Feature article by guest contributor Liam Sewell.

Excitement and anticipation are mounting in preparation for seeing David Bradley bring the First Doctor back to life on Christmas Day, but the situation has me thinking. Unfortunately a fact of life is that actors die – such as the case of our beloved Hartnell. Similarly, many actors move on from the show and often do not wish to reprise their roles – as is the case of Christopher Eccleston. With the use of Bradley in the place of our original Doctor, the doors of possibility are open to keeping an array of characters alive, even when the actors are unavailable. This article (with the help of the picture editing wizard, that Colin Baker himself once named The Troll in The Basement, Bad Geminton) will consider possible alternative contenders for our Doctors.

The First Doctor

The First Doctor has been portrayed by 7 people, including Bradley, since the show began. There’s no doubt that David Bradley does a beautifully convincing job of becoming Hartnell, but if one day he can no longer continue being our stand-in First Doctor, we need an alternative. Back when An Adventure in Space and Time was announced, before the casting, there was one name in my head that could play Hartnell. I refer back to it now, the wonderful David Warner. He has the look, he has the talent. He would no doubt be an excellent First Doctor.

The Second Doctor

At first thought, my choice for Patrick Troughton’s replacement may seem an odd one. But once you see him in costume, you may reconsider. Regardless nothing could be a worse casting choice than Reese Sheersmith and so I present to you, Ian McShane.

The Third Doctor

The obvious choice for the Third Doctor is Sean Pertwee, son of the late, great actor himself. Instead I offer you a similar enough looking chap with the one of the widest and undervalued acting ranges on screen: Geoffrey Rush.

The Fourth Doctor

This casting for Tom Baker is controversial. While some fans will be ecstatic at the thought, others will be cursing my name for eternity. No one could ever pull off the Fourth Doctor like Tom and so this casting is based entirely on voice. With similarly deep tones, ladies and gentlemen, Benedict Cumberbatch.

The Fifth Doctor

A previous rumoured contender for 13 is my main choice for 5 – Tom Rosenthal.

The Sixth Doctor

Quite an unknown actor, but a talented one nonetheless. For the part of the Sixth Doctor I have cast the wonderfully talented Ron Donachie. Some of you may recognise him from his spell in Game of Thrones. Others might just think he looks somewhat like Colin Baker.

The Seventh Doctor

The Seventh Doctor choice is an obscure one. If this list were made 20 or 30 years ago, Ian Holm or Ian McDiarmid would be the top choices. But they’re both now older than Sylvester and don’t hold the same appearance they once did. For that reason I have chosen an actor with similar facial features, albeit a bit young. Rami Malek could certainly look the part of Seven, whether he could pull of the voice is another question entirely.

For those of you who don’t think Rami is a good choice, I’m half on board with you and so I’ve also cast Michael Sheen.

The Eighth Doctor

No doubt the thing we’d all love most is more Paul McGann on our screens. However if we ever need an Eight and Paul isn’t around, thank goodness Aiden Gillen exists. He has the charisma and the charm, and he looks rather dapper too.

The War Doctor

Us Whovians were deeply saddened earlier this year with the death of our War Doctor, Sir John Hurt. In terms of the War Doctor’s onscreen storyline, we were fortunate enough to conclude it before we lost such a great actor forever. However, there’s a huge chunk of the War Doctor’s life we haven’t seen and for a younger actor, who looks somewhat like Hurt, the job simply must go to Gary Oldman

The Ninth Doctor

Christopher Eccleston is likely never to reprise his role as Doctor’s order, number nine, but that shouldn’t mean that the character should be lost to us forever. In terms of physical appearance and big name actors – I put it to you that we get Adrian Brody in. Sure he’s all Hollywood and expensive, but we still have more chance of that than of getting Eccleston back.

The Tenth Doctor

Here’s a casting that will drive readers crazy. Arthur Darvill as The Tenth Doctor. He has the hair, he has the sideburns. I’m sure he’d do fine.

The Eleventh Doctor

Floppy hair and a surreal personality. That description could only describe two people and being as we’re not using Matt Smith, Noel Fielding becomes Doctor Eleven.

The Twelfth Doctor

I’ve often said if the Twelfth Doctor had a younger brother, they would be played by John Hannah. I mean seriously, these chaps have the same face. Plus they’re both Scots.

The Thirteenth Doctor

In terms of Jodie Whittaker, as much as I adore the casting choice, I haven’t studied her face or style yet and can’t offer an accurate replacement. So here’s Gary Busey taking on the role.