Remembering William Hartnell

Remembering William Hartnell

23rd Apr 2010

Hartnell's performance as the Doctor was an engaging mixture of grand-fatherly warmth and sinister scientist; the unknown and the childishly mischievous, suggesting at once a rebellious 'everyman' figure and an improbably old genius from beyond our time and solar system.

William Henry Hartnell was born in London on 8 January 1908. He trained as an actor at the Italia Conti Academy (well over half a century before Karen Gillan studied there!) and won a number of stage roles before focussing on film throughout the 1930s, 40s and 50s. Strong performances saw him work with some of the masters of cinema with roles including Ned Fletcher in Michael Powell's The Way Ahead (1944), Fencie in Carol Reed's Odd Man Out (1947) and Dallow in John Boulting's Brighton Rock (1947). Hartnell developed a reputation for portraying tough types in hard-hitting dramas like Hell Drivers (1957) but proved equally adept in comedies. As a star of the very first Carry On movie, Carry On Sergeant (1958), he helped the franchise get off to a memorable start and he delivered stand-out turns in classics such as The Mouse that Roared (1959).

However, it was his nuanced performance in Lindsay Anderson's This Sporting Life (1963) that caught the eye of a young producer called Verity Lambert. She gave him the lead role in a new BBC series and William Hartnell's quirky, charismatic delivery ensured Doctor Who was a hit. He played the part from 1963 - 66, helping the show achieve a huge, loyal following. He was instrumental in making the Doctor one of the great characters of fiction - our Pied Piper through a succession of brilliantly bizarre fairy tales. He retired from the role due to ill-health but in 1972 donned the Doctor's frock coat one last time to play the Time Lord in The Three Doctors. It was his final performance although the legacy and continuing success of Doctor Who means that 35 years after his death he continues to win admirers, fans and an audience who still follow the mysterious old man's voyages through time and space in a small wooden police box.

William Henry Hartnell, born 8 January 1908, died April 23 1975.

The clip above is from The Dalek Invasion of Earth and shows the Doctor bidding farewell to Susan.

Watch William Hartnell in The Space Museum

Watch the first Doctor regenerate