What is the age limit in the TARDIS?
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I was going to see if this topic had been done before but when there is over 10,000 threads i thought I won't bother. LOL
Very simply, how old is too old for being either The Doctor or a companion?
Because of the nature of the show as it is now I think it's fair to say if when the show returned The Doctor was played by a man as old as William Hartnell it probably wouldn't have been as big a hit and could even have flopped and got axed straight away.
Although it's possible for a Timelord to look older after a regeneration I think if it happened now younger fans would lose interest in the show very quickly. I think this show has to have an young lead now sadly.
The question is how old can you go? Unless the actor is popular from something else I can't see it being above the age of 30. He may be over that when he leaves as by then he is established in the role but I can't see it happening when he starts.
You also now have the factor that a boundary has been crossed. In the original series it was always seen as they are friends. Sex was never a factor. Since it came back they've been fancying each other left right and centre. Now that has been brought into the mix if a man looking 50 starts hanging about with a girl in her late teens early 20's people are going to assume it's not because they are friends. IMO the innocence has gone from the TARDIS now.
Equally I can't see there being an older companion. Yes I know Catherine Tate is older but she was known for other stuff so it's easier to accept her, although she got a savaging online when she was revealed to be in the show.
Even when the original series was on I always wanted an older companion. A man or woman in their 40's or 50's someone that had a lot of life experience and would stand up to the Doctor and say no, or you're wrong.
I still think an older companion would create an new kind of relationship that we haven't had on the show. If people have heard Maggie Stables as Evelyn on the Big Finish audios they'll know that an older companion works.
However I doubt it will ever happen.
These kind of shows or films rely on young people. Buffy, Heroes (centred around a cheerleader), Merlin, Demons, Robin Hood, Primeval even films such as Twilight (spits) or Harry Potter.
Younger people find it easier too identify with younger characters.
When Peter Davison was announced as taking over from Tom many people said he is too young. He was 29 or 30. Now that would be seen as the correct age or possibly even borderline too old for the role.
So what are the age limits that would be ok before people would think;
Too old for The Doctor I'm not interested in him.
I can't identify with him/her as a companion because they're too old.
He's old, he/she is young... eww gross!
Very simply, how old is too old for being either The Doctor or a companion?
Because of the nature of the show as it is now I think it's fair to say if when the show returned The Doctor was played by a man as old as William Hartnell it probably wouldn't have been as big a hit and could even have flopped and got axed straight away.
Although it's possible for a Timelord to look older after a regeneration I think if it happened now younger fans would lose interest in the show very quickly. I think this show has to have an young lead now sadly.
The question is how old can you go? Unless the actor is popular from something else I can't see it being above the age of 30. He may be over that when he leaves as by then he is established in the role but I can't see it happening when he starts.
You also now have the factor that a boundary has been crossed. In the original series it was always seen as they are friends. Sex was never a factor. Since it came back they've been fancying each other left right and centre. Now that has been brought into the mix if a man looking 50 starts hanging about with a girl in her late teens early 20's people are going to assume it's not because they are friends. IMO the innocence has gone from the TARDIS now.
Equally I can't see there being an older companion. Yes I know Catherine Tate is older but she was known for other stuff so it's easier to accept her, although she got a savaging online when she was revealed to be in the show.
Even when the original series was on I always wanted an older companion. A man or woman in their 40's or 50's someone that had a lot of life experience and would stand up to the Doctor and say no, or you're wrong.
I still think an older companion would create an new kind of relationship that we haven't had on the show. If people have heard Maggie Stables as Evelyn on the Big Finish audios they'll know that an older companion works.
However I doubt it will ever happen.
These kind of shows or films rely on young people. Buffy, Heroes (centred around a cheerleader), Merlin, Demons, Robin Hood, Primeval even films such as Twilight (spits) or Harry Potter.
Younger people find it easier too identify with younger characters.
When Peter Davison was announced as taking over from Tom many people said he is too young. He was 29 or 30. Now that would be seen as the correct age or possibly even borderline too old for the role.
So what are the age limits that would be ok before people would think;
Too old for The Doctor I'm not interested in him.
I can't identify with him/her as a companion because they're too old.
He's old, he/she is young... eww gross!
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I think an older Doctor could work again, paired with a younger team... look at Hartnell's Doc with Chesterton as the man of action. Similiar was planned with Harry Sullivan, though in the end Tom Baker dominated the role and Harry's character was redundant. As ever, it's all in the writing...
I think Wilf would make a superb companion and would be accepted, but is that because he had been in a few episodes so the fans got to know him. If he had just been in one story would he be as popular with the fans?
I'm guessing by your comments that like me you are no longer in the 8-25 years old range. If so we won't see things the same way as that age range.
Even if people were thinking it, which is likely I can'tg believe the forums would have been full of threads like "Pertwee is hot!" and "I wan't Troughton's babies!"
In the same way younger people watch these shows like X Factor and go he's hot I want him to win it can't be denied that a lot of David's female fanbase is drawn on him being attractive. No doubt Matt will get the same thing. Let's say after Matt the actor cast is an 52 year old man. How much is that likely to affect the ratings for that demographic?
Will kids be as interested in seeing a guy as old or older than their dad?
Let's go the other way. Let's say after Matt an actor aged 18 is given the role. How will older fans feel about that? If Peter was too young at 29/30 what is a teenager?
The he's too young comments certainly resurfaced when matt was revealed as number 11.
I'm open for anything. Let's have a companion that is 72. Or a companion that is morbidly obese, but I'm realistic and know that an old person or an morbidly obese person won't become companion and the reason given is "it's not felt they could cope with the rigors of filming at the rate we have to work at." More so though it won't happen because everything is done demographically and having to fit certain criteria which means the powers that be may not like the idea much that this idea/person may not go down well with the viewers. And in this case I think they may be right. When they decided to make Merlin and Robin Hood I wonder if an actor aged 30+ was even considered?
Personally the way they sidelined The Doctor in favour of his companions at times. I don't see why they can't go back to an older Doc. Like a previous poster said they would probably have another younger companion to compensate.
Rather this than a Doctor Who starring the cast of Hollyoaks.
The thing with 'new-who' is that it involves a lot of running away from scary monsters/etc, so because of that I would say around about 45 would be the top age for a doctor/companion; any older and you'd have to suspend disbelief to accept they could escape...
Classsic Who also involved a lot of running away from scary monsters. Yet the older Doctors seemed to do just fine. Ever seen the amount of pensioners who compete in the London Marathon every year?
To be fair, I'm not entirely certain that we'd have had threads like that if Pertwee and Troughton had played the role in their 20s or 30s either.
A case in point is Matt Smith. We've known about him for over a year now, and the forums have been full of pictures of him in the part for months, and we're not full of threads of that nature because most people don't find him that attractive. Indeed, David Tennant is not, objectively speaking, "hot." He was hot because he was the Doctor. The Doctor wasn't hot because he was David Tennant.
In terms of age, I think the Doctor can be from his 20s to his 40s, and that's due to the physical demands of the role. There will certainly be exceptions of actors in their 50s who could do it too. It's more up to the individual than their chronological age. I don't think the idea of having a younger companion to handle the physical stuff works anymore because it takes away from the Doctor's image. The Doctor has to be able to run, jump, etc. Mind you, Lis Sladen is still doing that in her 60s - and is also starring in a show aimed directly at children.
An older Doctor might not appeal to the "fangirl" segment of the audience, but they're not necessarily that large a segment. It's kids I see at the Proms, not teenagers. And the forums are mainly adults.
I do think though, as time goes by, it will be harder and harder to have Doctors with distinctly different personalities. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. Lots of actors have put their own stamp on Hamlet, for example, without changing a word of the original play. I'd rather see an actor show the Doctor differently because of his performance, rather than have the part written differently for him.
Whilst we know the Doctor can look any age, he is in fact very old and I do wonder if a very young appearing Doctor would seem right. I think Matt Smith will get away with it, because he doesn't have a classically youthful look, but I would certainly struggle to believe the wisdom needed by the Doctor if he had a "High School Musical/Zac Ephron" sort of look.
I think the companion can be any age, sex or appearance as long as the dynamic with the Doctor is well written. I do think different types of companions is good since that provides variety in how that dynamic can work.
To the people that say older people are capable of running etc. I didn't say they couldn't. What I meant is if it was asked why aren't there older actors cast as the Doctor or the companions and they are aiming for the younger demograph they aren't very likely to say because they are old or in the case of an big person because they are fat and thus both "could" lose us viewers.
Look at the hassle over Arlene Phillips and Moira Stuart "possibly" getting axed over their ages. The BBC would have to be nuts to risk opening up that kind of thing. Where as if you say that it's very demanding etc it sounds better.
After it was announced that David was leaving one name got mentioned as being his replacement, Holby and Survivors actor Paterson Joseph. I was hoping it was him but wasn't expecting it too be not because he is black but because he is 45. I hope I'm wrong but I just cant see an older actor being given the role anymore in a world that is obsessed with looking young and image.
I guess my concern is image will eventually become more important than suitability for the role.
I'm being generous saying 35, however I think 30 is more likely the top age an actor playing the role from now on is likely to be, unless they are "well known" and seen as a "star" before taking the part.
I think an companion can be older as the younger Doctor balances it out. The chances of this one happening are pretty much nil, but I would like to see Tony Selby return as Sabalom Glitz and become an companion. That was such a great character, I would love to see him back.
Sablom couldn't be this person but I would like to see an companion that is older that instead of having another companion that looks up to the Doctor as being the wiseman, The Doctor looks up to this older person whether male or female as being a wise person whose advice and guidance he seeks. It was kind of mentioned with Donna but was never realised properly.
As Mandyxxx wrote
Whilst we know the Doctor can look any age, he is in fact very old and I do wonder if a very young appearing Doctor would seem right. I think Matt Smith will get away with it, because he doesn't have a classically youthful look, but I would certainly struggle to believe the wisdom needed by the Doctor if he had a "High School Musical/Zac Ephron" sort of look.
If the companion who is in their late teens early 20's says something it's easy for the Doctor to think what do you know? If the companion is older, although he/she is ridiculously younger than him he/she has lived life more so is speaking with more insight and experience.
Ten's clearly styled to be sexy-from David's fab hair to Ten's smart suits to his hero coat and cool trainers -interesting thing is David's just as comfortable dressing down for a role .
Looking forward to Single Father and seeing what Dave is like .
I know what you mean, although I think dynamics between the Doctor and both Rose and Wilf show that he can learn from both ends of the human age spectrum, even if that learning is based on his own reactions to that companion.
I suppose although as I said earlier, for me the age of whoever plays the Doctor isn't greatly important ad long as he is believable in the role, I do agree that the BBC has an ageist approach to casting, no matter what they admit to in public, so you may have a point about the reality of an older Doctor being cast.
I still think though that the 30/35 age limit is a little low even for the BBC. Given the tendency of action role actors play characters said to be younger than they are and therefore the need for them to keep themselves in better shape than the majority of us, as well as the amount of money they throw at looking young, I think a real life age limit of 30-35 probably translates to about 50 in showbiz terms. I accept that they are already stars, but noone really questions the ability to be an all action hero of the likes of Matt Damon (39), Daniel Craig (42), Nicholas Cage (46) and even, dare I add, Bruce Willis (54) - he may be pushing it a bit perhaps.
For examples perhaps closer to the Who genre...Chris Pine is 30 this year, I certainly can't see him as too old to be the Doctor.
Maybe the question is more whether a programme which targets a very young audience can have older heroes, but I suspect that to a 10 year old, 30 and 50 are both just old!
Well the trainers are dressing down. And both the trainers and the coat were his idea. The first trainers were his, as it happens.
I wasn't suggesting that they didn't try to make him look his best, just that he is not what I'd call "hot." There are certainly plenty of shows around that go for that sort of thing, where they find excuses to get the men's shirts off whenever possible. Even when they were forced to show him nude (during Journey's End) they did it quite discreetly compared to John Barrowman in Bad Wolf.
Maybe David isn't as comfortable as John about "getting his kit off"? But then to be fair....who is? Not that I'd want JB to be any different - keep up the good work John!
John is a professional. he only keeps his kit on if it's essential to the part and is done tastefully.
I never saw Casanova, but I've always assumed there must have been at least partial nudity. While some actors have an issue with full nudity, I don't think you get very far in acting if you're unwilling to be seen with your shirt off if you're a bloke.
There was some partial nudity in Casanova although it was actually quite restrained - cleavage rather than topless etc. The 10th doctor and RTD's version of Casanova are very similar characters to be honest. They were both very clever, very enthusiastic and very animated and they both had their hearts broken a lot.
I meant on Tennant's part, not the women. Unless, if you're saying he was showing cleavage, in which case I think you've confused his work on Casanova with Blackpool.
That was more of a comment on how the production handled the sex scenes. However Tennant did do one extremely fleeting nude shot and quite a few partial nude scenes. How much detail would you like me to go into?
Both DT's doctor and Casanova were attractive because the characters were very charismatic and played by a decent actor rather than because they were played by an actor cast purely for an ability to model underwear in a calendar.
None - it only came up because mandyxxxx suggested it might be something he's uncomfortable with.
As to age limits for the Doctor and the companion, the Doctor's first companion, Susan, was 15, and Ace was 16. Not sure how old Carole Ann Ford or Sophie Aldred were at the time, though.
Doctor-wise, I think Matt should stay as the youngest. I think the Doctor needs to be old enough to be wise, but young enough to cope with the running!
Both in their mid-20s.
Which makes it only slightly less creepy that the Doctor left his 16-year-old granddaughter with an older man she'd known for hours or days in order to "marry" on a planet almost certainly lacking a registry office. At the very least he could have stayed for the wedding.
Both Christopher and David were over 30, Christopher considerably so, and were both popular Doctors, so I see no grounds for the OP's fears.
As to the companion, I think he/she should be either younger or around the same age as the current Doctor. I think a much older companion takes away slightly from the Doctor's being the more wordly and experienced. But that's just my feeling, and some others evidently don't agree.
Sophie Aldred was 25 when she first played a 16 year old Ace. Carole Ann Ford was 24 when she played Susan, but while Susan was in theory 15, her alien roots were not yet known at that time so her precise age remains unclear. If she was indeed a Gallifreyan, it's unlikely her name was really Susan and equally unlikely that she was really 15...
And if Susan was indeed a Gallifreyan, why did she marry a human, knowing that she would outlive him by centuries?