Who's Da Man

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• Publication: Stack
• Date: November 2012
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• Page: 100
• Language: English

Donning the compulsory tweed for the third time, Matt Smith gets ready for more adventures through space and time as DOCTOR WHO. Here he talks about the new series, what fans have to look forward to, and saying goodbye to the Ponds.

Asylum of the Daleks is going to be a cracker," states Matt Smith excitedly, in reference to the opener of the new series of Doctor Who. "Steven [Moffat] has written an absolute belter and we have made the Daleks scary again, something I am not sure we got right before."

With Asylum of the Daleks featuring Daleks from all of the decades, does Smith have any favourites? "Absolutely! The blue and white ones from the 1960s, I think they are from the Troughton era... they are just kind of groovy, smaller but fantastic.

The day we filmed with all of those Daleks, there was such an excitable atmosphere on set from cast and crew alike. It was a brilliant few days at work!"

With five big adventures for the Doctor and his companions, this series is set to be epic. There are five standalone episodes, featuring everything from Daleks to dinosaurs and of course, the departure of the Ponds. So does Smith have a preferred episode? "Well I love Asylum of the Daleks and episode five, but I am immensely proud of all of them," he says.

The second episode takes viewers on an incredible prehistoric adventure in the self-explanatory Dinosaurs on a Spaceship. So how did Smith react when he first heard those four words? "Steven, you are a genius!" he recalls. "It's Doctor Who in a nutshell. I have always wanted to do a dinosaur episode, so I was very pleased to get the chance. I think it is such a fun episode with a wonderfully crafted script by Chris Chibnall."

During this series, Matt Smith's Doctor is faced with a lot of new challenges. Not only did he get to live out a childhood dream of becoming a cowboy for the day - by riding a horse in the western themed episode A Town Called Mercy--but he also got the once in a lifetime opportunity... to ride a dinosaur. More painful than you can imagine. "I had to wear padded trousers," he explains. "Dinosaurs are a lot lumpier than horses, so it was a painful couple of hours. A laugh though, and definitely worth it as it's going to look great."

Smith also got his first taste as the Doctor in saying goodbye to travelling companions, with the departure of Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and Rory (Arthur Darvill). "It was terribly sad and I do miss them as they are such great chums," he laments. "We knew it was coming, but just didn't believe it. It is one of those things like when you are on holiday and you suddenly realise it is Friday and you are going home on Monday. But that is what the show is about, evolution and regeneration, and we now have [new companion] Jenna-Louise Coleman, who is lovely and great."

So did he agree with Moffat's choice to send them out in an episode with the Weeping Angels? "Oh absolutely. I think I can speak for all of us when I say that the Weeping Angels are one of our favourite monsters," Smith replies. "The fact that they don't speak just makes them crueller. And with the last episode set in New York and to have River Song back, it all just made sense. I really think Karen and Arthur go out with a hang and tear!"

Stupid dancing, stupid faces and stupid everything is how Matt sums up what he will miss most about having Karen and Arthur on set. "And being ridiculous," he acids.

"There were points when we wouldn't even have conversations, but just make noises at each other. We had a laugh and that really informed the energy and spirit of the show. The relationship between our characters on screen and off screen really blurred!"

Renowned for his pranks on set, Smith gleefully explains how much he used to enjoy making Karen scream. "I used to hide in her trailer a lot and just jump out at her and she is a real screamer. Or I would dance really close to her face, which would also make her scream! It was very much like a brother and sister relationship, with Arthur and I pranking her like older brothers!"

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• APA 6th ed.: (November 2012). Who's Da Man. Stack p. 100.
• MLA 7th ed.: "Who's Da Man." Stack [add city] November 2012, 100. Print.
• Chicago 15th ed.: "Who's Da Man." Stack, edition, sec., November 2012
• Turabian: "Who's Da Man." Stack, November 2012, section, 100 edition.
• Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Who's Da Man | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Who%27s_Da_Man | work=Stack | pages=100 | date=November 2012 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=23 November 2024 }}</ref>
• Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Who's Da Man | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Who%27s_Da_Man | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=23 November 2024}}</ref>