Fans of the BBC show “ Doctor Who” got the news they’ve been waiting for last night.
During a half-hour special, the BBC announced the name of the actor who will be playing the role of the Doctor in season 8: Scottish actor Peter Capaldi.
The 55-year-old will step into the role in January 2014.
“Doctor Who” has been running on and off since 1963. The show ran from 1963 to 1989 and was revived in 2005.
Eleven actors have played the doctor for a season or more. With Capaldi as the doctor, the show returns to a tradition from the original series — an older, darker take on the doctor.
Since the 2005 reboot, the show’s doctors have been younger and had what some call a lighter take on the character of the Doctor.
NPR pop culture guru and “Doctor Who” nerd Glen Weldon says the current Doctor, actor Matt Smith, has played the role as if he were a “dazed puppy.”
“The show has felt a lot more mechanistic than it usually does, and that’s not the show’s heart,” Weldon told Here & Now. “The show has a heart and it’s very warm. It’s just lost some of that. Maybe the way to bring it back is to have Peter Capaldi come in and knock some people around.”
Guest
- Glenn Weldon, contributor to NPR’s pop culture blogMonkey Seeand a regular panelist on NPR’sPop Culture Happy Hour. He tweets@ghweldon.
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