Dr. Who goes back to college - as a lecturer
- Publication: Evening Herald
- Date: 1982-01-26
- Author: Helen Howard
- Page: 17
- Language: English
BECOMING a university lecturer is not just another role for actor Peter Davison, the newest and youngest Dr. Who. It's for real!
Thirty-year-old Davison, on BBC-1 at 7.05; tonight as the fifth, the least eccentric and most immaculately-dressed TV Time Lord so far, explains: "I'm inundated with invitations to speak at unversities which have Dr. Who societies.
"They take it frightfully. seriously, you know. Whoever is currently playing the doctor has to do homework with a vengeance.
"Like knowing that he has a body temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit and is 750 years old."
All of which shouldn't be too difficult for Peter he's been a fan of Dr. Who ever since the role was first played 18 years ago by the late William Hartnell.
INSIDE TV
As Dr. Who students won't need reminding, that doctor was an eccentric old professor from the planet Gallifrey.
And he had no more ardent fan than a certain London schoolboy 12-yearold Peter Davison..
What was his reaction on hearing he had got the plum role relinquished by Dr. No. 4, Tom Baker? "When the producer rang me up and offered me the part I was absolutely speechless," says Peter.
"I was even more amazed to see that it was given space in the evening's major TV news bulletins. I bet some of my friends thought I'd died when they saw my picture...
"It's a lot more than just an acting job. You somehow take on the mantle of Dr. Who and the instant charisma that goes with the job.
"And of course there are many young fans who have only known Tom Baker in the part. It's a bit worrying when you think of the responsibility.
"I know that when I was young I regarded the Doctor almost a god-like figure..." A lot has happened to Peter since those days, including his overnight stardom as the girl-chasing vet, Tristan Farnon, in All Creatures Great And Small.
MINOR ROLE
He recalls "It started off as a minor role and went on to be a bit embarrassing because I began getting more fan mail than the stars, Christopher Timothy and Robert Hardy.
"I think the reason was because Tristan was a bit of a lad and brimming over with self-confidence. The girls seemed to like that..
"There were lots of teenagers writing in and asking for photographs, and respectable housewives were among my greatest fans."
Peter's new self-confidence he confesses to once being painfully shy springs from 'his happiness with his second wife, American actress Sandra Dickinson.
The couple have teamed up. successfully to write songs and formed their own publishing company. Peter's most notable success was creating the theme music for the comedy series Mixed Blessings.
Mostly, Peter's career has involved "Nice Guy" roles - except when he got involved with gangsters and corruption in the TV thriller about computers, Print-Out.
"I suppose I got pushed into acting because I wasn't very academic at school and could only muster a trio of O Levels," he says.
"That left me plenty of time to concentrate on amateur drama. I soon abandoned an earlier and not very enthusiastic ambition to be a schoolteacher." Recently Peter has starred in Holding The Fort. TV's comedy series about role reversals, and Sink Or Swim, the sit-com which was one of the hits of the winter.
He says: "Sink Or Swim was a great relief because a lot of viewers didn't recognise me. After All Creatures Great
And Small, I had this anxiety that would be inundated with similar roles keen. public school parts.
"But, thank goodness, that didn't happen."
He also confesses that he wasn't too sorry when the decision was made to bring down the curtain on the James Herriot series: "I hated getting up on a cold Yorkshire morning to film, and it took a long time to work up. any enthusiasm for cows and sheep.
"Even now, I can't stand pigs!"
And so what are his plans for Dr. Who? Peter declares: "I think you can expect rather more action by the hero than previously.
"I'll be able to move a bit faster than some of my middle-aged predecesors!
"And I'll be relying on less. eccentric trappings definitely no floppy hat and 17-foot scarf."
Caption: Peter Davison ... pushed into acting
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.: Howard, Helen (1982-01-26). Dr. Who goes back to college - as a lecturer. Evening Herald p. 17.
- MLA 7th ed.: Howard, Helen. "Dr. Who goes back to college - as a lecturer." Evening Herald [add city] 1982-01-26, 17. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: Howard, Helen. "Dr. Who goes back to college - as a lecturer." Evening Herald, edition, sec., 1982-01-26
- Turabian: Howard, Helen. "Dr. Who goes back to college - as a lecturer." Evening Herald, 1982-01-26, section, 17 edition.
- Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Dr. Who goes back to college - as a lecturer | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Dr._Who_goes_back_to_college_-_as_a_lecturer | work=Evening Herald | pages=17 | date=1982-01-26 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=21 April 2025 }}</ref>
- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Dr. Who goes back to college - as a lecturer | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Dr._Who_goes_back_to_college_-_as_a_lecturer | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=21 April 2025}}</ref>
