A Who's Who

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• Publication: Chicago Sun-Times
• Date: 2013-11-29
• Author: John Grochowski
• Page: Agenda, p. 9
• Language: English
• Notes: The unedited transcript of the interview is here

50th anniversary of iconic series brings together a collection of Docs for TARDIS

Caption: Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor (from left), David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor, and John Hurt in the 50th anniversary special "The Day of the Doctor."

Fans of "Doctor Who" are used to past, present and future colliding in the popular BBC science fiction series that is in its 50th anniversary year. For Peter Davison, the fifth actor to play the Time Lord, time-space collisions seem a part of life too.

Davison, one of three Doctors headlining the Chicago TARDIS fan convention in its three-day run starting Nov. 29 at the Westin Lombard Yorktown Center, is the father of Georgia Moffett, who in 2008 played the title character in the 10th Doctor story, "The Doctor's Daughter." And the Doctor's daughter became the Doctor's wife when she married David Tennant in 2011.

"You should have heard the father-of-the-bride speech," Davison said. "I had to stop where it got to the point where it seemed like she married me."

Thanksgiving weekend "Doctor Who" celebrations have been a fixture in the Chicago area since 1983, and this one spans the entire series run. Sixth Doctor Colin Baker and Eighth Doctor Paul McGann will join Davison. So will companions and guest stars from the classic series that ran 1963-80, the TV movie of 1996 and the revived series that has brought new popularity to the show since 2005.

There's much for fans to celebrate. "The Day of the Doctor" anniversary special that recently

aired on BBC America brought together 11th Doctor Matt Smith and No. 10 Tennant. A new Doctor, Peter Capaldi, has been cast to replace Smith, whose last story will air on Christmas Day. Nine long-lost episodes starring Second Doctor Patrick Troughton recently were recovered. And an anniversary special starring Doctors from the original series has been released for online distribution.

"Somebody asked, funnily enough, at the convention, if we were going to be in the 50th anniversary," said Davison, long in demand on British television and currently a regular on "Law and Order U.K." "And I kind of jokingly said, 'If I'm not, I'm damn well going to make my own 50th anniversary special.' Then I was asked again at another convention and I thought I'd better get down to this."

Cast at age 29 fresh off his role as young veterinarian Tristan Farnon in "All Creatures Great and Small," Davison was youngest Doctor until Smith took over at age 26. He was the first Doctor who grew up as a fan, with Troughton as his favorite. Tennant also grew up as a fan, watching his future father-in-law. They worked together in the charity special "Time Crash," with the 10th Doctor giving the fifth a heartfelt, "You were MY Doctor."

"[Producer] Steven Moffat came to me and said, 'I've written this for the Children in Need [BBC charity appeal] and would you like to do it?' I read it and thought it was a fantastic little script that worked on two levels. It was the 10th Doctor remembering being the Fifth Doctor, but it was also David remembering watching me as the Doctor. It was just brilliantly done."

Also brilliantly done, he says, is the new series, which he watches regularly with his 12- and 14-year-old sons.

"The scripts now are almost invariably written by people with a passion for the genre of 'Doctor Who' itself, and I think that shows," Davison said. "I love some of Russell T's [Davies] scripts and Steven Moffat's scripts and Mark Gatiss' scripts. They're all super 'Doctor Who' fans. They've changed the genre, and I do have some arguments with that. To me it's a bit too wham, bam. Things happen very quickly and there is no time to develop a story. But the story itself, I always think is very good."

CHICAGO TARDIS, featuring Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Paul McGann and a cast of dozens. Registration opens 8 a.m. Nov. 29-30; 9 a.m. Dec. 1. Admission: One-day admission, $50 (Saturday sold out); limited quantity of 3-day and Friday-only admission tickets available at the door Friday; limited quantity of Sunday-only tickets available at the door Sunday. Visit chicagotardis.com

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.: Grochowski, John (2013-11-29). A Who's Who. Chicago Sun-Times p. Agenda, p. 9.
• MLA 7th ed.: Grochowski, John. "A Who's Who." Chicago Sun-Times [add city] 2013-11-29, Agenda, p. 9. Print.
• Chicago 15th ed.: Grochowski, John. "A Who's Who." Chicago Sun-Times, edition, sec., 2013-11-29
• Turabian: Grochowski, John. "A Who's Who." Chicago Sun-Times, 2013-11-29, section, Agenda, p. 9 edition.
• Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=A Who's Who | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/A_Who%27s_Who | work=Chicago Sun-Times | pages=Agenda, p. 9 | date=2013-11-29 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=4 May 2025 }}</ref>
• Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=A Who's Who | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/A_Who%27s_Who | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=4 May 2025}}</ref>