The Twelfth Doctor Announced!
At last, the cat’s out of the bag–officially. After weeks of rampant speculation from fans, and complete silence from the handful of people in-the-know, the BBC announced that The Twelfth Doctor will be…
PETER CAPALDI
I daresay a lot of people in the US will have no clue who he is, though Who fans might recognize him from “The Fires of Pompeii” where he played Caecilius. You can read his Wikipedia bio by clicking HERE.
Some interesting Who facts:
- At 55, he is the oldest Doctor to be cast in the role since The First Doctor, William Hartnell.
- He is the same age as William Hartnell when he was cast. [Rather a strange coincidence for this 50th Anniversary year!]
- Capaldi is a life-long fan of Doctor Who.
- Just like the last life-long fan to play the Doctor [i.e., David Tennant], he’s Scottish.
- In the movie “World War Z” he plays a WHO Doctor.
My thoughts: I’m excited. I’m glad they went older. It’s been a while since we’ve had an over-40 in the role, and there’s no reason why a 50+ year old can’t still be energetic and wacky. Jon Pertwee was in his fifties when he played the Doctor, and his was known for being a more James Bond, action-oriented take on the part. Just from the look of Peter Capaldi, I expect a mix of gravitas and twinkle-eyed humor, kind of a cross between Pertwee, Troughton, and Eccleston. But we’ll see. His first appearance as the Doctor will be the regeneration on December 25th. Then from Season 8 in 2014, the TARDIS will be his.
What are your thoughts about this casting?
I punched the air when it was announced. When I heard he was the bookies favourite I thought ‘that would be wonderful, but it’ll never happen. He’s far too well known and busy to take on something as huge as Doctor Who… Didn’t know he was such a big fan though’. I’ll miss Matt Smith (and I’ll tell him so when I see him in November :D) but I’m looking forward to seeing what Peter Capaldi will do with it. Steve Moffat has the Season 8 arc already planned apparently!
By the sound of it, Capaldi, Tennant, and Moffat could make for quite the Who geek club! I think the mantle is being passed into safe hands. I have great expectations for season 8! 🙂
I’m always excited for each new Doctor when they’re announced. I’ll miss Smith a lot but I always look forward to a new regeneration. For New Who the DW team have got it right each time so I trust their decision to cast Peter Capaldi. I’m glad that he’s much older. I was worried Moffat was going to keep the Doctor young looking so it’s nice to see them upping the age.
I wonder if he’s still going to be disappointed with the hair colour.
I don’t know if “excited” is the word I’d use–nervous, is more the case for me. So much hangs on casting the right person, and even when the choice is announced, you never know how they’ll handle the part until their first story airs. Capaldi seems a really good pick, though. He’s an avid, rampant, geek-boy Who fan, so he’s in good company with Moffat (and David Tennant). I think the fact that Tennant is such a fan of the show helped him play the part so well, and I hope that holds true for Capaldi.
As for the hair colour… “I.. .I’m GREY??!” 😉
I just watched the live show where they introduced him as the new Doctor. He’s definitely got a mad look about him at times. I love that he’s another fan of the show. I think that’s where the strength can lie sometimes in the programme. The people working on it, both actors and crew, are huge fans. For some DW was their childhood so they have the same passion as the audience do.
I’m very curious to see how the Doctor will react to aging up a bit after being quite younger in the last two incarnations.
Yes, I agree with you on all points, Robin. Of course, part of where they take the 12th’s character depends on where they leave the 11th at the end of the Christmas Special. How will all that happens to him affect him? I can’t decide if Capaldi suits more of a more dignified First or Third Doctor type of incarnation, or more the mad doctor type. From the look of him, he could pull off either. 🙂