Doctor Who: Christopher Eccleston Regrets Not Continuing in Role of the Ninth Doctor
By Leah Tedesco
Christopher Eccleston may have had issues with Doctor Who executives, but not with the role of the Doctor. His decision to leave the show is something that he finds regrettable.
It is well known amongst fans of Doctor Who that Christopher Eccleston butt heads with the program’s executives while he was working on the show. In a recent interview with 774 ABC Melbourne’s Drive with Raf Epstein, however, the actor discusses the fact that he did not totally want to leave the role, but rather felt forced out due to conflicts.
He feels that the brevity of his time on the show was “tragic” because, due to his “great deal of professional pride,” he wanted a chance to improve upon his performance of a “beautiful character.” In an acknowledgement that he was unaccustomed to “playing light comedy,” he asserts that his performance would have markedly improved in a hypothetical second season.
More from Winter is Coming
- For All Mankind finally gives us information in Episode 405, “Goldilocks”
- Watch a stunning VFX breakdown of The Wheel of Time season 2
- Of course Steve Toussaint (Corlys Velaryon) thinks Eve Best (Rhaenys Targaryen) should rule Westeros
- Confirmed: The Last of Us season 2 will air in 2025
- Final season of Star Trek: Discovery will have “a lot of action, a lot of adventure, a lot of fun”
When Epstein credits Eccleston with the success of the revival of Doctor Who, the actor humbly passes that credit onto showrunner Russell T Davies. Despite this, Eccleston is “very proud” of being part of the popular phenomenon, despite “a really badly organized and certainly badly produced first series.”
Also in the interview, Eccleston mentions his interest in novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, the play adaptation of which new Doctor’s companion actor Pearl Mackie recently starred.
The entire interview can be heard below:
On October 5th, Eccleston will be doing a reading of The Time Machine by H.G. Wells with fellow actors MyAnna Buring and Nikki Amuka-Bird in the 10th London Literature Festival: Living in Future Times at the Royal Festival Hall in Southbank Centre in London, England. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.
(Article continues below the next post link.)
Next: Andrew Smith Pens New War Doctor Adventure for Big Finish