling prehistoric monsters who turn up in central London, Ben Miller as a civil servant and former S Club star Hannah Spearritt as a zoologist.

It launched last month with almost seven million people watching the first episode.

The third series of Doctor Who features the first ethnic minority companion in the 43-year TV history of the show with Freema Agyeman, who has an Iranian mother and Ghanaian father, as sidekick Martha Jones.

Freema recently spoke about the issue of race in Britain, saying: "We've come so far, but we are still not seeing so many black faces in parliament, we are not seeing so many black people in very high-powered positions. There is still a way to go, but we'll get there."