Shalka Doctor
| The Shalka Doctor | |
|---|---|
| Doctor Who character | |
| File:Shalka doctor.jpg | |
| First regular appearance | Scream of the Shalka |
| Last regular appearance | The Feast of the Stone |
| Portrayed by | Richard E. Grant |
| Preceded by | Eighth Doctor (unofficial regeneration) |
| Succeeded by | N/A |
| Information | |
| Tenure | 2003 |
| No of series | 1 |
| Appearances | 1 story (6 episodes) |
| Companions | Android version of the Master, Alison Cheney |
| Chronology | Scream of the Shalka |
The Shalka Doctor (or the REG Doctor or the Unofficial Ninth Doctor) is the name given to the character that appeared as the ninth incarnation of the Doctor in the flash-animated serial Scream of the Shalka in 2003 and the later short story The Feast of the Stone, which were based on the British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. He was voiced by the actor Richard E. Grant.
Overview
Scream of the Shalka was designed to be an official continuation of Doctor Who: at the time there were no plans for a continuation of the television series and plans for another movie were progressing very slowly. However, just before the webcast was released the 2005 series was announced. This caused this incarnation of the Doctor to be shunted to "unofficial" status. For more details see here.
Personality
To avoid capture by the Shalka, this Doctor tries to act as if he is a detached alien observer. However, he still has respect for human life and can not allow them to kill their hostage. Grant has described his interpretation of the Doctor as "Sherlock Holmes in space." This incarnation of the Doctor seems haunted by some undisclosed past event, to the point where he actively opposes the notion of Alison becoming a companion. For reasons likewise unexplained, he travels with an android duplicate of the Master, who resembles the Roger Delgado incarnation of the Master from the Third Doctor era (but is voiced by Derek Jacobi). The android Master does hint, however, that the Doctor's previous companion may have met an untimely end, perhaps explaining his initial reluctance to take on a new traveling companion.
The Shalka Doctor had an appreciation for the finer things that bordered on snobbery, although he shared with his other incarnations an abhorrence against evil. His travels seemed to be directed by an unseen power that he resented (possibly the Time Lords). This led to his refusal to intervene in the Shalka invasion of the village of Lannet until the death of a homeless woman raised his ire. He also had an abrasive relationship with the military similar to how the Third Doctor treated UNIT early in his tenure.
Trivia
- Richard E. Grant had previously played the Doctor, albeit briefly, in the 1999 Comic Relief charity special Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death. In this story Grant's Doctor was characterised as conceited, a trait associated with many of Grant's past acting roles.
- Grant is still best known to many for his role in the cult film Withnail and I, where he co-starred with Paul McGann, who, coincidentally, played the Eighth Doctor in the 1996 Doctor Who television movie. As the Shalka Doctor was originally intended to be the official Ninth Doctor, it could thus have been said at the time that "and I" had regenerated into "Withnail".
See also