Doctor Who is unique in that it’s an iconic character who changes every few years. It keeps things fresh. But that hasn’t stopped fans, and the Time Lord himself Peter Capaldi, reflecting on the Thirteenth Doctor’s time in the TARDIS – and whether the time was right for Capaldi to move on.

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Speaking to SFX magazine, Capaldi was asked what made him decide to hang up his sonic screwdriver and the Scot was typically forthright, even if answer was tinged with a little bit of sadness, d’aww: “I didn’t want to make the decision for a long time, because I like it so much, it’s so much fun.” Capaldi said, “But I’ve never really been in anything for any length of time. I like to move on.”

What about looking back on his timey-wimey adventures through the ages and his relationship with showrunner Steven Moffat? “I think we’ve done great stuff. I think Steven [Moffat] is fabulous. I don’t know why people have a go at him, why they call him a misogynist, I don’t understand that at all I think he’s a brilliant writer.”

Capaldi has addressed more of the show’s critics, and knows that not every episode can be a home run though, but they’ve done well even with the restrictions placed on them: “The fact of the matter is that any show that is making 12 episodes a year, with these budgets and under these circumstances, not every [episode] is going to be fantastic. And certainly not every [episode] is going to be to everyone’s tastes.”

But the final act for number Thirteen is still to come. Capaldi wants him to go out “fighting.” We’ll find out soon enough whether that’s the case once the Doctor regenerates for the thirteenth time…

Hear more from Peter Capaldi and read the latest on the new series of Doctor Who in the latest issue of SFX magazine, on sale now. Buy future issues here.

Image: BBC & SFX Magazine