I got stuck in a rut with all the time travel says Doctor
‘They want the same thing all the time’
AS TV’s most famous time traveller, he has crossed galaxies and spanned centuries.
Yet for Doctor Who star Peter Capaldi the Tardis experience became too much of a routine.
The 59-year-old Scot has confessed that he is giving up being a Time Lord because he found himself stuck in a rut.
‘I love this show,’ he told the Radio Times. ‘But I’ve never done anything where you turn up every day for ten months.
‘I want to be always giving it my best, and I don’t think if I stayed on I’d be able to do that.
‘I can’t think of another way to say: “This could be the end of civilisation as we know it.” With episodic television of any genre, the audience wants the same thing all the time – but the instinct that leads the actor is not about being in a groove.’
His confession comes as season ten of the series approaches its final two episodes, in which Capaldi will meet his demise before the Doctor regenerates in the form of another actor.
Leaving the series with him will be scriptwriter Steven Moffat from Paisley and Michelle Gomez, who plays archvillain Missy and, like Capaldi, is from Glasgow.
Moffat has been widely credited as the brains behind the show in recent years after taking the helm in 2010 following its 2005 rebirth.
Miss Gomez, 50, who has made regular appearances in the franchise since 2014, said: ‘Me, Peter and Steven are all basically from the same city. The Weegie sense of humour and attitude did give us almost a shorthand to communicate with – it’s a little bit of extra chemistry.’
Capaldi added: ‘Steven isn’t technically from Glasgow – he’s from Paisley. But he has a Glasgow sense of humour. He always finds what’s funny about you physically and puts it in the script. You suddenly read this description of yourself that is accurate but is not always flattering.’
Many believe Capaldi will be followed by a female actor, with names tipped to play the Doctor including Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who starred in the cult BBC series Fleabag, and Olivia Colman, who starred in Broadchurch with tenth Doctor David Tennant.
Former My Family actor Kris Marshall and Ben Whishaw, who plays Q in the James Bond films, are also possibilities.
The penultimate episode of the series will air on BBC One on Saturday at 6.45pm.