Tom Baker showered Ncuti Gatwa in compliments when he found out he had been cast as the new Doctor Who.

Tom Baker showered Ncuti Gatwa in compliments when he found out he had been cast as the new Doctor Who

Tom Baker showered Ncuti Gatwa in compliments when he found out he had been cast as the new Doctor Who

The 89-year-old actor had played the Time Lord on the BBC show from 1974 to 1981, and was impressed to see that the ‘Sex Education’ star, 31, would be taking on the mantle next year.

During an interview with Radio Times magazine, Tom was shown a picture of Ncuti, to which he said: “Oh! Is this the next Doctor Who? A handsome young man! Marvellous cheekbones. These things are important as you get near to death.”

The publication then asked Tom whether he had any advice for the sci-fi newcomer, to which he emphasised that kindness was the key.

He explained: “Knowing anything is a bit dangerous when you play Doctor Who. It's better to know nothing. And to be good-natured. The trick is to respond generously to other actors, which halves your task because you don't have to be driving it all the time.”

Previously, Ncuti had said that he was exceptionally excited to start work on the BBC show, and teased fans as to what to expect.

He told Rolling Stone UK : “My Doctor is emotionally vulnerable. He hides it with humour, but he’s lonely.

“I can’t say much more than that; I don’t want to spoil anything. But he’s also energetic! The poor cameramen struggled to keep up.”

Before the 31-year-old takes over as the Time Lord, David Tennant is set to reprise the role for one final heroic outing in the 60th Anniversary Special, which is set to air this Saturday (25 November) on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Speaking with Radio Times, the 52-year-old actor gushed about the series, and the ability to work with Catherine Tate and showrunner Russell T. Davies again.

He said: “The first conversation we had about it was very casual.

“Russell and Catherine were talking about the notion of, ‘What if we got the band back together for one last special? But David would never do it.’ And I said, ‘What do you mean I'd never do it? I'd do it in a shot.’ And then suddenly, we were back for three in a row.

“I mean, why not? It was such a joyous time, and these are people I love as humans, and certainly love as people to work with. And Doctor Who is something that will always be hugely important to me.”

Tagged in