Doctor Who Blog

The Ten Doctors

It’s amazing to think that by 2006 our favourite television hero will have hit double figures in terms of the number actors to have played him on television.  In case you haven’t seen it on the www.dwin.org main page, David Tennant was announced as the 10th Doctor yesterday by the BBC.

I suppose that reaching 10 actors to play the role happened quicker than anyone thought it was going to happen when the series was announced to be coming back in September 2003 - but looking at it another way, if the series had never gone off the air to begin with we’d probably be on our 12th, 13th or even 14th Doctor by now, given that most actors only stay in the role for 3 years. It’s still an incredible achievement for a television series - just imagine asking the original production team back in 1963 if they thought this would be happening 42 years into the future.  William Hartnell was the most optimistic of the original cast, believing the show could be so unbelievably successful that it might run for as many as 5 years. And look at it now!

William, Patrick, Jon, Tom, Peter, Colin, Sylvester, Paul, Christopher and now David (with a very appropriate last name for Doctor number ten). Ten different actors, ten different first names, ten different incarnations, but one Doctor Who.

5 Comments...

Hmmm David TENnant…I never thought of it like that. Very clever. Do you think it will all end after number 13? Or will that rule be changed. Even though it has been declared that this series is a continuation of the original series and that Eccleston and Tennant are the 9th and 10th Doctors, perhaps they should consider this a new clean slate for Doctor Who and perhaps start over. I’m not saying that would be greatest idea but an interesting one to think about.

Posted by Doug Grandy  on  04/22  at  02:40 AM

If the show is still a success at that point I don’t think they will bother with the 13 lives rule - or at most, they will simply invent a new rule where the Doctor is able to go past 12 regenerations. After all if they have a great success on their hands I don’t think they are going to end it simply because of a rule that Robert Holmes invented back in 1976. smile

Posted by Luca  on  04/22  at  01:38 PM

have you read books on the power of myth? the doc’s a televised ‘hero with 1000 faces.’ will he have 13 or 1000?  this is part of his universal appeal.

Posted by jess  on  04/28  at  08:13 PM

I don’t think the ominus 13 will be an issue, considering the master’s been on his last regeneration since Tom Bakers time, and was still able to make an appearance in the Fox movie. They’ll be able to come up with something, perhaps his “human” half will somehow come to the rescue wink

Posted by Steven R  on  05/04  at  03:40 AM

too bad that Christopher Eccleston is moving on so soon from the role of Doctor Who. He appears to be PERFECT for the role…it is his engaging manner which is so attractive for us here in Canada to want to watch the Doctor in action…i think we’re gonna miss Christopher Eccleston…although that is not to say that the new man wouldn’t do a great job as well…hope he’s as wonderful as Mr. Eccleston has been..

Posted by visvanathan  on  05/15  at  02:28 AM

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