Doctor Who fans are passionate. Any Whovian knows this, but just how far did 12th Doctor, Peter Capaldi go in his Whovian dedication.
It’s probably inevitable that fandom devotees get a certain amount of grief for their dedication. Trekkies learn Klingon and compare prosthetic Vulcan ears. TwiHards have their bodies tattooed with the stars of the movie and phrases from the book and have special Twilight rooms. Lady Gaga’s little monsters have done everything imaginable.
So, when Peter Capladi admitted on live TV to being a life-long Doctor Who fan, he wasn’t kidding. We all saw the revelation that he once wrote a letter to the editor of the Radio Times back when he was a young teenager in 1974. He enjoyed a Doctor Who special that they did and was hopeful that they’d do something even bigger in 1988 when it was time for the 25th anniversary of the show.
It seems that Peter Capaldi wanted to be the secretary of the newly resurrected Doctor Who Official Fanclub. The short version is that the club had its organization set before Capaldi came on the scene, but that didn’t stop him from a letter writing campaign where he was a bit indignant that he wasn’t considered for the post.
After a series of correspondence, according to SFX, one of the people involved quipped “I wish the Daleks or someone would exterminate him or something to that effect.”
Thankfully Peter Capaldi has a good sense of humor about the passion of his younger self, and he is now in the good graces of the BBC and former management of the Official Doctor Who Fanclub.
Definitely check out the entire scenario on SFX, it’s worth the read. They also have some great links to a Doctor Who fanzine article written by a young Peter Capaldi, and Peter Capaldi rocking a bow tie in a 1981 photo of his post-punk band.
