Tom Baker’s wit is expectedly sharp in an informative Doctor Who QVC UK segment back in 2001.
Tom Baker QVC UK 2001 – credit: youtube.com
If you want to make an event more interesting, invite Tom Baker. This has been evidenced countless times, including a QVC UK appearance during a Doctor Who memorabilia segment in 2001, highlights of which can be seen in two Youtube videos, which are posted at the end of this article. The banter is surprisingly funny for a shopping channel, but not surprising for Baker. He does a bit of roasting, so brace yourselves. Aside from the humor, the segment is actually an insightful interview.
The host opens the discussion by referencing his scarf. Baker reveals that it is located at “the Museum of Modern Art in New York.” I am not sure, however, if he means the Museum of Modern Art, or the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This is because, when I attempted to research the topic, the only other source that I could find was this article from 2009, in which Baker is quoted as saying, “The hat and scarf are in the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art.” I am guessing it is the former because, a) it makes sense to have television memorabilia presented as modern art and b) there is no Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art in New York.
Anyway, he jokingly continues:
"“I am expected to join it at the end of my life. They’re going to give me… Apparently, it’s all arranged by the BBC, who are very thorough about these matters. They’re not going to bury me. They’re going to give me a coat of varnish and stand me in the corner. I look forward to it, really.”"
Next: Page 2: Tom Baker is Very Amusing on QVC UK in 2001
Fourth Doctor underpants, QVC UK 2001 – credit: youtube.com
Do you own any Doctor Who underwear? Are they vintage underpants with the Fourth Doctor’s face? Depending on their condition, they may be somewhat valuable. The QVC host points out a picture of just such a pair in the Doctor Who memorabilia handbook, which, at the time, priced them at $45. Baker refers to the underpants as “an intimate little thing” and “a nice touch, I suppose.” The host then reflects that he thinks that he “had some like that.”
My fiance has Dalek boxers, but the above example takes things to a whole other level. Intimate, indeed.
When the host points out that the Doctor Who memorabilia guide is unofficial, Baker remarks that:
"“[It’s] much more valuable because, you know, having nothing to do with the BBC, of course it’s actually competent and… uh, you know, understandable.”"
The host replies, “No comment. I’m still looking for other work, you see.”
The conversation moves on to the fact that use of Jelly Babies on the show was Baker’s idea. He recalls when the BBC (which he sarcastically calls “really sensitive”) wanted the Doctor to draw a knife on someone, but he refused, deciding to use a Jelly Baby instead. The reasoning was that someone on another planet would not know whether or not the object that the Doctor was holding was a weapon or not, so they would just have to take his word for it. He is, of course, referring to the story ‘The Face of Evil.’
He also noted that the children viewers took to the idea a few months before the BBC understood what a clever one it was, and that this was a common pattern.
Next: Page 3: Tom Baker is Very Amusing on QVC UK in 2001
the QVC UK host saying “beautiful twist” in response to Tom Baker’s desire to play the Master – credit: youtube.com
The host takes a caller named Susan, who asks Baker if he would “ever come back as the best Doctor ever?” He replies, “Yes, I would if you were in charge of it, Susan.” Then he presents a “very witty” idea:
"“I’m not begging the BBC for a job here, ’cause I wouldn’t beg the BBC for anything. You’d starve if you tried to beg from the BBC. But it would be very interesting to me if they brought me back as the Master. . . . The Master and Doctor Who, or Holmes and Moriarty . . . the hero is only the other side of the villain. Otherwise, he doesn’t have an existence. But that would be an interesting thing to do. It would also allow the actor to do a double take, wouldn’t it? It would allow me to do a double take. I like doing double takes.”"
Susan’s second question is regarding why Baker had not recorded any audio adventures as had the other Doctors. He claims that it was because he had not yet been presented with a script that he likes, and if he was given one, he would do it. And then, more cheek:
"“I can’t speak for the other fellows. Who are they? I only found out recently that there were other Doctors. I didn’t know that.”"
Next: Page 4: Tom Baker is Very Amusing on QVC UK in 2001
QVC UK signed photograph of Elisabeth Sladen and Tom Baker in front of the TARDIS – credit: youtube.com
At one point, Baker and the host get into a in-depth discussion about what goes into playing a role such as the Doctor.
"Host: Something which I’ve noticed about you — having met you for the first time today, having seen you as Doctor Who time and time again growing up — quite a lot of your character outside of Doctor Who is part of Doctor Who. So, you clearly had quite an influence as to the character you were portraying. Would that be a fair point?More from Doctor WhoNcuti Gatwa’s Doctor Who Christmas special is a “complete reinvention”Ncuti Gatwa is “so nervous” to take on Doctor Who roleThe Doctor and Donna are better than ever in “Wild Blue Yonder”Take the Black: House of the Dragon season 2 trailer hints, the Fallout show, and moreJodie Whittaker didn’t pick up on any of the hate for her version of the DoctorBaker: Well, yeah, it would. It would be a very fair point. The thing is, you see, that in Doctor Who — when you play Doctor Who, when you play Sherlock Holmes, or whatever those heroes are — there is no acting required because there’s no development. You know, Doctor Who is not suddenly going to become corrupt or violent or evil or whatever it is. He is utterly predictable. So, the laugh and the larks when we were doing it was how, within predictability, could we be amusing, and could we be thrilling, and exciting, you know? It’s very like life, really. So much about ordinary domestic life is utterly predictable. And somehow or other we have to approach it in a way that, you know, makes yet another dinner, yet another glass of wine, an exciting moment, you know? And it can be done with imagination and generosity; The predictable can be made new."
Next: Page 5: Tom Baker is Very Amusing on QVC UK in 2001
Tom Baker and QVC UK host 2001 – credit: youtube.com
Some actors long to play certain roles. This is a lifelong goal for some, especially when it comes to the Doctor. For Tom Baker, however, the role of the Doctor just sort of came out of nowhere for him. He and the host discuss how Baker came to be on Doctor Who:
"Host: How did you become the Doctor? Did you set out to be the Fourth Doctor?Baker: No, no. I didn’t set out to do anything.Host: How did you get the job?Baker: Well, it just happened to me.Host: Audition?Baker: Well, no. It just happened. I was in a film called The Golden Voyage of Sinbad. And they were recasting the Doctor, and the BBC producers went to see the film, and then they saw me and they took a flyer on me. But they did see me in a special effects movie, Ray Harryhausen‘s The Golden Voyage of Sinbad.Host: So, that whet their appetite.Baker: Of course, yeah. They saw that I was very familiar with working with monsters. And if you want to work for the BBC, you’re going to get nowhere unless you can deal with monsters… at every level. And so, naturally, I took to it.Host: You would do so well here as a permanent host.[Baker laughs]"
Next: Page 6: Tom Baker is Very Amusing on QVC UK in 2001
Fourth Doctor publicity shot collectable card QVC UK – credit: youtube.com
The video transitions to the host presenting a collectable card featuring a publicity shot of the Fourth Doctor. He notes the “infamous scarf” and the missing hat.
"Baker: We often had to take the hat off because of the lighting . . . BBC lighting. Monstrous. I mean, hideously bland."
In response to the host remarking that he did not see Paul McGann’s 1996 Doctor Who film, Baker says:
"“No, hardly anybody did. I mean, apparently there’s a kind of society of the two hundred and eleven people who did see the film, but they’re thinning out. Yes, apparently they’re dying rapidly of disappointment.”"
Ouch, man.
In regards to how simple the special effects used to be, Baker says:
"“The children were allowed a lot of imaginative responsibility, you see? It wasn’t all spelled out for them, you know. And it was strange and sometimes scary and sometimes very silly like life… and the children just responded to all that. Because, I mean, the children love being frightened when they know, really, that I’m going to win, don’t they? And it was very popular with grannies, you see, grandmothers, because when the children were frightened, the children would bury their heads in their grannies’ bosoms. And the grannies used to like me for that.”"
The topic takes a bit of a naughty turn after that. You will have to watch the video to see for yourself.
For more laughs and Doctor Who behind-the-scenes information, here are the videos:
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