Paul slots into fame role
- Publication: Evening Echo
- Date: 1996-05-25
- Author: Neil Bonner
- Page: 5
- Language: English
PAUL MCGANN'S debut as the time-travelling Doctor Who is causing him sleepless nights.
Paul, one of the four actor McGann brothers, was delighted when he was picked to play the character's eighth incarnation.
But now that filming has been completed on the big-budget UK/American production, he admits that the sheer scale of the film, and the interest surrounding it, has left him a little breathless. "I always knew Doctor Who was going to be big news but I don't think I realised just how big it really was," says Paul, who's 36.
"In a way, it is quite scary and does fill your mind in the wee small hours.
"I feel a bit like Pierce Brosnan must have done when he took on the role of James Bond last year.
"I remember reading somewhere about the disorientation he felt at being a huge star in something that nobody had seen yet.
"It's the same for me in Doctor Who. I was just beginning work on the project in Vancouver, Canada, when the first BBC press release about the project went out.
"And I was in all the newspapers, and on lots of TV bulletins, for something that I'd hardly done a scene for!"
There is huge interest in this latest Doctor Who adventure, which is set (initially) on New Year's Eve, 1999 in Chinatown, San Francisco, and pits the doctor against old foe The Master, played by Hollywood hard man Eric Roberts, brother of Julia.
Not only is it reviving one of the most celebrated characters of TV science fiction after a seven-year absence. the film breaks expensive new ground.
Economy
Doctor Who was the show that used to pride itself on its economy sets.
Control consols made out of eggboxes and walls made from cardboard and silver paper were the norm in the 60s and 70s, but not anymore.
The new, £3 million film, co-financed by the BBC and Universal Television in America, uses state-of-the-art technology and sets that don't wobble when you touch them. Says Paul: "I did, secretly, expect Doctor Who to be a bit like Acorn Antiques in space because that was how it was in the black and white days of the 60s when I first saw it.
"But the interior of the Tardis, where a lot of the action takes place, is simply stunning in its detail and the other major set, the Cloister Room, where the doctor and The Master battle it out. looks like something out of a lavish Spielberg movie."
Much of the filming took place in a vast building on the outskirts of Vancouver, a location monitored day and night by Whovians, fanatical fans of the doctor who can recite whole episodes and know every last thing about the actors who have played their time-travelling hero. "The Whovians weren't allowed to come and go from the set because that would have disrupted filming and things were being done on a pretty tight schedule." says Paul.
"But I got to speak to some of them and they are sweet. There was hardly an anorak to be seen!"
As well as the greatly upgraded sets and costumes. Doctor Who has also become more politically correct.
Companion
He still has a female companion. Dr. Grace Wilson, played by American actress Daphne Ashbrook, but she is more self sufficient than the doctor's assistants used to be.
In fact, she comes to HIS rescue on more than one occasion!
Rumours, however, of an affair are well wide of the mark.
Caption: Paul McCann plays the new Dr. Who in a big budget series.
Disclaimer: These citations are created on-the-fly using primitive parsing techniques. You should double-check all citations. Send feedback to whovian@cuttingsarchive.org
- APA 6th ed.: Bonner, Neil (1996-05-25). Paul slots into fame role. Evening Echo p. 5.
- MLA 7th ed.: Bonner, Neil. "Paul slots into fame role." Evening Echo [add city] 1996-05-25, 5. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: Bonner, Neil. "Paul slots into fame role." Evening Echo, edition, sec., 1996-05-25
- Turabian: Bonner, Neil. "Paul slots into fame role." Evening Echo, 1996-05-25, section, 5 edition.
- Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Paul slots into fame role | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Paul_slots_into_fame_role | work=Evening Echo | pages=5 | date=1996-05-25 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=28 March 2025 }}</ref>
- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Paul slots into fame role | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Paul_slots_into_fame_role | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=28 March 2025}}</ref>
