Part One: Cake or Death

October 2, 2003 5:28 PM

The new Doctor Who might be Eddie Izzard, according to a previous (and best) Doctor, Tom Baker.
posted by Mwongozi (29 comments total)

oh man, i'd definitely be tuning into that from the states, if possible, if eddie izzard plays the man.

::is still excited about seeing him in detroit on the 18th::
posted by lotsofno at 5:52 PM on October 2, 2003

So I guess he'd play both the role of the Doctor and the provocatively-dressed female companions.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 5:58 PM on October 2, 2003

Four your listening pleasure:
Prank phone calls from the fourth Doctor.
posted by CrunchyFrog at 6:39 PM on October 2, 2003

holy ghost, this is not an episode of scooby doo dr who...
posted by pxe2000 at 7:54 PM on October 2, 2003

Heh, guys, this is Tom Baker. He's not the most serious person in the world. I think he's probably just messing with people....
posted by unreason at 9:05 PM on October 2, 2003

The idea seems intruiging, but somehow not right. It doesn't strike me as the sort of thing Eddie would be interested in, really... But if he were, he'd be the funniest Doctor ever.
posted by Shoeburyness at 9:15 PM on October 2, 2003

is still excited about seeing him in detroit on the 18th

We're seeing him in Boston on the 22nd - however, having watched the new DVD of Circle last night, we're starting to get cold feet. I'd never realized that D2K and Glorious are compilations of "best" performances on the tour, not a single live performance. If the Amazon reviews of Circle are to be believed, the show we saw on the DVD is much closer to the style of show we'll be seeing than the last two were.

The US tour's started, hasn't it? Any MeFiers out there seen him live yet?

[/derail]
posted by anastasiav at 9:45 PM on October 2, 2003

I really hope not.

I like Izzard's surreal comedy act... especially live, but he can't do straight-faced acting for shit.

What we need is a "draft Dylan Moran" campaign.
posted by TheophileEscargot at 12:38 AM on October 3, 2003

I saw the interview where Baker revealed this and it went something like this

Interviewer: Who do you think will be the next Dr Who?
TB: I already know
I: Well that rather spoils the fun. Is it Richard E Grant?
TB: Oh god no. Actually the BBC seem to have got it right this time. Have another guess
I: Umm....is he a suave James Bond type?
TB: No
(can't remember the next bit although I think Baker was struggling to answer if the new Who was young and sexy)
I: Go on tell us.
TB: Umm...(long pause) It's Eddie Izzard. I'll probably never work for the BBC again, but it's Eddie Izzard (then waffles on like in the article linked to)

I don't think Baker was fooling around here because firstly Izzard would be a perfectly sensible choice and secondly I think he gets a kick out of being indiscreet.

incidentally if you can get BBC4 (very few of you then) then you should try and catch Little Britain, a comedy show which Tom Baker narrates - it's hilarious.
posted by dodgygeezer at 4:29 AM on October 3, 2003

I'd quite like to see Richard E Grant get the part. Usually his sneering over acting ruins any film he comes near (save Withnail), but I think it might be right at home in the Tradis. Izzard is just too nice for me, no real meance.

And dodgygeezer is right, Little Britain is the funniest thing on TV right now.
posted by ciderwoman at 4:51 AM on October 3, 2003

anastsiav, I've seen Izzard live, but not on this go round. Personally, I find him hysterical. His delivery can be a little uneven, but to me it reads "I'm a real person, not a comedian's onstage character." He's at the Schubert in Chicago this weekend; this thread is making me think I should abandon my plans for tomorrow night and see if I can't pick up a ticket...
posted by JollyWanker at 5:56 AM on October 3, 2003

Hmmm, Eddie Izzard as Dr.Who, as much as I love the guy, I can't see it myself. Roll on December though, I have tickets to see him in Sheffield :-)
Richard E Grant would make a great doctor. It's a shame Paul McGann has already played the doctor as it would be fan-bloody-tastic to have him as a side kick. "We've landed on your planet by mistake!". "Stavros, you terrible c...", OK maybe not.
Little Britain == genius. I loved the English lesson at Kelsey Grammar School.
posted by chill at 6:09 AM on October 3, 2003

izzard has made some good act on the screen, I really like Velvet goldmine
posted by blink at 6:30 AM on October 3, 2003

Anthony Stewart Head as the Doctor.
posted by ZachsMind at 6:39 AM on October 3, 2003

Samuel L. Jackson as the Doctor.
posted by oissubke at 6:53 AM on October 3, 2003

I like Izzard's surreal comedy act... especially live, but he can't do straight-faced acting for shit.

He was absolutely terrific on Broadway in A Day in the Death of Joe Egg. The play itself isn't entirely straight-faced, of course.
posted by Epenthesis at 6:56 AM on October 3, 2003

Theodore Geisel as the Doctor.
posted by eriko at 7:20 AM on October 3, 2003

I've seen Izzard's latest show, Sexie, and it's much in the vain of Dressed to Kill, just two hours of somewhat free-form stand up. Not as jaw droppingly funny as it has been in the past, but still very amusing. His transvestiteism has now expanded to include wearing prosthetic breasts under his clothes, which was weirdly distracting (it kept reminding me of Marilyn Manson's fake boobs in the video for "The Dope Show").
posted by jonson at 7:29 AM on October 3, 2003

His delivery can be a little uneven, but to me it reads "I'm a real person, not a comedian's onstage character."

I saw "Sexie" Friday in Minneapolis. Good show, but like JollyWanker said, his delivery was uneven. Once he got into a bit, he went 90 miles an hour. The transitions left a little to be desired. He danced when he segued which was funny the first time. Some of his material seemed to reference older bits and being that I hadn't seen his standup in several years, so it was beyond me.

The second half was shorter and sharper. It tied the unrelated bits from the first act together which made the gig considerably more tight.
posted by pedantic at 7:31 AM on October 3, 2003

Anthony Stewart Head as the Doctor

hmm, possibly. anything's better than seeing him naked on manchild.

izzard could do it.
posted by t r a c y at 7:50 AM on October 3, 2003

Speaking of Tom Baker, here he is getting all sweary when doing an ad voice-over.
posted by chill at 7:51 AM on October 3, 2003

I'm going to see him Tues on his first stop in NYC... I'm looking forward to it :-)
However, I atually thing EI as the great Doc might be a fun new direction..
posted by niteHawk at 9:08 AM on October 3, 2003

My vote is for Alan Davies as the new doctor. Then we can get Caroline Quentin as his sidekick...
posted by Tenuki at 11:17 AM on October 3, 2003

Stephen Rea as the Doctor...though Izzard would be interesting.
posted by black8 at 3:22 PM on October 3, 2003

Paula Poundstone as the Doctor.
posted by ZachsMind at 3:28 PM on October 3, 2003

So would he be an executive Doctor?
posted by Katemonkey at 3:57 PM on October 3, 2003

Tom is doing what Tom does best. Taking the piss out gullible journalists. I heard one of the interviews the other morning with Julian Worricker on Radio 5 Live. Worricker brought up a story from the Daily Star that Tom had mentioned Izzard in an interview the day before. Tom did his usual beffudlement act and then confirmed the story as an exclusive (and as we've said above that the BBC would be very cross with him). Julian thought he'd got a real scoop (referring back to it over and over during the following twenty minutes), with Tom not dissuading him in the slightest (I've seen a few of these interviews now and every time the journo thinks they've got the scoop -- clever old Tom).

He wasn't taking any of it seriously. Anyone who's familiar with Baker with recognise that wicked laugh he has when he knows he's got one over on someone. Later in the interview he said that Denise Van Outen (which he kept pronouncing Oooton) was going to be the companion (a change from his choice the day before of Melinda Messenger), and that she and Izzard were the same height on when 'on all fours'. Later still when asked where his scarfs were he said that one of them was is Greg Dyke strong room in his office.

But seriously, let's face it. Out of everyone, what in the world would Tom Baker know about it? Much as I love the man the casting for the new show will be between Russell T Davis, Mal Young and Lorraine Hegessey. And since the show isn't due to be on for two years at least, I think it's a bit early to be casting anyway.

I've said before, the part is actor proof. Anyone could play it. How well they'll play it is another matter. Anyone who's seen 'A Day In The Death of Joe Egg' will know that Izzard can be a fine actor. But much of the work I've seen him in has been about reaction -- I haven't actually seen him take charge of a situation. The reason Paul McGann works so well (for those of us who've had the privelidge of hearing his audio adventures is that he can do the bluff thing very well, but if he has to have a rant at someone who's done something naughty he can do that as well. Izzard would be very good at giving the bad guy the brush off -- I'm just not sure he could convince the viewer about how huge that bad guy's threat might be (which is half The Doctor's job -- how often in the old series did we take his word for it that the villain was inherently evil?).

Can we have Peter Davison back please? He's played him before, he's also been very good in the Big Finish productions and with all the shows he's been in lately he's also coming back in a big way. Alternatively give Paul McGann another go on TV, or Bill Nighy would also be good (reportedly Davies' choice).

[incidentally this is turning into a great source for the latest news on the new series.]
posted by feelinglistless at 5:11 PM on October 3, 2003

Actually, this is a better bet now.
posted by feelinglistless at 4:54 PM on October 4, 2003

Just a quick follow up to my earlier comment - saw him last night, Sexie is hysterical and fabulous ... IMHO his best show to date. He even did a costume change in the interval! Great material on airline travel, more about Greek myths, the bible, superheroes, and all sorts of typical Izzard stuff. No jam, though.

Best of all, they noted that there were 50 - 75 folks hanging about the stage door and rather than have him sign autographs in his dash from stage door to limo, they invited us in in groups of 5-10 and he signed autographs and allowed photos with him in hallway in the back of the Shubert. A great experience.
posted by anastasiav at 11:40 AM on October 23, 2003