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Splendid fellows -- all of you.
—The Brigadier, "The Five Doctors"

A Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey, the Doctor (not his real name) is the main character of this long-running show. Like all Time Lords, he has a life span measured in centuries, some degree of psychic ability, and the ability to regenerate when near death. Unlike other Time Lords, he became terrified by the Gallifreyan way of life when he was young, stole an antique TARDIS, skipped town and "never stopped running".

The Doctor remains the same person throughout his lives, but different incarnations have different personalities. Showrunners tend to cast each Doctor as a subversion of the previous one. Hence, lushly-dressed aristo Jon Pertwee becomes shabby bohemian Tom Baker; mild-mannered Peter Davison becomes loud Colin Baker; moody Chris Eccleston becomes bouncy David Tennant, etc.


All Doctors

  • Admiring the Abomination: Many Doctors do this at least once in a while, but it's a particular specialty of Ten's.
  • Always Save The Companion: So far, three out of ten regenerations have been the Doctor trading his life for his companion's.
  • Anti-Hero
  • Badass: All regenerations of the Doctor are this, mostly gravitating towards the Badass Bookworm subtype.
  • Badass Pacifist: To an extent. The Doctor usually tries not to resort to violence in any case, but instead prefers to use his wits to solve his problems.
  • Bavarian Fire Drill (in the New Series the Impersonation Gambit is used more often, thanks to the Doctor's psychic paper).
  • Berserk Button: DON'T hurt or kidnap his companions
  • Bizarre Alien Biology: The Doctor can do things like counteract cyanide poisoning given a bunch of weird ingredients, and absorb radiation and expel it through his foot. Oh—and he has two hearts.
    • He also can survive exposure to hard-vacuum for several minutes with no ill effects and can make use of a respiratory bypass to forgo the need to breathe for just as long.
  • Born Lucky
  • A Time Lord and his TARDIS
  • Bunny Ears Lawyer
  • Catch Phrase: "Of COURSE!"; "I'll explain...later." and of course, "Run!"
  • Chronic Hero Syndrome: Distress signals always get the Doctor's attention.
  • Cloudcuckoolander: All the incarnations of Doctor will at the very least have shades of this.
    • One was prone to making some humorous (and rather weird) observations.
    • Four was as manic as his hair, offered jelly babies to to pretty much everyone, and tended towards behaving like he was on a sugar bender most of the time.
    • Six truly believed his coat was fashionable and was reality defying blind about his own lack of tact and subtlety.
    • Eight was prone to making non sequitur observations in the middle of serious conversations and could be ridiculously Literal-Minded.
    • Nine actually believed being a tourist meant doing all sorts of crazy stuff you can do, just for the hell of it.
    • Ten would have random and over the top geeky fits over how wonderful humans are.
    • Eleven is obsessed with bow ties and fezzes, believing them to be fashionable, even after women have been willing to destroy the latter to prove otherwise.
  • Cool Old Guy: Strictly speaking, all of them are chronologically, but some regenerations don't even resemble the part. However, some of the younger looking regenerations like Eleven do embrace the concept.
  • Dissonant Serenity / Tranquil Fury: When sufficiently angered, the Doctor is quite capable of raining fire down on their enemies with a look of utmost calm.
  • Dude in Distress: He gets tied up / handcuffed / etc almost as often as the companions, if not more.
  • Doesn't Like Guns: No version of the Doctor has been exactly gun-happy, though some accepted them as a last resort.
    • One was seen with a gun once or twice.
    • Two has held and handled guns quite a few times during his run, sometimes using them as convenient yet empty threats. He didn't evince any obvious distaste for guns in general, but he never did actually fire one. He also built a heat ray and used it to great effect against Ice Warriors.
    • Three would much rather karate chop a poor sucker than shoot him.
    • Four would pick up a gun if the situation called for it.[1]
    • Five actually blew away an enemy or two.
    • Subverted by Six, who was more willing to pick up a gun than the others would a Sonic Screwdriver. The best example of this is in Attack of the Cybermen.
    • Seven would never use a gun himself, but didn't mind when others used similar weapons like rocket launchers or ballistic explosives if the situation demanded it.
    • Eight used a gun several times. In his one televised adventure, it was at himself. Other times, the Doctor simply refuses to acknowledge them as guns, because "I don't use guns."
    • Nine held a gun twice: whether he would actually have shot is debatable. Then again, he also switched Jack Harkness' gun for a banana at one point ...
    • As far as Ten was concerned: Swords, explosives, pet robots with lasers, flooding rivers, taping over electronic villains, erupting volcanoes, electrocution through a piece of the TARDIS, Fates Worse Than Death, throwing entire planets into black holes, fatally accurate satsumas and death by church organ? Perfectly legitimate methods of combat. Guns? NEVER.
      • Do note, however, Ten did pick up a gun when he realized that the Time Lords were returning and pointed one at Rassilon. He ended up firing the gun, though not at a person.
    • Eleven fired a gun as well, though, like Ten, not at a person (he even used it to save lives, not take one).
  • The Dreaded: As the series progressed, it has became the norm that any villain who actually recognizes who this strange individual calling himself "Doctor" actually was, immediately browns their trousers. A number of times the Doctor himself calls attention to his identity for that effect.
    • This effect seems to be especially prevalent with the Daleks, who are supposed to be physically incapable of feeling any emotion, fear included.
    • Both Ten and Eleven managed to weaponise the word "Run", and were able to turn entire armies around at the very mention of their name. This status comes back to bite Eleven hard in Series 6, where it's revealed that in the Gamma Forest, "Doctor" does not mean "Helper of the weak and sick" like on Earth, but "Warrior", due to his sheer badassery.
  • Drives Like Crazy: The introduction of one River Song reveals that he deliberately shuts off the TARDIS's stabilizers and drives with the parking brake on.
  • Eccentric Mentor
  • Eternal Hero: He's always there to save the day, anywhere and anywhen he is needed.
  • Expy: When the show began, the Doctor hovered somewhere between Anti-Hero and Anti-Villain, and Steven Moffat described the first Doctor as a senile old man. At some point, the first story editor David Whitaker realized that since he has to carry the show, he needs to be more of a cut and dry hero. Who did they turn to? Sherlock Holmes. It becomes clear with the Moffat penned versions of Doctor Who and Sherlock, since both come across as Insufferable Geniuses who both tend to say "Shut up, I'm thinking." Companions in general tend to fit the Watson role pretty well.
  • Famed in Story: Erratically, since he tends to hop around space and time and is not actually universally known—but happens on many occasions.
    • It's later been revealed that countless races across the universe do get the word "Doctor" intrinsically ingrained in their languages due to him, denoting either a "Healer" or "Great Warrior".
  • Fan of the Past: The Doctor is rather fond of Earth history.
  • The Fettered: Despite being a self-proclaimed "madman with a box" who thinks keep-out-signs are for other people, he is very much this. Bad things happen when he starts breaking his personal rules.
  • Gentleman Adventurer: Even once he starts to think of fighting the bad guys as a job, his main objective has always been to see as much of the universe as he can.
  • Go-To Alias: "John Smith".
  • Guile Hero: Almost every incarnation of the Doctor prefers to use brains over brawn.
  • The Gump, though the Doctor got there first, and on a far grander scale. He's met nearly every famous historical character (at nearly every important event in history) and generally has an anecdote or two about them. Churchill has his phone number.
  • The Hero: Only lacking trait is that he's not the Jack of All Stats.
  • Human Aliens: Though Ten and Eleven have argued humans are Time Lord aliens.
  • Iconic Item: The Sonic Screwdriver and the TARDIS, of course. The new series adds Psychic Paper to the Doctor's toolbox.
  • Immortal Immaturity: There's no point in being grown-up if you can't be childish sometimes.
  • Indy Ploy: Combines with Xanatos Speed Chess.
  • Inexplicably Awesome - personified.
  • In Harm's Way: Nothing keeps the Doctor from adventure.
  • Jumped At the Call: He didn't just jump, he stole a TARDIS and went looking for it. Or did she steal him?
  • Kindhearted Cat Lover: A few incarnations of the Doctor have shown a fondness for cats, particularly Six, Nine, and Ten (though Ten was initially wary of them).
  • Klingons Love Shakespeare: The Doctor loves a Spot of Tea and (depending on the incarnation) sweets like jelly babies or jammy dodgers.
  • Knight Errant
  • Knight in Sour Armour
  • Large Ham: At least on occasion.
  • Limited Wardrobe: The first four and Seventh Doctors usually based their outfits around variations on a theme, though the Fifth and Sixth Doctors all played the trope straight with completely unchanging apparel. The Eighth Doctor only had one adventure, so the wardrobe was limited to that story. The Ninth, Tenth and Eleventh Doctors of the new series return to the original method, with certain items (the leather jacket, long brown coat and tweed jacket with bowtie respectively) typically remaining in place.
    • As a side-note, the Fifth and Sixth Doctors did get to change their outfits once or twice during their run for an episode or two. For the Fifth, it was disguises and costuming. The Sixth had variations, including a neat vest that didn't melt one's eyes. Still, their wardrobes mostly went unchanged during their tenure.
    • The colour of the Eleventh Doctor's bowtie has been noted to change depending if the story is set in the present or past (blue), or if it's in the future (red).
      • It's also been dark gray or purple before. His braces/suspenders always match his bowtie, as well.
  • Living Forever Is Awesome: The classic doctors very much enjoy their incredibly long life span. One, for instance, stole the TARDIS because he wanted to see everything and knew he would have the time to do so. Then the Last Great Time War happened: The Doctor was never the same again and this trope became part of a Stepford Smiler mask.
  • Loss of Identity: Every regeneration must deal with this and discover his new persona. How much it affects him seems to vary: the Seventh Doctor called it a "purely perceptual" change, while the Third and Tenth considered it death. It also tends to vary depending on which side of the regeneration he is; the Third and Tenth Doctors expressed these sentiments just before regenerating, while the Seventh expressed his sentiment after.
  • Magnetic Hero
  • Master of Unlocking: And locking, at that, thanks to the sonic screwdriver.
  • Mr. Exposition
  • Mr. Fixit: Even once jokingly called himself "the maintenance man of the universe"
  • Mysterious Past: The franchise has been around for almost fifty years and we still do not know the Doctor's real name or why he no longer uses it.
    • We didn't learn the name of the Doctor's species until the end of Patrick Troughton's run and we didn't learn the name of his home planet until Jon Pertwee took the reins.
    • We know he once had a family and even children, but "lost them long ago". Given how we never get any indication that (apart from Susan) they're still alive even before the Time War, it's possible this was one of the reasons the First Doctor so readily Jumped At the Call.
  • No Name Given / Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": The Doctor does have a name, but it's never been revealed—although it has been noted that it's unpronounceable by humans. Though, River Song could either say it or come close enough for the Doctor to accept it.
    • Steven Moffat believes there is "a terrible secret" behind why he never gives his true name, to even those he loves.
  • Omnidisciplinary Scientist: And quite justified too.
  • Obfuscating Stupidity / Obfuscating Insanity: He can go from a Cloudcuckoolander to an Anti-Hero in the snap of a finger.
  • Papa Wolf: Towards both his companions individually and the entire human race.
  • Psychic Powers: The Doctor has some degree of psychic ability, though the details are fuzzy and mostly left up to the writers.
    • What we've seen so far is touch-telepathy requiring he put his hands on either side of a person's head. Sometimes he also puts his forehead against their foreheads. And in the case of the latter, sometimes he does it really hard.
    • Plus, the Second and Third Doctors were able to mind-meld.
    • Historically, his telepathic mojo has seen the most use when dealing with other Time Lords or other Sufficiently Advanced Aliens. He seems to have only recently become adept enough to mind-meld with ordinary humans and the like. When encountering time-displaced versions of himself, he can do a mind meld without physical contact.

Contact!

  • Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Claims to be 1103 as of a 200-year timeskip in series 6, though this doesn't square with the dates established in the classic series, where the Seventh Doctor claimed to be 953. It's theorized that the Doctor's having a sort of a mid-life crisis and is deliberately deflating his age. What matters is that he's old. Very old. Word of God is that the Doctor has more or less forgotten his actual age by the Tenth incarnation. Apparently, he has a fondness for the number 900 so he's simply decided to tick years off from that, seeing as how it shouldn't be TOO far off from his actual age.
    • Romana once called Four out on lying about his age directly, in The Ribos Operation.
    • According to the TARDIS, he's been pushing rather than pulling the TARDIS police box doors open for 700 years, which contradicts the Ninth Doctor's earlier comment of "900 years of phone box travel" (as in, when the TARDIS' chameleon circuit broke) - then again, note above about the Doctor forgetting his age.
  • Rummage Sale Reject: Even the ones in suits succumb to this.
  • Science Hero: The Doctors often use their scientific knowledge to save the day.
  • Sliding Scale of Anti-Heroes: All over it.
  • Smug Super: Not as bad as some cases, but not exactly quiet about his brilliance, either.
  • Spell My Name with a "The"
  • Super Senses: All Time Lord senses are supposedly vastly superior to human senses; in practice, though, this is largely plot-driven.
  • Symbol Motif Clothing: The Doctor began wearing question marks when John Nathan-Turner took over as showrunner. It progressed from Five and Six's collars, and finally a pullover vest and umbrella for Seven.
  • Technical Pacifist: The Doctor really puts the "Technical" in Technical Pacifist. Although he has used firearms on occasions, for the most part he is just very good at engineering situations which result in the destruction of his current adversary (sometimes on a genocidal scale) if they fail to heed his warnings.
  • Trickster Archetype: Manifested one way or another in every incarnation.
  • Walking Disaster Area
  • We Do the Impossible: The Doctor flies in a time machine that can go anywhere and anywhen in the universe, has saved the Earth more times than he can count, saved the universe and all of reality itself repeatedly. He defeats intergalactic races of pure evil on a daily basis, thinks crippling dictatorships is a rather average outing, and can do all of this with a kettle, a piece of string, and a screwdriver.
  • The Wonka: The Captain of a spaceship who gives strange orders and does strange things but usually tend to work.


Classic Doctors

First Doctor

One day, I shall come back. Yes, I shall come back. Until then, there must be no regrets, no tears, no anxieties. Just go forward in all your beliefs and prove to me that I am not mistaken in mine.

Played by: William Hartnell (1963-66, 1972-73); Richard Hurndall (1983)

An eccentric, grumpy old professor-type with an air of mystery about him. Soon became a warmer, more avuncular character to his companions, but remained an authority figure. As he was never intended to be the "first" (or plural) Doctor, there is novelty in watching him develop into the Doctor as he's known today.

  • Badass Grandpa: About as much as any other Doctor. Perhaps the only one to fight a Roman Centurion with just a cane. And giggle throughout.
  • Beware the Nice Ones: As his status as a Grumpy Old Man slowly faded away, this trope slowly replaced it in some situations. In particular, the Doctor's fight against the Celestial Toymaker is a major representation of this trope as the Doctor literally talks the world surrounding the TARDIS into oblivion with just three words and a number (Go to move 1,023!).
  • Character Development: The first time we ever see the Doctor, he is an arrogant, selfish coward. His evolution over the first handful of serials is an important point in the script.
  • Cool Old Guy
  • Distinguished Gentleman's Pipe: This Doctor enjoyed lighting up a calabash on at least one occasion.
  • Grumpy Old Man: Began with this trope firmly in mind, but slowly became more of a grumpy Badass Grandpa, depending on the adventure. This was certainly the case in "The Five Doctors".
  • High-Class Glass: All the better to peer at aliens with.
  • Iconic Item: His prized ring. Arguably, also his cane. When he regenerated, his ring fell off.
  • Nice Hat: Wore one on a few occasions, including his very first adventure.
  • The Other Darrin: Mentioned above, replaced post-mortem by the late Richard Hurndall for the 20th Anniversary special.
  • Show the Forehead: The tidiest hairstyle he would wear for quite some time.
  • Unscrupulous Hero: He's devoted to his grandaughter and is disgusted by villains like the Daleks but aside from that his morals are loose at best, with his flaws ranging from pride, paranoia to outright moral cowardice in trying to abandon Barbara to die on Skaro rather than risk further exposure to radiation. By the conclusion of the first three stories he gets over this.
  • Verbal Tic: "Hmmm?" and "eh?". This came about because Hartnell suffered from arteriosclerosis, which affected his ability to remember lines, and this allowed the producers to use lines where Hartnell got his lines wrong (re-shooting and dubbing dialogue was not usually an option).

Second Doctor

There are some corners of the universe which have bred the most terrible things. Things that act against everything we believe in. They must be fought!

Played by: Patrick Troughton (1966-69, 1972-73, 1983, 1985)

The Buster Keaton-ish clown with a Beatles mop-top haircut; he liked to play the recorder (the musical instrument), and he carried a massive number of useful things in the pockets of his coat. (The Tenth Doctor would confirm that, as many fans had long suspected, the Doctor's pockets are Bigger on the Inside.) A more maverick and anti-authority figure than his predecessor, he has arguably had the most lasting influence on later Doctors.

As The AV Club have pointed out, many later Doctors have been influenced by him, partly because he was more fun.

  • Badass Uncle
  • Beware the Nice Ones: Not as much as Five or Ten, but still capable of steering an enemy's space fleet into the sun or sparking a massive Dalek civil war when he deemed it necessary.
  • Bow Ties Are Cool
  • Catch Phrase: "When I say run, run".
  • Crazy Prepared: Always seemed to have some sort of situation-suitable item in those pockets of his.
  • Failed a Spot Check: He does this quite often. Notably in "The Dominators", when he clearly pointed out that the newly formed volcano was erupting, but didn't notice that the volcano was erupting.

Jamie: C'mon! The whole place is going to blow up!
Second Doctor No, it's quite all right, Jamie. The planet is quite safe. There's only going to be a localized volcanic eruption. It'll only affect the island.
Jamie: Maybe so, but we happen to be on the island.
Second Doctor: Oh, my word!

Third Doctor

You know, Jo, I sometimes think that military intelligence is a contradiction in terms.

Played by: Jon Pertwee (1970-74, 1983, 1993)

The suave Edwardian gentleman. Spent a great deal of time stuck on Earth in the 20th Century, as he'd been exiled from Gallifrey (and his TARDIS rendered inoperative), and often got into adventures with his friends at UNIT, especially The Brigadier. A more action-oriented Doctor, known for his "Venusian Karate/Aikido" and his fast cars, Bessie and the Whomobile. The sonic screwdriver was to be his enduring legacy, along with his chest x-ray (the heart's fine... hang on, what's this shape over here?) and being the first Doctor to be broadcasted in color. As this Doctor's tenure was confined to present-day London, he also inaugurated the grand old Doctor Who tradition of everyday objects tying to kill you.

  • Action Hero: Villain holding his companion at gunpoint? No problem! Karate-CHOP!
  • Actor Appeal: The Third Doctor stories have a lot of car chases, because the writers enjoyed indulging Pertwee's love of fast cars and odd vehicles. In his final story, by way of a send-off, there's a completely gratuitous chase that lasts twenty minutes and involves several cars, a flying machine, and a hovercraft.
    • Terrance Dicks, script editor at the time of Jon Pertwee's run, has actually said that he often asked Pertwee if the actor desired anything in his tales beyond the story being fun. Being given this massive potential of a request, all that Pertwee asked for was "a moment or two of charm".
  • Badass: One of the most physically oriented Action Hero versions of the Doctor, to the point his tenure was basically one long action movie.
  • Badass Cape: Had a velvet cloak he wore on a few occasions.
  • Badass Grandpa
  • Badass in Distress: See Dude in Distress.
  • Bow Ties Are Cool: Wasn't as flagrant about it as Eleven, nor did he wear one as often as Two, but he would on occasion wear a spiffy bowtie.
  • Break the Haughty: The more he condescends at UNIT personnel, and gets dragged through the most crippling ordeals for his trouble, the more you start to suspect the Time Lords exiled him as a lesson.
  • The Dandy: For his choice of clothes and awesome hair. Lampshaded during "The Three Doctors" when the First Doctor actually called him this.
  • Deadpan Snarker
  • Dude in Distress: Let's face it, the Third Doctor is the KING of this trope.
  • Embarrassing Tattoo: Subverted, actually. While the Doctor doesn't have any tattoos before or after this incarnation, the Third Doctor has a dragon tattoo on his arm that can be seen quite plainly during the events of "Spearhead from Space".[3] The producers hand-wave this by claiming the Doctor never had a tattoo and we're all seeing things, so it's more of an awkward moment for them than the Doctor (or Pertwee).
    • Part of the Expanded Universe claims it's a prison tattoo, which he bears during his exile to Earth. Another Time Lord, Grandfather Paradox, ended up with the dragon tattoo put on his arm by the Time Lords when he was branded a criminal; unlike the Doctor, Paradox cut the arm off.
  • Freaking Awesome Old Guy
  • Famous Last Words: "A tear, Sarah Jane? No, don’t cry. While there’s life, there’s.."
  • Fish Out of Water: The Doctor is more overtly 'alien' these days (two hearts, a dumb alias, magic gizmos) as the result of being plucked out of a fantastical environment wherein his human-like qualities would be dominant.
  • Gentleman Snarker
  • Good Is Not Nice: During his first two seasons he would be incredibly rude to people for no good reason, then become the picture of politeness soon thereafter.
  • Grandpa What Massive Hotness You Have: Don't believe me? Behold!
  • Harmless Lady Disguise
  • Heroic BSOD: A rarity for this Doctor, but he was actually sent into a coma during the events of "Inferno" from what he experienced. Then again, he had just seen an alternate world filled with familiar faces and redeemable people utterly destroyed by lava and proto-human zombies. This state lasted for almost an entire episode.
  • "I Am" Song: That's right, Jon Pertwee (singing as the Third Doctor) wound up recording a song that rivals most villain songs for just being pure awesome. Just try not to jam out to I am... The Doctor!
  • I Hate Past Me: He and Two really rubbed each other raw.
  • I Know Venusian Aikido: Hai!
  • Iconic Item: Bessie and the Whomobile. This Doctor loved his gadgets and cars. He was also the best dressed Doctor, famous for his frilly shirts, opera cape and smoking jacket.
  • Insufferable Genius: He was smarter than all of UNIT put together, and would frequently make this obvious, even belittling the slowness of others when he was feeling particularly Jerkass. However, most of UNIT put up with it because he really was that brilliant. However, Liz Shaw, his first companion in this incarnation and a skilled scientist herself, eventually had enough and walked, arranging Jo Grant to replace her with the indirect comment that all the Doctor needed was "Someone to pass you your test tubes, and to tell you how brilliant you are."
  • Power Loss Makes You Strong: A madman without a box is just a madman. A Time Lord without knowledge of time is just someone calling himself lord. No wonder he's so irritable.
  • Playing Against Type: Then-known for his comedic talents and funny voices, Pertwee subverted his own screen persona with this no-nonsense performance.
  • Reverse the Polarity: Trope Namer.
  • Silver Fox
  • Sword Fight: Not shocking for this action hero, quite frankly, but the Doctor is able to out-fight the Master in "The Sea Devils" in a fencing duel. He then eats a sandwich while holding the Master at swordpoint. A sandwich that happened to be the Master's lunch.
  • Tap on the Head: The neck-pinching variant.

Fourth Doctor

You may be a doctor, but I'm the Doctor. The definite article, you might say.

Played by: Tom Baker (1974-81, 1983, 1993)

The Bohemian, famous for a very, very long scarf. Somewhat crazy-eyed and alien. Probably the best known of all the Doctor's incarnations. If you don't know who Tom Baker is, close your eyes and think of Doctor Who. That's him. (Unless you're under 30; then that was probably David Tennant. See the "Revival Doctors (specific)" folder)

  • AcCENT Upon the Wrong SylLABle: He tended to draw out his vowels a fair bit.
  • Action Hero: In his earlier adventures, Four would have little problem leaping into action, such as in "The Sontaran Experiment", but nearly all of his later adventures feature the Doctor more willing to give the monster-of-the-week a jelly baby than engage in fisticuffs. Keeping in mind that he was in the role for seven years, going from being forty to almost fifty during this time, this gradual slowing down does begin to make a bit more sense.
  • Adorkable
  • Badass Baritone: Has the deepest voice of any Doctor.
  • Badass Longcoat
  • Beware the Nice Ones: The friendly and childlike Fourth Doctor is also the Doctor who took place in the longest and most brutal fight in the show's history, when he spent an episode and a half playing cat-and-mouse with his opponent in "The Deadly Assassin".
    • "The Pirate Planet" is notable for featuring the Fourth exploding into a rage far more violently than he ever had before or after, and perhaps even more so than any other Doctor. If you even manage to piss Four off, you're seriously screwed.
  • Beware the Silly Ones: One a few occasions, its even acknowledged he is Obfuscating Stupidity.

"No-one could be as mad as he seems."

  • Blue Eyes
  • Bourgeois Bohemian: Perhaps as a reaction to his previous self being mired on Earth, Four is hell-bent on hitting the dusty trail.
  • Brilliant but Lazy: Loves to put up his feet, draw his hat over his eyes and doze off. Especially while UNIT is talking to him.
    • His old teacher Borusa doesn't remember him very fondly, either.
  • Catch Phrase: "Would you like a jelly baby?"
  • Compelling Voice
  • Dude in Distress: Seriously, HOW MANY times has this Doctor been captured, kidnapped, tied up, locked up, drugged, knocked out, imprisoned, tortured, etc.? Sometimes it happens to him more often than his own companions! The Fourth Doctor is just as bad as the Third.
  • Einstein Hair
  • Famous Last Words

"It's the end… but the moment has been prepared for."

Fifth Doctor

Fifth Doctor: When was the last time you smelt a flower, watched a sunset, ate a well-prepared meal?
Cyberleader: These things are irrelevant.
Fifth Doctor: For some people, small, beautiful events is what life is all about!

Played by: Peter Davison (1981-84, 1993, 2007)

The Edwardian cricketer; vulnerable but highly noble, especially in his Heroic Sacrifice. Though somewhat young (29 when he was cast; he'd be the youngest Doctor until Matt Smith), Davison was already a well-known actor, having played a vet on All Creatures Great and Small. Ironically enough for this gentle and non-combative Doctor, his stories tended to have high body counts.

Fifth Doctor: "... Adric?"

  • Grumpy Old Man: Davison attempted to do "old man in a young man's body" at times, but the scripts didn't let him.
  • Heroic BSOD: Suffered from more than his fair share, compared to the other Doctors. Particularly when Adric died.
  • Heroic Sacrifice
  • Hot Scientist
  • Iconic Item: The lapel-mounted celery and Purely Aesthetic Glasses. The latter, however, is not used nearly as often… The roll-up hat can count as well, depending on the fan you ask.
    • Some still will insist that it's his sneakers that really complete the outfit, being a modern piece of clothing in an otherwise period costume.
    • Really his entire ensemble is this, to the point where even the Tenth Doctor refers to it as his "Crickety Cricket stuff".
      • Although the Tenth does note they stole the "Brainy Specs" and trainers look from him.
  • Kill'Em All: This trope seemed to follow the Fifth like the plague—at least a third of his stories ended with a massive body count. His last story had two survivors, and neither was him. He got better, of course.
  • Magnetic Hero: For his three years in the role, he sure had a lot of companions.
  • Never Live It Down: In-universe, his "Brainy Specs". He doesn't even need them, he just thinks they make him look clever.
  • Nice Guy
  • No Hugging, No Kissing: This is definitely one of the more chaste and hands-off Doctors, by decree from above.
  • Purely Aesthetic Glasses: Occasionally. Peter Davison actually admitted he stopped wearing what were later called the "brainy specs" after a while because of ribbing from certain members of the cast. He put them back on for the "Time Crash" mini-episode with David Tennant.

Sixth Doctor

This is a situation that requires tact and finesse. Fortunately, I am blessed with both.

Played by: Colin Baker (1984-86, 1993); Sylvester McCoy (1987)

A darker and grittier (and certainly more unstable) Doctor, his default emotions were righteous indignation or smug self-satisfaction. Wore a multicoloured coat. Wasn't averse to fisticuffs to get out of a desperate fix. During his first season, the show got in trouble for being too violent. The only actor to be fired from the role, thanks to Executive Meddling; the fallout was so acrimonious that he refused to reprise the role simply for a regeneration, so they Dropped a Bridge on Him. However, the actor is considered by everyone involved to be a wonderful guy.

  • Eighties Hair
  • Aborted Arc: A multi-year arc was planned in which the Sixth Doctor would mellow out, but politics at the BBC intervened. This was later taken up (after a fashion) by the Big Finish audios.
  • Bond One-Liner: There's a particularly grim one in "Vengeance on Varos", and it began to attract executive mumblings about whether Doctor Who was going too far. After two guards end up in an acid bath...

Sixth Doctor: "Forgive me if I don't join you."

  • Can't Argue with Elves: The Sixth Doctor isn't quite this bad, but he is articulate and abrasive. Do not argue with him. You will lose.
  • Cheshire Cat Grin: He does one in his opening credits.
  • Doctor Jerk
  • Dropped a Bridge on Him: Now, what exactly caused his regeneration again?
  • Future Me Scares Me: The Valeyard. The Virgin New Adventures even suggest that Six somehow 'willed' himself into regenerating to prevent that outcome.
  • Grumpy Old Man: The actor may not visually fit the role, but the Sixth Doctor himself easily fits the role in personality.
  • Hurricane of Euphemisms: Especially when frustrated or angry. In the Big Finish story "The One Doctor", one character remarks that talking to him is "like arguing with a bloody thesaurus!" Later in the same episode, he loses his willingness to debate altogether…

Sixth Doctor: If I have to endure another insult—
Banto Zane: Oh here we go, another voyage 'round the English language…

  • Hypocritical Humor: This Doctor is much more of a "do as I say, not as I do" sort of fellow. Played up much more in the Expanded Universe's Big Finish branch.
  • Iconic Item: That technicolor nightmare coat and the cat badge; the latter detail was retained in the Big Finish audios.
  • I Hate Past Me: Towards Five and Two.
  • Impossibly Tacky Clothes: Famously. It's like a clown vomited in his closet. In the Big Finish audios, he either claims that it's the height of fashion in some far off, distant[4] civilization, or starts wearing a dark blue version of the outfit.
  • Insufferable Genius: Oh, boy. Described by many as a "raging egotist"… but he really was as good as he described himself.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: The genuine heart of gold still existed in this Doctor… it was just buried under a whole lot of ego. And bluster. But mostly ego. Ironically, the Sixth Doctor may well have had the largest heart of gold of any of them, hidden way deep down underneath the ego.
  • Knight Errant: Self-described in "The Twin Dilemma."

Sixth Doctor: I'm a knight errant, not an errant fool!

  • The Other Darrin: Done for a grand total of 3 seconds during the regeneration process, as Colin Baker refused to return and portray the Doctor for a fraction of an episode. The Sixth Doctor's Dick Sargent to Colin Baker's Dick York was Sylvester McCoy, who simply wore a curly blond wig. It didn't work.
  • Promoted Fanboy: Colin Baker had been a fan of the franchise since the first episode was aired (and apparently continuing to do so into the 21st century) and leapt at the chance to even be in the story, much less portray the Doctor himself.
  • Regeneration By Falling Over
  • Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness: Depending on the writer, the Sixth Doctor tends to go from "being smart" to "sounding like he not only swallowed a thesaurus, but all of the grammar teachers in England." This is also played up in some of his Expanded Universe appearances as well.
  • Tsundere: The harsh version.
  • Vitriolic Best Buds: His relationship with Peri at first; It does take them a few episodes to get along without unleashing a hurricane of insults on each other.
  • What the Hell, Hero?: Only used against the Sixth Doctor in terms of his attitude rather than his actions or history.
  • Xanatos Speed Chess Player: Once Six actually figures out what the hell is going on, his quick thinking and planning is pretty much this in curly blond hair and a multicoloured coat. That does, of course, depend on the Sixth Doctor actually being involved enough in the main story to realize what's going on — one example left him clueless until the final 20 minutes of the story.
  • You Look Familiar: Colin Baker appeared in "Arc of Infinity" as a different Time Lord (a chief of security named Maxil) before he was cast as the Doctor.

Seventh Doctor

You can always judge a man by the quality of his enemies.

Played by: Sylvester McCoy: (1987-89, 1993, 1996)

Began as a sort of bumbling goof, but became a more mysterious and enigmatic figure after the show got a little Darker and Edgier (after back-pedalling away from it) in its last two seasons. He turned into a borderline Knight Templar, fond of Xanatos Gambits, and a bit of a Knight Templar Parent to his companion Ace. These qualities came even more to the fore in the Expanded Universe New Adventures novels.

  • Batman Gambit: Often directly related to his status as Chessmaster.
  • Book Ends: Both the start and the end of the life of the Seventh Doctor were really ignoble: hitting his head on the TARDIS console and being killed by malpractice committed by the woman who would become his next companion.
  • Cheshire Cat Grin: It always looks like he's up to something.
  • The Chessmaster: With varying success, often requiring the liberal use of Xanatos Speed Chess when things go awry. In the Virgin New Adventures, Seven's abilities are given real room to flex and are usually far more impressive.
  • The Determinator: In the 1996 movie, he wakes up several times on the operating table, despite being heavily sedated in order to attempt to warn everyone of what's happening.
  • Iconic Item: His straw hat, question mark handled umbrella, and question mark covered sweater-vest.
  • Malaproper: In his first few stories.
  • My Card: Handed out in "Remembrance of the Daleks"...out of thin air, at that.[5]
  • Nice Hat
  • Obfuscating Stupidity: Nothing about his appearance or demeanor suggests that he is a threat.
  • Papa Wolf: When it comes to Ace, he's got this trope down pat. Particularly in the Expanded Universe.
  • Slapstick: Especially in his early stories.
  • Strapped to An Operating Table: And trying to explain to nice Dr. Grace that he's not human and could she please take that camera out of his arteries. She doesn't listen, and he dies.
  • Take That Me: The Big Finish branch of the Expanded Universe has given the Seventh Doctor a few unintentional (on the Doctor's part) jabs at his rather lackluster death in the TV Movie. The best jab, by far, was "I refuse to die to elevator music!" when trying to escape a depressurizing airlock playing opera at him. Guess what he died to.
  • Talking the Monster to Death: Seven loves doing this. It's in a good half of his stories, by god.
  • Talking Your Way Out: Seven's great love—his words are far and away more effective than any physical threat.
  • Trickster Mentor: Became this in his second season, as focus shifted to his companion Ace. As a result, Ace became the most fleshed-out companion, whilst the Doctor became ever more mysterious.
  • Trrrilling Rrrs: McCoy was actually the first Doctor to not speak with a Received Pronunciation accent.
  • Unflinching Walk: He calmly walked out of a building that then promptly exploded and appeared not to notice.[6]
  • Weapon of Choice: His brain (and, technically, words). This is the only Doctor to talk at a Dalek and make him self-destruct.
  • What the Hell, Hero?: Seven tends to keep his eye on the big picture, and while he won't directly kill anyone, he's been known to leave - or nearly leave - psychological scars. He gets called on it.
  • Worst Aid: Bullets? Not a problem. Paramedics mistaking your alien heart rates for fibrillation? That's another matter.

Eighth Doctor

I love humans. Always seeing patterns in things that aren't there.

Played by: Paul McGann (1996)

From the Made-For-TV Movie. From the little we saw of him, the Eighth Doctor was a romantic, a passionate figure who reveled in life and living and—uniquely among the Doctors—seemed to enjoy giving people hints about their futures. Notably, he was the Doctor who shattered the No Hugging, No Kissing policy forever, happily snogging his companions just because he wants to. He also claimed to be half-human for no reason, which was subsequently ignored entirely in the main Whoniverse canon because it was much too silly. Got fleshed out in the Expanded Universe. You can see his EDA-specific character tropes here.

  • Beware the Nice Ones: The Eighth Doctor is the incarnation that fought in, and ended, the Last Great Time War.
  • Bi the Way: Happily kisses his male companion Fitz in the novels, years before one Jack Harkness ever joined the cast.
  • Break the Cutie: The Eighth Doctor, the one personified most by his love of humans, fought in the Last Great Time War.
    • Interestingly, the Eighth Doctor regenerated after a human tried her best to save his life. One has to wonder if that had a big impact on this particular regeneration.
  • Cloudcuckoolander: He's a bit loopy even by Doctor standards, though it doesn't stop him getting the job done.
  • Determinator:

Eighth Doctor: Because I'm the Doctor, and whatever happens, whatever the odds, I never ever NEVER give up. Brace yourself, Charley!

  • Dude in Distress: Courtesy of the Master, who's trying to steal the rest of his regenerations.
  • Heroes Want Redheads: Though they ultimately decide to part ways, the first person he meets who fills the traditional role of companion is the redheaded Dr. Grace Holloway. As soon as he gets over his regerenation trauma, he snogs her a few times out of sheer joy. (She's also the only companion ever in canon to directly inadvertently kill him, thus forcing him to regenerate from Seven to Eight.)
  • Innocent Fanservice Guy: Gets a a few shirtless scenes right off the bat, while still very confused and amnesiac.
  • Kirk Summation: "You want dominion over the living, but all you do is kill!"
  • Large Ham: Though he calms down a good deal in the audio adventures, save a few rare examples. Big Finish Doctor Who's Zagreus immediately comes to mind.
  • Medical Horror: Wakes up in a morgue in the middle of amnesia-inducing regeneration trauma. Finds a few feet of camera probe coming out of his chest. His first day was a bit scary.
  • No Indoor Voice: When excited or upset, he tends to go wild with the volume.

Eighth Doctor: The Master wants to take all my remaining lives... SO THAT HE WILL LIVE AND I WILL DIE!


2005 revival Doctors (general)

  • Adorkable: It came and went with Classic Doctors, but it's become permanent in the new series.
    • The Ninth Doctor, easily the most serious of all the Doctors, head-bopped to Soft Cell in "The End of the World" and had two uncomfortable first attempts at dancing in "The Doctor Dances". Also the moments of slightly awkward, raw emotional honesty ("I could save the world but lose you."; "You just assume I'm... You just assume I don't... 'dance'.") and the sweet, childlike glee and fanboyish squee he's capable of.

"Just this morning you were all tiny and small and made of clay! Now you can expand!"

  • Berserk Button: He HATES Daleks. How much depends on the Doctor: Ten was more willing to forgive, while Nine and Eleven hate them with a passion.
    • Nine is by far the most. Whereas Eleven tries to negotiate/scare them into fleeing (granted, after attacking a tea-bearing Dalek with a spanner), Nine flies into a rage and stays that way.
  • Big Damn Kiss: Started with Nine's final episode.
  • Catch Phrase: "Run!". Nine, Ten, and Eleven all have used this on multiple occasions.
    • The Ninth Doctor's first line in the revived series was actually "Run!"
    • The Tenth Doctor often gave this suggestion to his opponents.

Doctor: But in fairness, I'll give you one bit of free advice... Run!

    • The Eleventh invokes this when facing the Atraxi;

Doctor: I'm the Doctor. Basically... Run!

Doctor: I'm 907. After a while, you just can't see it.
Amy: See what?!
Doctor: Everything -- I look at a star, there's just a big ball of burning gas, and I know how it began and I know how it ends... and I was probably there both times. After a while, everything is just stuff. That's the problem-- you make all of space and time your backyard, and what do you have? A back-yard. But you-- you can see it. And when you see it, I see it.

Revival Doctors (specific)

Ninth Doctor

Time travel is like visiting Paris. You can't just read the guidebook, you've gotta throw yourself in! Eat the food, use the wrong verbs, get charged double and end up kissing complete strangers - or is that just me?

Played by: Christopher Eccleston (2005)

Riddled with Survivor Guilt from the Time War, the Ninth Doctor was dark and moody at times, but also at times lovably affable and showing great affection and empathy for people. He was prone to mood swings, vacillating between Nice Guy and Jerkass within the breadth of the same conversation. Most normally-dressed Doctor, with close cropped hair and beat-up leather jacket. A much more street-smart Doctor than previous versions, even outright stating that he doesn't "do domestic". Made a Heroic Sacrifice the Fifth would be proud of, and was generally fantastic. Not counting Eight, Nine has had the shortest tenure on the series out of all the other Doctors.

  • Adventure Rebuff: Rose. Mickey and Adam in a shorter version.
  • Always Save the Girl: Protecting Rose is an instinct even stronger than his hatred of Daleks, or wanting to protect the entire planet. Initially seems to be limited to girls when he leaves Jack behind (which Jack later quite vocally complains about), but it turns out that the TARDIS just fundamentally disagreed with Jack after he Came Back Wrong.
  • The Atoner
  • Back-to-Back Badasses: With Rose on the Series 1 box art.
  • Badass Arm-Fold: Nine loves a good brood. Played for hilarity when he stood under a reality television Death Ray and dared the producers to dust him.
  • Badass Boast: "Do you know what they call me in the ancient legends of the Dalek homeworld? 'The Oncoming Storm'. You may have removed all your emotions, but I bet that deep down in your DNA there's one spark left, and that's fear. Doesn't it just burn when you face me?"
  • Bi the Way: Very encouraging about Jack's flirting with him, and actively flirts back. Didn't seem to mind being kissed by him, either.

Jack *referring to Rose being affectionate with Mickey* Aw, sweet. Look at these two... How come I never get any of that?
Ninth Doctor: Buy me a drink first.
Jack: Such hard work.
Ninth Doctor: *smiling* But worth it!

  • Break the Cutie: Broken. After The Last Great Time War the Eighth Doctor, who started his life with a human trying to rescue him, causes the death of his entire race and spends his entire Ninth incarnation trying to get over it.
  • Byronic Hero: Subverted, inverted, averted, and played straight, depending on the episode.
  • Catch Phrase: "Fantastic!"
  • Changed My Jumper: Trope Namer.
  • Character Development: Thanks to Rose, he softens and becomes much less rude and angry toward the end of his life.
  • Chewing the Scenery: His rant about the end of the Time War to the Dalek in "Dalek":

Ninth Doctor: I watched it happen. I MADE IT HAPPEN!!!

  • Death Glare: He could make you feel very sorry indeed, doesn't matter if you're a villain or a misbehaving Companion.
  • Death Seeker: The Ninth has subtle shades of this in his first few appearances; after the Time War, he seems almost gleeful at the prospect of mortal danger.
    • Unless he dies in a dungeon... in Cardiff.
    • His first reaction to a distant scream is to run towards it:

Doctor: That's more like it!

Doctor: No. Cause this is what I'm going to do. I'm going to rescue her. I'm going to save Rose Tyler from the middle of the Dalek fleet. And then I'm going to save the Earth. And then I'm going to wipe every last stinking Dalek out of the sky!
Daleks: But you have no weapons! No defenses! No Plan!
Doctor: Yeah... and doesn't that scare you to death!.

Ninth Doctor: "You can be born in the 20th century and die in the 19th, and it's all my fault. I brought you here."

  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Nice as he is, he got really picky with who he let into the TARDIS.
    • As the people he didn't like initially or let in only reluctantly were all guys Rose had become interested in, this could also be seen as a mild, male form of Clingy Jealous Girl. Note that he was perfectly okay with Jack as soon as the man started flirting with them both, instead of threatening to seduce Rose into leaving.
    • He also has a tendency to shift between varying levels of Nice Guy and Jerkass depending on his level of respect for the party in question. For instance, he is generally a nice guy to Rose except for the time she cocked up history in "Father's Day" and most people he meets by default, but if the party in question is antagonistic or smug from the get go, his Jerkass side comes out, hence why he has zero patience for Jackie Tyler. Finally, in a variation, if he's dealing with someone who thinks they are smarter than than they really are (or are someone he's trying to piss off on purpose), he shifts into being a really pleasant sounding smartass.
  • Knight in Sour Armor: Starts out as this, until the universe decides to show mercy for once.

Ninth Doctor: "Look, if I forgot some kid called Mickey, it's because I'm busy trying to save the life of every stupid ape blundering about on top of this planet, all right?!"

Dalek: You would make a good Dalek.

    • As well as when the Dalek pushes his Berserk Button too far, causing the Doctor to electrocute him.

Dalek: We are the same!
Doctor: We're not the same! I'm not- No. Wait. Maybe we are! Yeah ok, you've got a point! Cause I know what should happen. I know what you deserve!

Doctor: EXTERMINATE!

"That's right. I sang a song and the Daleks ran away."

  • Stuff Blowing Up: Blows up a department store, causes the last pure human to combust, bombs Downing Street (well, okay, that last one was Mickey, but the Doctor gave him the code to do so), allows a medium to blow up a house on top of the Rift, overheats the Mighty Jagrafess, and was at Krakatoa (offscreen). The Ninth Doctor loves explosions...

Rose: It's practically how he communicates.

  • Survivor Guilt
  • Thousand-Yard Stare: After something particularly horrific has happened or when he's talking about the Time War and his Survivor Guilt over the whole thing he'll often have a vacant, far-away, haunted expression.
  • Tranquil Fury: Very good at this, when he's angry he becomes very calm.
    • The trailer for series 1 had him running down a corridor with the look of utmost serenity. Then around the corner, came the massive fireball...
  • We Hardly Knew Ye: Only appeared in one series consisting of thirteen episodes.
  • When He Smiles: Generally rough and angular features, though handsome. But all the flaws just disappear with that truly glorious smile.
  • World of Cardboard Speech: At the end of "Bad Wolf" - though it's also for Rose's benefit.

Tenth Doctor

You need to get yourself a better dictionary. When you do, look up "genocide". You'll find a little picture of me there, and the caption'll read "Over my dead body"!

Played by: David Tennant (2005-10)

Beware the Nice Ones personified, the Tenth Doctor was rather manic: prone to speaking very quickly, peppering his speech with pop culture references and foreign words, and going off on long rambling tangents. Despite his bubbly personality, he could and did subject villains to a Fate Worse Than Death if they passed up the one chance at redemption he always offered them. He hated his past self for his actions in the Time War, and would become very cold whenever he was confronted with it. An accidental and often reluctant Chick Magnet, something that also applies to his actor. Considered by many fans as either the greatest or the second greatest Doctor.

  • Ambiguous Innocence: Certainly seems more innocent than his previous incarnation, but is later revealed to be a little on the Cute and Psycho side.
    • His more child like nature also winds up being the cause of a lot of his suffering throughout his run on the show.
  • Apologises a Lot: Whenever he realizes that someone's about to die.
  • Ascended Fanboy: Both meta and canon, as in "Time Crash" he gushes to the fifth Doctor that he had modeled his regeneration after him.
  • Back-to-Back Badasses: Done with a clone of himself and Jackson Lake on two seperate occasions.
  • Badass
  • Badass Boast: "You're in the biggest library in the universe. Look me up!"
    • Also, "What do monsters have nightmares about?" "Me."
  • Badass Grandpa: Got turned into one (appearance wise) briefly by The Master
  • Badass Longcoat: Given to him by Janis Joplin.
  • Badass Minds Think Alike: With the two mentioned above, neither really coordinated their activities with him all that much but since they had his memories, it wasn't all that hard to figure out how to work in sync on the fly.
  • Badass Normal: During his stint as John Smith.
  • Beware the Nice Ones: The Family of Blood found this out the hard way....
  • Big Damn Kiss: Practically his signature move. However, Russell T. Davies typically included some kind of excuse for him to do so, in order to keep the fans happy. To date: Cassandra (she kissed him), Reinette (she kissed him), Martha (to distract aliens with his DNA on her), Joan (he wasn't himself), Astrid (she kissed him, and then he kissed her into stardust to thank her), Donna (she kissed him, because he would die unless he was "shocked"), Rose (it was his half-human clone) and Lady Christina (she kissed him).
  • Borrowed Catchphrase: Borrows his previous incarnation's catchphrase "Fantastic!" at the end of "The Christmas Invasion" to subtly remind Rose that he's still the same person she first met.
  • Break the Cutie: Good lord. Notable moments include almost being murdered in "Midnight", being forced to become a father very suddenly, seeing another version of himself commit genocide on the Daleks all over again, saying goodbye to Donna, and all of "The Waters Of Mars".
  • Byronic Hero: He develops into this as the show progresses. Not surprising after all the times he got broken and losing his companions.
  • Cannot Spit It Out: Is absolutely incapable of telling Rose how he feels about her. His half-Donna clone whispers it into her ear, but we never hear it.
    • "Tell Rose, tell her... Oh, she knows."
    • "And I suppose... Since it's my last chance to say it... Rose Tyler, I--"
    • "Does it really need saying?"
  • Cartwright Curse: Chick Magnet...of Doom!
  • Catch Phrase: "Brilliant!", "Allons-y!", "Molto bene!"
  • Character Development: He starts off as a kind, cheerful, adventure-loving chap with a motormouth. None of this goes away completely, and is still very prevalent in his character. However, as more and more people start to die around him, and as he loses Rose, pushes Martha away inadvertently, and is eventually forced to wipe Donna's memories, he slowly and subtly starts to develop a darker side. He gains an almost obsessive desire for saving people and preventing death at any cost to him.
  • Character Tics: Glasses on, glasses off, glasses on, glasses off... Played With in "Doomsday", when his new glasses actually do something. Also shifts his jaw a lot.
  • Chekhov's Hand: Who knew that after getting his hand cut off in '05, we'd see the Doctor's severed hand again all the way at the end of Series 4 in '08...?
  • Chewing the Scenery: "The Laws of Time are mine and THEY WILL OBEY ME!"
  • Chick Magnet: Yes. And hates it after a while. He even temporarily stops taking on companions because they keep falling in love with him, or having their lives ruined by him, or both. Effortlessly and very accidentally seduces anyone he meets, ranging from Cassandra to the freaking Madame de Pompadour. Implies that he's shagged Queen Elizabeth I.
  • Crazy Awesome: In-universe, as Donna lampshades in "Fires of Pompeii".

Donna: You fought her off. With a Water Pistol. I bloody love you!

Doctor: The laws of time are mine and they will obey me!

  • Oral Fixation Fixation: Oh yes.
  • Preemptive Apology: So often that it's a Catch Phrase.
  • Promoted Fanboy: David Tennant, a child during the era of the Fourth and Fifth Doctors, decided to become an actor at age three largely because of Doctor Who.
    • Cranked Up to Eleven when he was fortunate enough to perform opposite his favorite Doctor (Five) and say so in character.
      • Taken Up to Eleven Million when he acted opposite Davison's daughter, proposed to her (making him Five's eventual son-in-law), and now has a child with her. Currently the undisputed champion of Promoted Fanboy.
  • Prophecy Twist: "He will knock four times."
  • Resuscitate the Dog: His Heroic Sacrifice had strong overtones of this.
  • Rousing Speech: Good at these. Tends to occasionally get lost a bit on the way though.
  • She's Not My Girlfriend: A running gag with Donna. For once, it's absolutely true, and they really are just best friends. (Which is why, when he needs a "shock" to save his life, her snogging him does the trick quite well. They never speak of it again.)
  • Shipper on Deck: Usually tells Jack Harkness to stop flirting with everyone, but eventually plays wingman to hook Jack up with Midshipman Alonso Frame.
  • Shirtless Scene: In "The Stolen Earth/Journey's End". (Actually a naked scene, but we only get to see his upper half.)
  • Sociopathic Hero: Turned into this briefly during "The Waters Of Mars", being heroic (if arguably so) and disturbing in equal measure. Also, while this is ordinarily a Badass subtrope, it's done so as an utterly disturbing deconstruction.

Doctor: I'm so old now. I used to have so much mercy...

The Doctor: Oh, I'm always all right.
Donna: Is "all right" special Time Lord code for... not really all right at all?

  • Slasher Smile: Briefly adopts one when the goes off the deep end during "Waters of Mars".
  • Sword Fight: Right after regenerating, the Doctor takes on the leader of an alien invasion force in a Christmas invasion.
  • Tranquil Fury: And No Indoor Voice. He's loud when he's in a good mood and quiet when he's pissed off.
  • Trauma Conga Line: Ten's entire career could be described this way—which is saying a LOT considering the Doctor in general.
  • Truly Single Parent: To Jenny, a daughter-clone harvested from his cells in "The Doctor's Daughter". Is not happy about being forced into parenthood at gunpoint.
    • Almost-single parent to The Doctor Clone, who is technically the offspring of him and Donna.
  • Unkempt Beauty: He'd be a Sharp-Dressed Man if he did his tie up and stopped wearing trainers. David Tennant intentionally skipped different buttons each episode.
  • What the Hell, Hero?: Breaks his own rules in "The Waters of Mars" by saving the people whose death would have inspired the human race to spread out into space. Is called out on it in the most horrific way possible: The key person who was supposed to die fully understands what happened, and quietly walks off to kill herself. Which leads to the Doctor having a nervous breakdown.
  • Wicked Cultured: Acknowledged in "Fires of Pompeii" when he easily wins a verbal sparring match with Lucius Petrus Dextrus, who notes that the Doctor clearly shows himself to be a man of learning.
  • Who Wants to Live Forever?: Appears tired of his existence and actively suicidal at times (especially during Series 3), but also desperately runs from "death" when his time seems to be up.
  • You Can't Fight Fate: Invoked countless times over the course of his six years. As soon as he thought he'd finally triumphed over it, someone knocks four times...

Eleventh Doctor

Amy Pond, there's something you better understand about me, 'cause it's important and one day your life may depend on it: I am definitely a madman with a box!

Played by: Matt Smith (2010-2013)

The current Doctor, and also the youngest Doctor to date: only 26 when cast, three years younger than previous record-holder Peter Davison. Frequently tripping over his own tangled thoughts, words and limbs, Eleven is definitely a lot more alien when compared to Ten. But he's also quite friendly and personable, and still very liable to snap into Tranquil Fury mode if you annoy him. He has a distinct air of an old man in a young man's body, enjoying his unexpected youth and hopping and skipping all over the place. Takes a lot of inspiration from Two in behavior and in appearance.[9]

  • Absent-Minded Professor: This Doctor tends to be very flighty at times. Most notably in "The Lodger", when he has to pretend to be a normal human while being a bit distracted by having to save the universe.
    • His outfit of choice essentially evokes this .
  • Adorkable: Extremely.

Kazran: I've never kissed anyone before. What do I do?
The Doctor: Well. Try and be all nervous and rubbish and a bit shaky.
Kazran: Why?
The Doctor: Because you're going to be like that anyway. Might as well make it part of the plan and then it'll feel on purpose. Off you go, then.
Kazran: Now? I kiss her, now?
The Doctor: Kazran, trust me, it's this or go to your room and design a new kind of screwdriver. Don't make my mistakes. Now go!

  • Adult Child: Best exemplified in "A Christmas Carol" when the psychic paper fails to say that the Doctor is "universally recognised as a mature and responsible adult" because that lie is just too big.
  • Allergic to Routine: Linear time doesn't agree with him, and he actively hates having to wait for things in chronological order, or having to bother remembering the natural order of centuries when talking to humans.
  • Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny: Quite a lot.

"Ooh, now, what's this? Now, I love this, a big flashy lighty thing! That's what brought me here. Big flashy lighty things have got me written all over them. Not actually. Give me time... and a crayon."

    • Not to mention his frequent declaration;

"Oh its a X! Love an X!"

"There's one thing you never put in a trap if you're smart. If you value your continued existence, if you have any plans about seeing tomorrow there's one thing you never ever put in a trap: Me."

"Look at me! No plan, no backup, no weapons worth a damn. Oh, and something else I don't have. Anything. To. Lose! So, if you're sitting up there in your silly little spaceship with all your silly little guns, and you've got any plans on taking the Pandorica, tonight, just remember who's standing in your way. Remember every black day I ever stopped you, and then, AAAAAND THEN... do the smart thing. Let somebody else try first."

  • Badass Family By the end of "The Wedding Of River Song, he's married to River, and Amy and Rory are his mother-in-law and father-in-law!
  • Badass Longcoat: Starts wearing an awesome, suitably long, green coat as of "Let's Kill Hitler".
  • Batman Gambit: In "Day of the Moon", he has one in mind from the beginning. Neil Armstrong's foot. Or, to flesh it out a bit further, capture a Silent, wait until it says something he can use against them - in this case, "You should kill us all on sight." - then have it broadcast when Neil Armstrong arrives on the Moon, reaching as many people as possible. The Silence's post-hypnotic influence takes care of the rest.
  • Battle Couple: With River
  • Beethoven Was an Alien Spy: Apparently he's the inspiration for the Easter Island statues.
  • Berserk Button: If you do anything to mess with the Doctor's True Companions just to try to hurt him, God help you.

The Doctor: Those words. "Run away." I want you to be famous for those exact words. I want people to call you Colonel Run-Away. I want children laughing outside your door 'cos they've found the house of Colonel Run-Away. And when people come to you and ask you if trying to get to me through the people I love is in any way a good idea… I want you to tell them your name.

    • It's also a bad idea to mock him. When Angel Bob mentioned that he died afraid and alone, breaking a promise that the Doctor made to non-Angel Bob, and began taunting the Doctor about it, the Doctor didn't just defeat the Weeping Angels, he wiped them from history and made sure they never even existed.
    • Also, do not ever even suggest that someone, anyone, is not just as important as everyone else.
    • It's not a very good idea to mess with his TARDIS, as the Silence and House learned.
    • The Doctor's reaction to being fooled that there were other living Time Lords on House's asteroid and that some of the dead were his very close friends;

Doctor: You gave me hope and then took it all away. That would make anyone dangerous, God knows what it would do to me! Basically... RUN!

  • Betty and Veronica: The Veronica to Rory's Betty, though not intentionally.
  • Beware the Nice Ones: "Day of the Moon". Up until this episode, the Eleventh has been a silly and giddy character. This changes once the final confrontation with the Silence occurs, whereupon he tells them he plans on giving them a chance to repent. He was lying. He had no intention of letting them go and, as punishment for kidnapping Amy, and causing his TARDIS to explode in The Big Bang, he arranges their genocide.
    • What he did to the Weeping Angels. See above.
    • This Doctor attacked a Dalek with a spanner.
    • Series 6: Amy and her baby are kidnapped and taken to a base on an asteroid. The Doctor blows up an entire legion of Cyberships to prove a point, then assembles an army to storm the base.
    • And when he finds one of the people responsible, he doesn't stop at just forcing a retreat. He forces the Colonel to tell his troops to run away just to humiliate him (see Berserk Button). Ouch.

Doctor: Good men don't need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many.

    • He's not always nice to his companions, either. In 'The Impossible Astronaut' he becomes very pissed off at his friends, after losing Melody he becomes adamant and demanding to River, and basically the entirety of 'The Girl Who Waited' is him manipulating his companions.
  • Beware the Silly Ones: He can be quite the goofball, but if you manage to drain all the humor out of him and piss him off, you (or your race) will wind up rather gratuitously dead or given a Fate Worse Than Death.
  • Bi the Way: Steven Moffat has, by now, explicitly stated that the Doctor doesn't care about words like "gay" or "straight" and has some trouble grasping what they mean. Eleven is the first Doctor to actively try kissing a male companion (in the TV show, at least—Eight beat him to it in the novels), but fails.
  • Big Damn Kiss: After over 700 years of deep mutual love, he finally gets to kiss the TARDIS. Who promptly bites him on the ear.
  • Blatant Lies: "Rule one: the Doctor lies." He doesn't lie about lying, though.
  • Buffy-Speak: "Big flashy lighty thing," among others.
  • Bow Ties Are Cool: Trope Namer.
  • The Cast Showoff: The football match in "The Lodger" highlights that Matt Smith was headed to be a professional footballer before he had a career-ending injury.
  • Catch Phrase:
    • "Bow Ties Are Cool".
    • The occasional utterance of "It's a thing...", usually referring to one of his many Indy Ploys.
    • "I wear (item of clothing) now. (Items of clothing) are cool." Says it about a fez in The Big Bang, and about a stetson in The Impossible Astronaut.
    • "It's an X. Love an X."
    • "Come along Pond(s)!"
      • "Come along, Bitey!"—to a Cybermat.
    • Much like Ten's Preemptive Apology, Eleven's "Trust me" crops up now and again.
    • "Imagine a... but don't, because it's nothing like that."
    • "Rubbish."
    • "Shut up!"
  • Character Tics: The Eleventh has many noticable ones, such as spinning a whole 270 degrees right in order to turn to simply left,[10] dashing a few steps beyond someone (often a few steps up a flight of stairs) when he approaches them, walking or standing with his arms straight down, generally flailing, doing entirely unrelated stuff with his hands while he's kissing someone, holding up both his index fingers when he explains things (often while spinning), slouching smugly in a chair when he's talking to a villain, shifting his jaw when he's upset and scratching his face when he's utterly perplexed.
  • Chick Magnet: In a completely different way than Ten, half of the time he appears to be completely oblivious to people hitting on him.
  • Contrived Coincidence / There Are No Coincidences: A Meta-example. Matt Smith is listed as Matt Smith (XI) on the IMDb.
  • Cool Old Guy: Despite appearing young he seems to style himself as this. "Don't let the cool gear fool you, I am getting on a bit."
  • Dating Catwoman: He's currently Happily Married to a self-professed psychopath raised to assassinate him! She actually succeeds. Sort of.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Happy chap, but quite capable of dropping the snark when the situation calls for it.
  • Death Seeker: In a different way than Nine and Ten. The Doctor honestly appears tired of his long life by this point, he wants to be around to save everyone he can but is more than willing to sacrifice himself to the multiverse in Series 5 and time itself in Series 6.
  • Dissimile: Used so often it's a Catch Phrase.
  • Dude in Distress: By the end of "The Pandorica Opens" Eleven is shoved inside the Pandorica by the enemy alliance and bolted inside.
  • The Dreaded: Often invokes this, when he's involved, basically run!
    • Horribly deconstructed in Series 6, where this reputation comes back to kick him in the ass.
  • Everything's Better with Spinning: Loves stuff that spins. Has a habit of spinning around a little when he goes from one topic to the next. Tends to turn a full 270 degrees to simply go left.
  • Failed a Spot Check: With some frequency. A notable one after Rory very unexpectedly comes back from being dead:

The Doctor: Hush, Rory. Thinking. Why leave a Cyberman on guard unless it's a Cyberthing in the box but why would they lock up one of their own? Okay, no, not a Cyberthing. But what? What? Oh! Missing something obvious, Rory. Something big. Something right slap in front of me. I can feel it.
Rory: Yeah. I think you probably are.
The Doctor: I'll get it in a minute.

Eleventh Doctor: The people upstairs sure are noisy, aren't they?
Guido: There aren't any people upstairs.
Eleventh Doctor: See, I knew you would say that! Did anyone else think he was going to say that?

    • Also subverted, in that he gives a detailed description of the inhabitant of the Pandorica... not realising that he is also describing himself.
  • Getting Crap Past the Radar

Rory: ...Yours is bigger than mine.
Eleventh Doctor: Let's not go there.

Eleventh Doctor: I don't know but I can't feel my feet... and other parts.
Rory: I think all my parts are basically fine.
Eleventh Doctor: Stop competing.

    • In "Let's Kill Hitler", after the newly-regenerated River Song invades his personal space, he self-consciously covers his crotch behind his hands when she leaves the room.
  • Gibbering Genius: In a slightly different way than Ten. Whereas Ten loves to talk about the inner mechanisms of things and bounce ideas off of his companions, Eleven's preferred method is to let his mouth run completely wild with questions and tangents until he arrives at an answer, while his companions shut. up.
  • Guile Hero: Sometimes played in combination with his Trickster Mentor tendencies, sometimes not... this aspect of him becomes much more apparent in later episodes.
  • Happily Married: To the TARDIS.
  • Heroes Want Redheads: Mentions his love for gingers a few times, but, like Ten, mostly just wants to be one. When a manifestation of his dark thoughts and dreams shows up, it's quite clear that he's at least thought about Amy.
  • Heroic Sacrifice: He drives the Pandorica back to the source of the explosion in order to reset the universe back to the way it was. Of course, he is brought back.
  • He Who Fights Monsters: When his dark side manifests itself as a separate person, it's quite dark indeed.
  • Indy Ploy: His absolute favourite way to solve stuff.
  • Innocent Fanservice Guy: Has his moments.
  • Jerkass Facade: When humans around him seem to be confused or losing hope, he sometimes employs Reverse Psychology and openly dismisses them as useless or unimportant. But his real intention is to encourage them to "prove him wrong".
  • Keet: Bounces, hops, skips, flails, stumbles a lot and sometimes runs like a girl.
  • Lantern Jaw of Justice

[Feeling his face after regenerating] "Ears? Yes. Eyes: two. Nose... eh, I've had worse. Chin... blimey!"

Eleventh Doctor: Hi, honey, I'm home!
River: And what sort of time do you call this?!

  • Love Triangle: Amy thinks she's in one with Rory and the Doctor. The Doctor tries to explain that he's 907, she's human, and Rory would really just like to marry her now. Provided that she's not actively trying to kiss him again, he's actually quite amused by it and tries to get Rory to see it all as a nice joke.
  • The Masochism Tango: Once he and River are married, they get along very well and happily date. Encounters where either of them isn't yet married to the other (due to their messed-up Timey-Wimey Ball) tend to go... less spectacularly, and involve a lot of snarking, yelling and lying at best and a lot of handcuffing, punching and assassinating on a bad day.
  • Master of the Mixed Message: Not much better than his immediate predecessor, as Amy points out in "Meanwhile In The TARDIS Part 2" (DVD-only).

Amy: Oh, come on. You turn up in the middle of the night, get me out of bed in my nightie -- which you then don't let me change out of for ages -- and then take me for a spin in your time machine. No, no, you're right. No mixed signals there. That is just a signal. Like a great big Bat Signal in the sky. Get your coat, love, the Doctor is in!

  • The Matchmaker / Shipper on Deck: Between his efforts to ensure that Amy and Rory's relationship remains on track and his obvious efforts and glee when Craig and Sophie finally hook up, Eleven seems to like playing matchmaker.
    • He possibly does it again in "A Christmas Carol", though the chronology of that episode is even harder to work out than usual.
  • Metaphorgotten: At least he notices when he's not making very much sense.
  • The Midlands
  • Moment Killer: "The Lodger". Almost all of it.
  • Money to Throw Away: The Doctor very hastily attempting to pay rent.

"That's probably a lot. It looks like a lot doesn't it? I can never tell."

  • Motor Mouth: Constantly asks himself questions and tries to analyse situations by rapid-fire deduction, then stumbles over his own thoughts and keeps himself talking with more questions until he reaches an answer, which it turn leads to more questions.
  • Nice Hat:

River: What in the name of sanity have you got on your head?!
Eleventh Doctor: It's a fez. I wear a fez now. Fezzes are cool.

  • Amy throws the hat and River shoots it*
      • The fez returns a few more times. Apparently whenever Amy and River aren't around to take it off him, one of his first priorities is to obtain a fez. He even demanded one from the Secret Service.
    • He also wears a spiffy top hat at the end of "The Big Bang", and the same outfit a few more times in "Night And The Doctor". And then there was the time he dressed up as Marlene Dietrich.
    • Stetsons are cool, too.
  • Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Way to revive the Daleks, Doctor. Victory indeed.
    • At the end of "A Good Man Goes to War," River implies that his whole career is made of this, raising more enemies against himself and his loved ones with every new display of fearsomeness.
    • Again in "The Girl Who Waited" where he doesn't bother to check that there's a plague on the planet they land, and his attempts to save Amy just end up with creating a second, older and bitter Amy. Rory calls him out on this. Hard.
  • Nightmare Fetishist: Maybe not to the extent of Ten, but his first reaction upon being surrounded by pale creepy girls with fangs who cast no reflections is one of utter glee.
  • Obfuscating Insanity: Tied directly into his Cloudcuckoolander status.

Eleventh Doctor: Sorry. Checking all the water in this area. [leans in close] There's an escaped fish {{[[[Nose Tapping]] taps nose}}].

  • Papa Wolf: Several times for humanity as a whole.
  • Promoted Fanboy: Averted; he's pretty much the first Doctor since Davison who didn't grow up watching Doctor Who. Helps that he was only seven when "Survival" was broadcast. Once he got cast, though, he watched the classic series and called up Steven Moffat to spend twenty minutes raving about Tomb of the Cybermen. Then asked to wear a bow tie.
  • Reality Warper: Uses his ability to influence the past (and subsequently the present) very freely, particularly in "The Big Bang" and in "A Christmas Carol". Gets called out on it in the latter episode.
  • Robo Ship: The Doctor and the TARDIS. Pretty much confirmed in-universe as of The Doctor's Wife.
  • Running Gag: He so desperately wants a fez, as he mentions and wears one in "A Christmas Carol", and he demands one from the Secret Service in "The Impossible Astronaut". Even when he survives the second Big Bang and begins his rewind in "The Big Bang", one of his first thoughts is his desire to buy a new fez.
    • Hats in general, really.
  • Security Cling: The Eleventh Doctor and Amy have a variation. Because Amy's story is one traumatic Break the Cutie moment after another, the Doctor develops a habit of clinging tightly to her and rubbing her back while delivering each new piece of bad news. Asking permission from her husband Rory every time, of course.
  • Sherlock Scan: Eleven does this occasionally, most notably in The Beast Below and A Christmas Carol. Not surprising, considering who the executive producer is.
  • Shirtless Scene: in "The Eleventh Hour".
    • Almost a case of Innocent Fanservice Guy, as Eleven only turned around and told Amy and Rory to look away if it bothered them. (Rory did. Amy did not.)
  • Shower Scene: To add to the Shirtless Scene above, Eleven gets a shower scene, complete with shower singing and three minutes in nothing but a towel in "The Lodger".
  • Socially Awkward Hero: More scatterbrained than most previous incarnations (though still not quite as much as Four), and quite socially awkward as a result. Occasionally on purpose, because he really doesn't want to deal with Amy all the time.

"RORY! SHE'S HAVING AN EMOTION!"

  • Squee: Makes actual squee noises when River Song finally reveals who she is. Then takes another long look at her and makes a few more.
  • Stay in the TARDIS: The Eleventh Doctor seems particularly protective of Amy and is frequently given to ordering her to stay in the TARDIS. Naturally, she rarely listens.
  • Stepford Smiler: Shows signs of this in Series 6. Justified by the fact that he's approaching the date of his death, and knows it.

Girl: He looked so happy, yet so very sad...

    • Not just Series 6. It's been pretty obvious ever since "Amy's Choice" at least.
    • Matt Smith's thoughts on him make it far more clear:

That’s what interests me about The Doctor because, actually, look at the blood on the man’s hands. 900 years, countless very selfish choices, and he’s literally blown planets up. His own race, you know, that’s all on his hands. Which is why I think he has to make silly jokes and wear a fez. Because if he didn’t, he’d hang himself.

Twelfth Doctor

Played by: Peter Capaldi (2014-2017)

Thirteenth Doctor

Played by: Jodie Whittaker (2018-present)

Back to Doctor Who
  1. ↑ His aim, however, left much to be desired.
  2. ↑ It's not like it was even loaded, though.
  3. ↑ This is actually a tattoo from actor Jon Pertwee's navy days. Apparently, he got really really drunk and woke up the next day with the tattoo on his arm while in port. And no, he wasn't ashamed of it.
  4. ↑ Very distant
  5. ↑ Sylvester McCoy had a small background with stunts and parlour tricks
  6. ↑ Especially incredible since the pyrotechnicians had over-rigged the charge and McCoy was set on fire but he kept going as there was only one-take they could do.
  7. ↑ "Bananas are good!"
  8. ↑ "I think I just invented the Banana Daiquiri!"
  9. ↑ A meta-example: Matt Smith saw Doctor Who and asked for a similar costume.
  10. ↑ And props to Matt Smith for making this look completely natural every time!
  11. ↑ he also demands a plate of Jammy Dodgers from the Secret Service
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