Doctor Who: Why Derek Jacobi’s Master is the closest match to the original

Roger Delgado was iconic as the original Master. But which successor matches him closest in style?

(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.

Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)

For many Doctor Who fans, Roger Delgado’s Master is still unmatched. But there might be one incarnation of the New Series who’s a closer match than any other successor…

Now, I’m sure many fans of Classic era Doctor Who are already keen to disagree with that title. After all, not only is Roger Delgado’s Master still greatly loved, even today. But we also had the incredibly long-running Anthony Ainley in the Eighties, too. With his distinctive beard, grand schemes and classical villainy, Ainley’s Master was clearly intended to be a stylistic successor to Delgado.

At the same time, however, Ainley was still distinctly different. He was more noticeably pantomime at times, and he relied on physical disguises more than Delgado’s incarnation did. (Although the latter certainly wasn’t afraid of using them himself, from time to time.)

In some ways, the villainy was almost too obvious with Ainley at times, at least when you compare him to Delgado’s incarnation. This was more down to the writing than the performance, though. While Ainley got a large number of stories, arguably very few of those matched up to the best that Delgado got.

Personally, while I think the writers tried to capture the success of the original Master for Ainley’s version, they forgot the real strengths of the character. As a result, while Ainley was a fun and enjoyable Master in his own right, he never quite captured the magic of Delgado’s original performance.

Derek Jacobi, however…

On TV, Jacobi’s incarnation of the Master got very little screen time. But on audio, he just might be one of the greatest since Delgado himself…

(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.

Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)

New and yet classic

Now, if I was basing my opinion on the very few scenes Jacobi had as the Master on television, this would be an unfair comparison. But thankfully, we now have far more than that.

For over a year now, Big Finish have been giving us many more adventures of Jacobi’s incarnation. And, whether it’s in his own series The War Master, or even in another spin-off altogether, it’s an incarnation that’s consistently well-written and brilliantly performed. In fact, it just might be one of the best interpretations we’ve had of the Master in a long time.

And that’s not surprising. Because this particular incarnation shares many traits with Delgado’s. More so than most.

For example, one thing that instantly leaps out about Jacobi’s Master is how deceptively charming he is. In his own series especially, he comes across as a very likable character. At least, when he’s working towards his own agenda and has to take the long term approach. In both the first and second series of The War Master, people found him an easy character to trust. Of course, that would lead to their downfall.

This natural charm was something Delgado’s Master had, too. He very rarely used physical disguises, because he didn’t need them. He usually got by on how easily approachable and likable he was. Sometimes, hypnotism, too, but not too often. (Jacobi’s Master also enjoys being a hypnotist, from time to time.)

The War Master has a rich life on audio. But despite working so well in the New Series mythology of the Time War, he’s also very reminiscent of the original Master.

(Photo credit: Doctor Who/Big Finish Productions.

Image obtained from: Big Finish Productions.)

Charming but deadly

He also comes across as genuinely dangerous. When he stops using charm to get what he wants, he’s instantly threatening, even deadly. We all remember what happened to poor Chantho when she pulled a gun on him.

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This was something that Delgado was also able to do. Some other Masters have achieved this, but not quite to the same extent as either Jacobi or Delgado.

Finally, Jacobi’s performance has a strong sense of class. This is an element that’s somewhat harder to describe, but it’s there. Closely linked in with the charm, you can imagine this Master blending in with the upper class very easily. You definitely don’t get that same level of sophistication with Simm’s Master, or even some of the earlier Masters, other than Delgado.

Roger Delgado still remains my all-time favorite Master, and will remain so for a long time to come. But, of all the incarnations introduced in the New Series, Jacobi has now become my favorite. It was absolutely criminal that he had such a short time in the role, but I’m glad that Big Finish have given him the era he so richly deserves. And, while he’s far from a copy of Delgado’s original, he does so effortlessly capture everything that made the character so brilliant in the first place.

Do you agree that Jacobi’s the closest to matching Delgado’s Master in terms of style? Do you think Ainley still captures that best? Or do you think that no one will ever come close to matching Delgado? Let us know in the comments below.