Doctor Who News, Articles, Cast and Crew Interviews

[Alan]

According to The Telegraph:

Matt Smith to quit Doctor Who after Christmas special
Matt Smith, the actor, will step down from the role of Doctor Who at the end of the year.

[Blencathra]

Alan, I can't get your link to work. Is it OK for everyone else or is it just me?

Edit - Never mind - found another. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/t...s-special.html

[Blencathra]

Tweet from Jenni Pain, Doctor Who publicist

#DoctorWho fans make sure to watch the 10.30pm news bulletin on #BBC1. BIG NEWS!

[Blencathra]

Official Announcement

Matt Smith announces he is to leave Doctor Who

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/doctorwho...ave-Doctor-Who

The BBC is today announcing that Matt Smith is to leave Doctor Who after four incredible years on the hit BBC One show. Matt first stepped into the TARDIS in 2010 and will leave the role at the end of this year after starring in the unmissable 50th Anniversary in November and regenerating in the Christmas special. During his time as the Doctor, Matt has reached over 30 million unique UK viewers and his incarnation has seen the show go truly global. He was also the first actor to be nominated for a BAFTA in the role.

Matt quickly won over fans to be voted Best Actor by Readers of Doctor Who Magazine for the 2010 season. He also received a nod for his first series at the National Television Awards, before winning the Most Popular Male Drama Performance award in 2012.

Matt has played one of the biggest roles in TV with over 77 million fans in the UK, USA and Australia alone!

Matt Smith says:

"Doctor Who has been the most brilliant experience for me as an actor and a bloke, and that largely is down to the cast, crew and fans of the show. I'm incredibly grateful to all the cast and crew who work tirelessly every day, to realise all the elements of the show and deliver Doctor Who to the audience. Many of them have become good friends and I'm incredibly proud of what we have achieved over the last four years.

Having Steven Moffat as show runner write such varied, funny, mind bending and brilliant scripts has been one of the greatest and most rewarding challenges of my career. It's been a privilege and a treat to work with Steven, he's a good friend and will continue to shape a brilliant world for the Doctor.

The fans of Doctor Who around the world are unlike any other; they dress up, shout louder, know more about the history of the show (and speculate more about the future of the show) in a way that I've never seen before, your dedication is truly remarkable. Thank you so very much for supporting my incarnation of the Time Lord, number Eleven, who I might add is not done yet, I'm back for the 50th anniversary and the Christmas special!

It's been an honour to play this part, to follow the legacy of brilliant actors, and helm the TARDIS for a spell with 'the ginger, the nose and the impossible one'. But when ya gotta go, ya gotta go and Trenzalore calls. Thank you guys. Matt."

Steven Moffat, lead writer and executive producer, says :

"Every day, on every episode, in every set of rushes, Matt Smith surprised me: the way he'd turn a line, or spin on his heels, or make something funny, or out of nowhere make me cry, I just never knew what was coming next. The Doctor can be clown and hero, often at the same time, and Matt rose to both challenges magnificently. And even better than that, given the pressures of this extraordinary show, he is one of the nicest and hardest-working people I have ever had the privilege of knowing. Whatever we threw at him - sometimes literally - his behaviour was always worthy of the Doctor.

But great actors always know when it's time for the curtain call, so this Christmas prepare for your hearts to break, as we say goodbye to number Eleven. Thank you Matt - bow ties were never cooler.

Of course, this isn't the end of the story, because now the search begins. Somewhere out there right now - all unknowing, just going about their business - is someone who's about to become the Doctor. A life is going to change, and Doctor Who will be born all over again! After 50 years, that's still so exciting!"

Having starred alongside three different companions, Amy Pond (Karen Gillan), Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill) and most recently Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman), Matt's Doctor has fought Daleks and Cybermen, as well as Weeping Angels in New York. Regularly heard shouting 'run' and 'Geronimo', through Matt's Doctor fans have been introduced to a new culinary combination - fish fingers and custard!

Matt's spectacular exit is yet to be revealed and will be kept tightly under wraps. He will return to BBC One screens in the unmissable 50th anniversary episode on Saturday 23rd November 2013 - TUNE IN!

We’ll have exclusive quotes from Jenna on this site tomorrow and a special video from Matt - coming soon!

[Teddybrown]

Oh, earlier than expected.
Sad news, but sort of expected after all the speculation...

[Sealurk]

As if I needed another reason to dislike Christmas...

Not unexpected but still very sad to see him go. Eleven was my Doctor.

[Greenee]

*sights* Well, kind of thouhgt he would leave soon. But I don't want him to go. He IS brilant. And I never like it, when the Doctor is changing (until I got used to the next and want him to stay forever and so on).

[Greenee]

*sights* Well, kind of thouhgt he would leave soon. But I don't want him to go. He IS brilant. And I never like it, when the Doctor is changing (until I got used to the next and want him to stay forever and so on).

[Teddybrown]

So, Im guessing that since the 50th Anniversary has been filmed, we will be seeing the change at Christmas

So the search begins...
Will this delay Series 8?

[Blencathra]

I'm so sad he is going as well. More tears at Christmas. (I still haven't even recovered a tiny bit from The Name of the Doctor).

Some tweets

Mark Gatiss

Desperately sorry to see Matt Smith go. A truly wonderful Doctor Who, a gifted actor & a lovely man. It's the end. But ( altogether now!)...

Tom Spilsbury

I am very sad to see Matt Smith leave. He has been a brilliant Doctor Who, as well as being a kind and generous man. Thanks from all at DWM.

Gareth Roberts

Very sad Matt Smith will depart from Doctor Who. A brilliant actor and a good man.

Edit - #ThankYouMatt and Matt Smith trending on twitter.

[DigiFluid]

The heck? Didn't Smith and Coleman both already say they were on board for next season?

[Alan]

Well I'm incredibly saddened at the departure of Matt Smith. He's just been amazingly brilliant as the Doctor. Correction: He IS amazingly brilliant as the Doctor! We've still got the Anniversary movie and the Christmas movie to go before the Doctor goes and changes his face and dress sense for the eleventh time.

I am shocked. I thought a week or so ago he confirmed he was going to be back for Series 34 (aka Series 8) for 2014...unless they were keeping up Rule #1 - The Doctor lies.

So there's one question that need answering now:

1) Who should play the Doctor's 12th incarnation?

Following that there's two other questions that seem to get brought up in the lead up to regeneration and they are:

2) Should the Doctor now be a woman?

3) Should the Doctor have a change of ethnicity?

What is everyone's thoughts?

[Blencathra]

Digi - Matt had said something on the lines of that this summer "we" will be making the Christmas Special and then Series 8, so people assumed (quite reasonably I thought) that he was on board for series 8. But there was nothing official from the BBC. I don't know about Jenna.

Nice tribute in The Telegraph - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/t...ic-energy.html

Alan - I'm so shocked and heartbroken as well.

[Teddybrown]

The heck? Didn't Smith and Coleman both already say they were on board for next season?

Im pretty sure I saw an official confirmation for Jenna, and she has said shes around for series 8...

Heres what Matt said about series 8
http://doctorwhotv.co.uk/matt-smith-...2014-49463.htm

[MasySyma]

I'm ecstatic!

To be fair to Matt Smith, he has done extremely well in the role, and my dislike for the current season was about the writing and not his performance. I wish him well in future roles.

That said, change is good. Especially on Who. Perhaps a regeneration is exactly what is needed to reboot the show in a better direction.

That said, I will remember the 11 of the Eleventh Hour, an episode that I enjoyed entirely because of Matt Smith.