They’re announcing a new Doctor on Doctor Who this weekend, and with all of the excitement it seems that Peter Capaldi is such a favorite that bookkeepers are now preventing people from betting on him. The bigger question is, will fans accept him in the role?
With the announcement of the 12th Doctor imminent, William Hill, a U.K.-based online gambling site, has now suspended all bets for Peter Capaldi because so many people are now convinced that he’s got the job.
Joe Crilly, the spokesman for William Hill, stated, “We have seen people today trying to back Peter Capaldi as much as possible at every price available and after a small gamble on Daniel Rigby overnight, it seems that Capaldi is once again in line to move into the Tardis.”
Now before anyone gets too up in arms over this, it should be noted that this is the second time this year that betting has been suspended over the identity of the next Doctor. Earlier this year, betting was halted when there was a surge of activity around actor Rory Kinnear of James Bond and Spooks fame. When Matt Smith took over from David Tennant, he was on next to no one’s list. So the end result here will be interesting to say the least.
If the rumors prove to be true, it may take fans a while to get used to Capaldi considering the infamous character he played in the Torchwood: Children of the Earth series. He played John Frobisher, the public official willing to sacrifice “less important” children in Britain to the 4,5,6 alien while at the same time saving his own. It will be hard to shake the image of the public servant turned self-serving, genocidal maniac if he is to be the Doctor.
Now if the Torchwood connection wasn’t a big enough of an obstacle, Capaldi also has a Doctor Who past. In his previous role he played Caecilius, a pompus Roman statesman, in “The Fires of Pompeii” episode. At least in “The Fires of Pompeii” he was a slightly more sympathetic character. The 10th Doctor, played by David Tennant, saved him and his family from the destruction of Pompeii when Donna Noble begged him to at least save someone.
It’s not unheard of for actors to come back as new characters in the Doctor Who universe. Notably, in the reboot era, Freema Ageyman, Karen Gillan, and Eve Myles all played more than one character. In fact, in a bit of hilarious coincidence, Karen Gillan’s first Doctor Who appearance was also in “The Fires of Pompeii.” Should all the rumors prove to be true, this would be the first time we have recycled a Doctor in the reboot era.
Another interesting fact that fans may not realize is that Capaldi is a Scot. He used an English accent for both his Torchwood and Doctor Who appearances. He is a great friend of Scottish talk show host Craig Ferguson. The two of them used to be in a band together back when they were in their 20s and struggling unknowns in Scotland. The two are also huge fans of the Doctor Who franchise. It will be interesting to see if Ferguson, who hosted the Doctor Who Comic-Con panel, might have been “in the know” just over a week ago.