As one of the longest-running science fiction shows,Doctor Whohas featured thousands of actors over the years. And even if the viewers only consider the renewed series, it’s still hundreds of names and faces. As such, it’s easy to lose focus of all the actors who were inDoctor Who, especially if they haven’t played a prominent part, such as the Doctor, one of the companions, or an iconic villain.
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A lot of talented British and other actors who went on to become well-known appeared once in the show, and their appearance has since been overshadowed by their later, more prominent work both in movies and in other TV series!
5Sir Ian McKellen
Sir Ian McKellen is one of the most celebrated and popular actors, having starred in huge franchises such asLord of the RingsandX-Men, as well as many smaller movies. Despite his level of fame, thoseDoctor Whofans who would hope to see him in the show would be disappointed…but not entirely. Even though McKellen didn’t get to show his face inDoctor Who, he did get to play an important part inone of the Christmas specialsnevertheless.
In the 2012 Christmas episodeThe Snowmen, Sir Ian McKellen voiced the part of the Great Intelligence, a villain with whom even the Doctor himself (portrayed by Matt Smith back then) had a hard time dealing with! Sir McKellen’s distinctive voice lent a lot of power to the role, making it a must-watch for all of his fans.
4Andrew Garfield
Sir Ian McKellen isn’t the only former Marvel actor who also appeared inDoctor Who. The same goes for Andrew Garfield, known for playing Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man, a role he recently reprised inSpider-Man: No Way Home(2021). However, long before Garfield started swinging around New York, he was…also in New York, but in the 1930s during the era of the Great Depression.
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Frank, the Doctor, Martha Jones, andother people fought the Daleks. Andrew Garfield appeared in the two-part story and his Frank was easily one of the most intelligent and sympathetic characters in the episodes, despite having only a limited amount of space.
3Felicity Jones
Felicity Jones drew a lot of attention to herself when she portrayed the leading role of Jyn Urso in the critically-acclaimedStar WarsmovieRogue One(2016). That wasn’t the first time Jones appeared in a science fiction role, though.Doctor Whosometimes portrays real-life historical figuresand one of the popular episodes is about the legendary crime and mystery writer Agatha Christie. The episode titledThe Unicorn and the Wasphappened in the fourth season, and it focused on the Doctor and Donna as they tried to solve a mysterious murder that wouldn’t be out of place in Agatha Christie’s novels.
Their investigation was even more interesting thanks to the fact that Christie herself was present! The trio - the Doctor, Donna, and Agatha Christie - stole the episode for themselves, but Felicity Jones also delivered a solid performance as one of the suspects who’s hiding a secret from the rest of the world. Interestingly enough, it wasn’t the only time Jones appeared in a period story, proving that historical pieces suit her just as well as futuristic ones.
2Olivia Colman (And Tom Hopper)
The recent Oscar nominee for her part in the drama movieThe Father(2020), Olivia Colman is a good example that even when a TV show character doesn’t have a name, they can still leave a strong impression. In the first episode of the fifth season, which also marked the Eleventh Doctor’s first adventure, Colman portrayed a mother and a form of the Patient Zero. Even though she had only a limited number of lines, she was genuinely scary in the episode and the heroes ended up running from her!
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If that wasn’t enough, this episode also featured another British actor who would go on to become more prominent later. Tom Hopper played Jeff, a young man whose computer the Doctor uses to help solve the current crisis. Unlike Colman’s role, Jeff was more of a humorous figure. Hopper is currently portraying one of the leading characters inthe superhero showThe Umbrella Academythat’s streaming on Netflix.
1Tom Ellis
If circumstances were different, Tom Ellis' character inDoctor Whocould have had a larger role. Tom Ellis played Thomas Milligan, a doctor who worked for the NHS and started dating Martha Jones. They seemed to be a good match, but the problem was their relationship happened in the Year That Never Was and Thomas later forgot all about it. Even though they rekindled their relationship, they broke up in the end. Martha went on to marry Mickey Jones, Rose Tyler’s former boyfriend. Talk about complicated relationships…
Thomas Milligan came across as an intelligent, resourceful character and he and Martha had good chemistry. Ellis, of course, had more prominent roles in other series, including the British sitcomMirandaand most recently he played the titular role ofLucifer Morningstar in the fantasy crime seriesLucifer. Some fans even campaigned for him to become the new Doctor, but the latest news is that the role of the Fourteenth Doctor went to Ncuti Gatwa ofSex Educationfame!
