Ricblog

Of course it does, Matt Smith was announced as the next Doctor only yesterday. I guess the question i’m really asking is this; does Doctor Who have a stable future once David Tennant has left? I’d like to think the show will go from strength to strength, but I have some very serious doubts. As good as the Christopher Ecclestone first series  was, it was the second series when Doctor Who firmly found it’s feet.  Everyone could relate to Tennant’s portrayal  of the doctor. He was geeky, but cool. Lanky, but sexy. Intelligent but funny. In may ways he was just like me…..ahem. His performance was majestic and he’s gone on to become the nations all time favourite Doctor, knocking Tom Baker of the top spot.  Talking of Tom Baker, he was replaced with a younger Doctor, a certain Peter Davison. Davison was young and replacing Baker’s iconic Doctor was risky. Ignore what Doctor Who Confidential says, Davison taking the role was a complete disaster, and the show went into a steep decline.  I’m old enough to remember Davison as the Doctor. In 1984 I found the show rather boring, but I occasionally watched it and I remember watching Colin Baker emerge as the next Doctor at my Nana’s house and being slightly intrigued, as It was the first time i’d seen the Doctor regenerate. However, by this time the show was considered a complete joke and none of the kids I knew at school bothered watching it. Everyone was into Knight Rider and Airwolf. Doctor Who had had it’s day and after one further gaff (casting Sylvestor Mccoy ) the show was quite rightly cancelled. So, the problem seemed to stem from casting a far younger actor to replace an established and much loved Doctor.  Could history repeat itself? Well, in many ways it already has. Matt Smith is only 26 and is stepping into a very difficult pair of shoes. To many people (including myself) David Tennant is THE Doctor in the same way that people used to think Tom Baker had that exclusive honour. It’s an impossible task to play that role when your predecessor is held in such high regard. It killed the show in the 1980’s and I fear the same might happen again. I hope i’m wrong. But whatever happens watching David Tennant play the Doctor will always be the greatest. He’s the man that brought the character back alive. I’ll reserve judgment on Matt Smith until 2010, he might be brilliant….we’ll just have to wait and see.