Guide to the Doctors

Official TV Doctors: 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th, 6^th, 7^th, 8^th, 9^th, 10^th

Other Doctors: Comic Strip, Movie, Stage, TV, WWW

The Doctor: official TV regenerations

William Hartnell 1963 - 1966	An elderly and somewhat crotchety old man. Started out as a somewhat dark and self serving character, but mellowed to a respected grandfather. Remained mysterious and crotchety to the end. What must be remembered is that Hartnell created the character of the Doctor and that despite the changes in actor over the past 40 years the basic character has remained constant.	<top>
Patrick Troughton 1966 - 1969	The ‘Cosmic Hobo’ (no relation Coz), his dishevelled and comic appearance hid his characteristically sharp mind. This is the archetypal Doctor as a rebel, from his vaguely ‘Beatle-esque’ hair to his baggy check trousers this is the Doctor that railed against authority and convention. When he was revealed as a renegade on the run from Time-Lord society, it made perfect sense.	<top>
Jon Pertwee 1970 - 1974	The Dandy, somewhat vain and prone to boast, this Doctor was exceptionally fond of gadgets and frilly shirts. Exiled to Earth in the, slightly obscure, late 20^th Century, this Doctor soon settled in to his position as UNIT’s scientific advisor. Despite his protestations and blustering about the military, it would be hard to imagine this Doctor elsewhere.	<top>
Tom Baker 1974 - 1981	Bohemian wanderer, his trademark long scarf and floppy hat have dogged the image of Doctor Who ever since. Probably the start of the Doctor as an outsider, this Doctor maintained a style of dress that marked him as a free spirited individual and clearly reflected his personality. Do you want a jelly baby?	<top>
Peter Davison 1982 - 1984	Young and vulnerable, this Doctor was never the less as able and strong as his predecessors. Despite being lumbered with the image of an Edwardian cricketer, certainly not the most dynamic of images, Davison was able to create a character recalling the crotchetiness of Hartnell with a younger and more open personality.	<top>
Colin Baker 1984 - 1986	Hardly the most retiring of characters, this Doctor wore a multicoloured wardrobe that was responsible for an upsurge in eyestrain throughout fandom. Baker was certainly a different Doctor. He was loud, boastful and opinionated. Unfortunately his interpretation of the Doctor was cut short by BBC politics and as a result the viewing public were prevented from seeing his character develop. Luckily through the medium of BFP Audios Baker has been able to further his interpretation of the Doctor to great success.	<top>
Sylvester M^cCoy 1987 - 1996	Initially a clown, this Doctor soon became riddled with angst and steeped in mystery. Ironically the series was cancelled when an effort was being made to return some mystery to the Doctor’s origins. Though the seventh Doctor continued to develop as ‘Time’s Champion’ in the Virgin novels and BFP audios. M^cCoy returned somewhat older for the TV Movie and regeneration.	<top>
Paul M^cGann 1996 - 2005	Dressed in a second hand costume (Billy the Kid fancy dress) this Doctor was almost a one shot. It would be unkind to judge M^cCann’s performance solely on the US co-produced TV movie, even though his performance is probably one of those production’s few successes. Thankfully the BBC decided to use the eighth Doctor in their range of novels and to license his character to BFP for use in audios where M^cGann has show just how good a TV Doctor he could have been.	<top>
Christopher Eccleston 2005	Coming in 2005 (around Eastertide is the current thought) the BBC is re-launching Doctor Who under the creative auspices of Russell T Davies and with Eccleston as the ninth Doctor. Already described as looking like a ‘divorced dad on the pull’ it remains to be seen how Eccleston will interpret the character of the Doctor.	<top>
???? 2006	Tenth Doctor – Who knows?

Other Doctors: Comic Strip, Movie, Stage, TV, WWW

This section lists various representations of the Doctor that have not appeared as part of the TV series. The only rule is that the character must have been clearly identified as the Doctor in an official production (i.e. authorised by the BBC to represent Doctor Who) and not a spoof appearing in a comedy show. So no to Dr Eyes or Lilly Savage, but yes to Comic Relief and Doctor Who Night.

Comic Strip <top>

Marvel Comics Party Animals Wormwood

Doctor Who Magazine has twice shown the Doctor in a future incarnation. This Doctor is has a strong likeness to Nicholas Briggs, who had played the Doctor in fan productions and now provides the voices to the Daleks (all of them) for Big Finish. On one occasion the strip revealed the ‘new’ Doctor to be a ruse (he was a disguise for the Matrix Lord’s agent Shayde) but the other appearance gave the indication that he is a true future incarnation.

Movie <top>

Peter Cushing Doctor Who and the Daleks Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 AD

During the Dalek craze of the early 1960s the rights to produce two Doctor Who stories for the cinema were acquired. Produced by Aaru Productions, the stories were big screen remakes of the first two Dalek stories. The biggest attraction was that for the first time the Doctor and his adventures would be seen in colour- no, sorry, the biggest attraction was the Daleks. Rather than utilise the existing cast (probably because they were under contract to the BBC and busy making more TV serials), all the characters were re-cast. Taking the place of William Hartnell as the Doctor was respected character actor (from Hammer Horror to Star Wars) Peter Cushing. Cushing’s interpretation of the Doctor had little in common with the one on TV. This Doctor was officially known as Dr Who and was a somewhat absent minded professor.

Stage <top>

Trevor Martin Doctor Who and the Seven Keys to Doomsday	The first commercial stage production of Doctor Who starred actor Trevor Martin as the Doctor. I believe that James Matthews & Wendy Padbury played his companions (Jimmy & Jenny) and were ‘picked’ out of the audience at each performance, though as I am working on memories articles I have read this must be considered apocryphal. While I do not know how Martin interpreted the Doctor, I do understand the plot was something like the Keys of Marinus, though possibly with added Daleks.
David Banks Doctor Who The Ultimate Adventure	With Doctor Who riding high in popularity a high profile stage production was launched during the 1980s. The title role was initially played by Jon Pertwee as the third Doctor, but a later production starred Colin Baker as the sixth Doctor. However David Banks, more familiar on TV wearing the silver sprayed boilersuit of the Cyberleader (or rather Cyberleaders as there are more than one) was understudy to Pertwee when Pertwee was taken ill. Thus a new Doctor trod the stage.

TV <top>

Richard Hurndall The Five Doctors	Richard Hurndall recreated the role of the first Doctor for the twentieth anniversary special The Five Doctors (which really only starred three of them and him)
Rowan Atkinson Doctor Who And the Curse of Fatal Death	Comic Relief – Red Nose Day special. The first onscreen ninth Doctor, Atkinson played the character of the Doctor like a slightly drier version of Blackadder, and it worked. Deciding to retire from saving the galaxy and marry his companion Emma (Julia Sawahla) the Doctor was lured into a trap by the dastardly Master (Jonathan Pryce) and the Daleks. After an amusing run-around, involving using time to cheat (a la Bill and Ted) and a lot of sewers (for the Master) the Doctor is mortally wounded and regenerates into…
Richard E Grant	The tenth Doctor who has no relation to the webcast Doctor,is soon wounded and regenerates into…..
Jim Broadbent	The rather hyperactive and shy eleventh Doctor is soon wounded and regenerates into….
Hugh Grant	The twelfth Doctor, who is soon wounded and dies. The Master and the Daleks are so touched by the Doctor’s sacrifice they declare their intention to devote themselves to the service of good (well it is a charity special). As they are about to depart the Doctor regenerates into….
Joanna Lumley	The female Doctor who decides to settle down…with the Master.
Mark Gatiss The Web of Caves	Appeared in a handful of sketches during BBC 2’s Doctor Who Night. Looked the part, but played for irony and humour.

WWW <top>

Richard E Grant Scream of the Shalka

The ninth Doctor (assumed by the press) appearing on this internet webcast written by Paul Cornell (creator of Bernice Summerfield). At the time this was thought to be the only way forward left for Doctor Who, but before it had been finished the big announcement about the Russell T Davies re-launch had been made and it seems this Doctor has been consigned to ‘history’.