This was inspired by Craig Majors’ post on Mastodon, when he listed his favourite Doctor Who actors.
A lot of Whovians will completely disagree with my ranking, but one hopes that the fandom is generous and tolerant enough to accept that everyone sees things differently. The only time the world agreed on who was their favourite Doctor Who (yes, I know, but I began watching when that was the screen credit) was when there had only been one actor in the role.
None of them are bad actors, but some were ill served by the machinery. Some rose to the top in spite of what they had to deal with. Others were suppressed, victims of bad decision-making behind the scenes. The ranking also takes into account when I saw the actor in the role, e.g. I have not rewatched many of the Fourth or Fifth Doctors’ stories since they were on, and poor Colin Baker didn’t even get a terrestrial TV airing here in New Zealand, Doctor Who having been cancelled.
What can I say? Ncuti Gatwa did a brilliant job. No wonder he only needed a single audition to land the job. I could see what he was trying to achieve, sometimes in spite of the scripts he was handed. I loved his energy. And finally, I could relate to a person of colour in the role.
Peter Capaldi: nice to see one of the biggest Doctor Who fans finally getting the keys to the TARDIS, then pulling it off with a performance that referenced the first two decades’ characterizations. Capaldi linked us back to the classic era of 1963–89. He even referred to the character as Doctor Who in interviews. It wasn’t such a sin back in the day—they all did it, right up to Colin Baker. (I can’t remember if Sylvester McCoy did.)
In the classic era, Jon Pertwee was hands-down my favourite Doctor. I could relate to the earthbound stories, and being a motorhead, Bessie was always a welcome sight. I began watching Pertwee in the role in repeats during the Tom Baker era, and was put off at a young age by the Baker serials. I probably would appreciate them hugely now, but I’ve not seen many as an adult.
Matt Smith looked alien enough to be an alien, and looked like he was having fun doing the job, while Christopher Eccleston was the man. In 2005, he was the modern Doctor as I imagined him to be—more focused, deeper, and not burdened by silly clothes.
If I had to insert the non-canon Peter Cushing, he’d be next.
Gatwa
Capaldi
Pertwee
Smith
Eccleston
Troughton
McGann
T. Baker
Hurt
Tennant
Martin
Whittaker
Hartnell
McCoy
Davison
C. Baker
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