Christopher Eccleston said he quit his role as the Time Lord in Doctor Who because he didn't enjoy his working culture and wanted to be his "own man".

The 46-year-old - who will soon be seen playing John Lennon in BBC Four biopic Lennon Naked - said if he had remained in the job he would've had to "blind myself to certain things I thought were wrong".

But Eccleston told the Radio Times that, despite his misgivings, the show broke the mould and "I'm very proud of it".

The actor took on the role in 2004 when writer Russell T Davies gave Doctor Who a massive overhaul. But despite widespread critical acclaim, the ninth Doctor moved on after his first series.

Explaining why he left, Eccleston said: "I was open-minded but I decided after my experience on the first series that I didn't want to do any more.

"I didn't enjoy the environment and the culture that we, the cast and crew, had to work in.

"I wasn't comfortable. I thought 'If I stay in this job, I'm going to have to blind myself to certain things that I thought were wrong.' And I think it's more important to be your own man than be successful, so I left.

"But the most important thing is that I did it, not that I left. I really feel that, because it kind of broke the mould and it helped to reinvent it. I'm very proud of it."

Eccleston said he felt the BBC handled speculation about his departure "very badly" and rebutted suggestions that he was tired and scared of being typecast. He said: "They handled it very badly but they issued an apology and I dropped it."

:: The full interview appears in the latest issue of the Radio Times.

PA