For those who may have missed it the next actor to play Doctor Who was announced earlier today. Peter Capaldi is one of those actors who have been around for a long time with an impressively eclectic range of appearances and roles. For a quick taste here is the announcement and subsequent chat with the man himself.
I have seen many stories listing his many roles and referencing his appearances in Doctor Who and Torchwood but how much of that is relevant? Don't we really want to know about what we will see from Mr Capaldi as The Doctor?
In an effort to address these very important questions I have feverishly scoured his IMDB page in an effort to find the roles most appropriate to this morning's announcement. So without further ado, let's check out Peter Capaldi's roles with any tenuous link to Doctor Who...
The Lair Of The White Worm (1988) - Angus Flint
I know this first one is a stretch, but take away the nudity and gore (and strangely entertaining song in the trailer) and you have something very reminiscent of an old school Doctor Who episode. Just check out the trailer below, especially Mr Capaldi's amazing hair. He doesn't say much, just a scream and looking crazy.
The Cloning of Joanna May (1992) - Isaac
A strange (but all so British) piece of science fiction, and again rather tenuous but every little bit helps right. In this trailer you get to see Peter in a brief intimate scene with the titular Joanna May and soon after get hit by a car. He even gets a little dialogue in this trailer!
Neverwhere (1996) - Islington
And here we have our first real link to Doctor Who. Neverwhere was a BBC adaptation of the novel by none other than Neil Gaiman. True it was a few years before he penned any Doctor Who stories but still. Be warned, the clip below is a major spoiler for the 1996 TV series, but if you want to see Peter Capaldi in action, well, here you go.
Doctor Who - The Fires of Pompeii (2008) - Caecilius
Well, you can't get more relevant than this. After quite an extensive sojourn into police drama and comedy Peter finally came back to the science fiction fold with an appearance in the very show where he will soon be playing the lead character. I'll address the "how can he be the Doctor and Caecilius" concern a little later on. Come on guys, be patient!
Torchwood, Children of Earth (2009) - John Frobisher
Peter Capaldi took on a much more significant role in the Doctor Who spinoff show, Torchwood as demonstrated in this rather chilling clip from the Children of Earth mini-series. So that's two characters in the Who-verse. Paradox? No of course not, but as stated previously I will be addressing that later.
World War Z (2013) - W.H.O. Doctor
Okay, this is another big stretch but, seriously, look at that character title. Prophetic or what. No clips available for Peter's actual performance in the above movie, so here is an interview where he briefly talks World War Z.
So will Peter Capaldi be a good Doctor?
I am cautiously optimistic and I feel this is a chance for the show to take a step back from the frenetic pace that has been a staple for the past three seasons. From Christopher Eccleston's scarred from battle seriousness (and running around a lot), through David Tennant's happy go lucky but down to business when required performance (and running around a lot), to Matt Smith's exuberant, yet almost fatherly, concern for his companions (still with heaps of running around) the time is right for a more considered and poised Doctor. I have already seen a number of comparisons with Jon Pertwee and while I don't think we are ever going to see a return to full on old school Doctor Who we will certainly be seeing a story leading towards the ultimate reveal... who is the Doctor. This can't happen without a chance to reflect, and reflection requires a slower pace and greater consideration. We'll have to wait until the 50th anniversary special to see if Peter is in fact the thirteenth incarnation of our favourite Time Lord, and if so that means he will be taking us on The Doctor's final journey... or through the magic of timey-wimey wibbly-wobbly jiggery-pokery the number of regenerations will end up being irrelevant.
Now let's finish up by addressing the major concern from the big announcement. Is it a paradox to have the Doctor played by someone who has already appeared in the series?
Of course not, for any of the following well considered (and not at all thought up on the spur of the moment) reasons:
1) Considering the billions of people that ever lived, is it really that much of a stretch that the Doctor may bear a striking resemblance to at least one human that ever lived?
2) There have been previous episodes where a case of mistaken identity, either involving The Doctor (eg Black Orchid, The Romans) or one of his companions (eg also Black Orchid, The Aztecs), which really just strengthens point 1...
3) Either Caecilius or Frobisher (or both) are The Doctor who is forced back into hiding via the pocket watch first used in The Family of Blood, which rather ironically would mean The Doctor saved himself from the eruption of Vesuvius. This seems unlikely, but would be handy if the producers want to bring back another hidden Time Lord... Romana perhaps.
4) Wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey jiggery-pokery stuff!
I rest my case!
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