Tom Baker

Last updated

Tom Baker
MBE
LonelyEnbyx with Tom Baker (cropped and edited).jpg
Baker in 2023
Born
Thomas Stewart Baker

(1934-01-20) 20 January 1934 (age 91)
Liverpool, England
Alma mater Rose Bruford College
Occupations
  • Actor
  • writer
Years active1956–present
Known for Fourth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who
Spouses
  • Anna Wheatcroft
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1961;div. 1966)​
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1980;div. 1982)​
  • Sue Jerrard
    ​
    (m. 1986)​
Children2
Website tombakerofficial.com
Signature
Tom Baker signature.svg

Thomas Stewart Baker MBE (born 20 January 1934) is an English actor and writer. He is best known for playing the fourth and longest-serving incarnation of the Doctor in the science fiction television series Doctor Who from 1974 to 1981.

Contents

Raised devoutly Catholic in Liverpool, Baker initially sought to become a cleric before turning to acting. He joined the National Theatre company in 1968. Following supporting roles in films such as Nicholas and Alexandra (1971) and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973), he was working part-time on a building site when he was cast as the lead in Doctor Who (1974–1981). Baker, who incorporated his own personality into the Doctor, became highly popular with audiences both in the UK and abroad; his portrayal is often considered the best and most quintessential of the programme's classic series. [a]

Baker appeared in the television series Medics (1992–1995), Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased) (2000–2001) and Monarch of the Glen (2004–2005). He moved into voice acting later in his career, providing narration for the comedy series Little Britain (2003–2006) and Little Britain USA (2008). In 2006, his "sonorous" voice was voted the fourth-most recognisable in the UK.

Early life

Thomas Stewart Baker was born in the Scotland Road area of Liverpool on 20 January 1934. [8] [9] [10] His devoutly Catholic mother, Mary Jane (née Fleming), [9] [10] was a barmaid and cleaner. His father, John Stewart Baker, was a steward in the Merchant Navy largely absent from the family due to being away at sea. Some sources eroneously cite John as Jewish, but he was from Scottish and English ancestry. The reference in Tom Baker's memoire to his father's "jewish" ways was made in the old fashioned colloquial sense of a wanderer and an itnerant man (British usage). [11] [12] [10] Baker was raised Catholic. [13] [14]

Baker attended St Swithin’s Primary School. [8] He failed his eleven-plus and subsequently sought a religious career as "a way out" of becoming a labourer. [15] [16] At 15 years old, he became a novice religious brother with the Brothers of Ploermel in Jersey and later in Cheswardine Hall, Shropshire. [17] [18] He left the monastery six years later [10] [18] due to feelings of guilt [12] and ultimately losing his faith in God. [19] [10]

He undertook his national service as a medical orderly in the Royal Army Medical Corps, [20] [8] serving for two years. [11] He developed an interest in acting by taking part in the medical corps’ amateur dramatics. [21] [20] He left the army in 1956 and took up acting, studying at the Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama in Sidcup for three years. [22] [18]

Career

1968–1973: Early work

Baker was in his thirties when his professional acting career began and he worked in provincial repertory theatre, which he later recalled as "mostly flops or even disasters". [23] [18] His first acting role was as the bear in The Winter’s Tale at Assembly Hall, Edinburgh, in 1966. [21] [24] Baker had his first break whilst performing in a late-night pub revue for the 1968 York Festival. His performance was seen by a scout with the Royal National Theatre who encouraged him to audition for the company. Following a successful audition for Laurence Olivier, Baker was given small parts and understudied. [23] [18] One of his bigger roles was the horse Rocinante [23] in The Travails of Sancho Panza, directed by Joan Plowright. This led Olivier to cast Baker as the Prince of Morocco in The Merchant of Venice. [25] Other productions included The National Health and A Woman Killed with Kindness . [18]

His stage work led to work on television, where he gained small parts in series such as Dixon of Dock Green , Z-Cars , Market in Honey Lane and Softly, Softly . [23] He played Dr Ahmed el Kabir in the BBC’s 1972 Play of the Month production of The Millionairess , directed by Bill Slater and starring Maggie Smith. [25] [26] Baker's National Theatre contract ended in 1971. [27] [18] He continued to appear in theatre productions, with a role in The Novelist at Hampstead and as the lead in Macbeth at the Shaw Theatre, London. [28] Due to Baker's role as a Russian in The Idiot, Olivier suggested Baker to Sam Spiegel for the part of Grigori Rasputin in Nicholas and Alexandra (1971), his first major film role. [25] [18] He was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards for his performance, one for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and another for Best Newcomer. [29] Baker appeared as a tortured artist in The Vault of Horror (1973) and as the villainous sorcerer Koura in Ray Harryhausen's The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973). He also appeared in Pier Paolo Pasolini's 1972 film version of Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. [30]

1974–1981: Doctor Who

Baker at Whovent '86 in Washington, D.C. Tom Baker, Whovent 1986.jpg
Baker at Whovent '86 in Washington, D.C.

Baker worked on a building site between acting jobs, which earned him the nickname "Sir Laurence" from his workmates. [31] He had expected to work on three films in 1974 (Isabella of Spain, Three Men Went to War and Jackson's War), but they had all collapsed by late 1973. [28] Anxious at his career prospects, [32] on 3 February 1974 he wrote a letter to The Millionairess director Bill Slater (incoming BBC Head of Serials) asking for acting work. Slater recommended Baker to Doctor Who producer Barry Letts, who was seeking a successor to Third Doctor actor Jon Pertwee. [31] [33] Letts and script editor Terrance Dicks were impressed by Baker's performance in The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, and following a meeting with Baker in the BBC bar, the actor was quickly cast as the Fourth Doctor. [34] Baker's casting was announced to the press on 15 February; he made his first appearance as the Doctor in the closing moments of Planet of the Spiders on 8 June. [35] Baker's casting resulted in a wave of new acting offers. Even before recording his first season as the Doctor, he was cast in the television film The Author of Beltraffio (1974), directed by Tony Scott. [36] [37] The same year he played the title role in The Trials of Oscar Wilde at the Oxford Festival. [38]

Although Baker had little idea of how he would play his version of the Doctor when cast, [39] [32] he quickly made the part his own, highlighting the character's eccentricity and alien qualities. [40] [41] Baker incorporated much of his own personality into the Doctor's [42] [43] [3] and frequently made comedic scripting suggestions and ad-libs. [44] His trademark look of wearing a floppy hat and long multi-coloured scarf, as well as his deep voice, made him an immediately recognisable figure. [2] [45] Audience-viewing figures for his first few years returned to a level not seen since the height of "Dalekmania" a decade earlier. [2] [3] [46] Baker relished his status as a children's hero, [15] preferring to be the Doctor than to return to his "tangled" private life. [47] He avoided smoking or swearing in public out of awareness that the Doctor was considered a role model for children. [48]

"When I was doing Doctor Who, it was the realisation of all my childhood fantasies... so I took to it like a duck to water, and I still do. Doctor Who was more important than life to me - I used to dread the end of rehearsal... that's why I can't stay away from it." [49]

—Baker in 2017

Under new producer Philip Hinchcliffe and script editor Robert Holmes, the series gained a gothic tone influenced by Hammer Horror films and was aimed "a bit more to the adults in the audience". [50] Many of the stories from Baker's early seasons are considered classics, such as The Ark in Space (1975), Genesis of the Daleks (1975), The Brain of Morbius (1976), The Deadly Assassin (1976) and The Robots of Death (1977). [45] [51] Baker has named Hinchcliffe's tenure as his favourite period of the series, [39] but the series' violent tone came under heavy criticism from conservative activist Mary Whitehouse. [3] Hinchcliffe was replaced by Graham Williams, [52] and the series' tone was lightened. [53] Williams attempted to rein Baker in, but he was ultimately forced to accept the actor's growing influence over the programme. [13] [54]

Baker played the Doctor for seven consecutive seasons, making him the longest-serving actor in the part. His incarnation is often regarded as the most popular and quintessential of the Doctors. [2] In polls conducted by Doctor Who Magazine , Baker was voted "Best Doctor" every year up to 2013, with the exception of losing to incumbents Sylvester McCoy in 1990 and David Tennant in 2006 and 2009. [55] [3] Baker's tenure corresponded with Doctor Who's first broadcasts in the United States, further cementing his popularity among international viewers. [3] [56] He also became proprietorial over the role of the Doctor and often berated writers and directors whose work he disliked. [57] [58] [59] [60] In 1980, new producer John Nathan-Turner introduced noticeable changes to the series, [61] including a new costume for Baker and a larger cast of companions. Baker found Nathan-Turner's approach to the series "unbearable" and decided it was time to depart the role. [39] [62] He said in 2014 that he may have stayed in the role for one season too long. [39] Baker announced his departure on 24 October 1980. [60] Logopolis (1981), the seventh and final serial of season 18, concluded with the Fourth Doctor's regeneration into the Fifth Doctor, played by Peter Davison. [63]

Subsequent appearances

Baker and a Dalek in Trafalgar Square, 1991 Tombaker1991london.jpg
Baker and a Dalek in Trafalgar Square, 1991

Although his predecessors Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee reprised their roles for the 20th-anniversary episode "The Five Doctors" (1983), Baker declined as it was not long since he had left. He added that he "didn't want to play 20 per cent of the part" or "fancy being a feed for other Doctors." [64] A year later he stated "the programme is my past now - it would, I think, have been a mistake to try to turn the clock back". [65] In 1992 Baker presented the video release The Tom Baker Years, where he looked back on the series by watching short clips from his episodes. [66] [67] Baker also filmed inserts for the 1992 video release of Shada , [68] a serial which remained half-filmed due to a 1979 BBC strike. [69] [49]

In early 1992, Baker expressed willingness to return to the role of the Doctor. Development began on The Dark Dimension , a direct-to-video 30th anniversary special featuring Baker as an older version of the Fourth Doctor who had not regenerated. However it was cancelled on 9 July 1993 for financial and logistical reasons. [68] [70] Baker returned to the role for the Children in Need charity special Dimensions in Time (1993), along with every surviving actor who played the Doctor. [71] [72] In 1997 he reprised the role in an advertising campaign for New Zealand Superannuation Services, [73] and for the Doctor Who video game Destiny of the Doctors . [74] [75] He also narrated various Target novelisations of Doctor Who stories for the BBC. [b]

He made a cameo appearance in the 50th-anniversary special "The Day of the Doctor" (2013) as a mysterious curator in the National Gallery, implied to be the Doctor's future incarnation. [80] In 2017, the cast of Shada reunited to complete the unfilmed scenes via voice-over and animation, with Baker filming one live-action scene. [81] Baker and James Goss co-wrote the 2019 novel Doctor Who: Scratchman, based on a script Baker and Ian Marter (who played companion Harry Sullivan) wrote for a proposed 1970s Doctor Who film. [82] [83] As of 2025, Baker is the oldest living actor to have played the role. [84]

Audio dramas

In 1976, Baker played the Doctor in two BBC audio dramas, Doctor Who and the Pescatons and the episode "The Time Machine" of Exploration Earth. [85] All other living Doctor Who lead actors (Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann) reprised their roles for audio dramas since 2001, [86] but Baker avoided doing so until BBC's Hornets' Nest in 2009. He appeared in two sequels, Demon Quest and Serpent Crest . [65] In March 2011, it was announced that Baker would return as the Fourth Doctor, alongside his companion Romana (Mary Tamm and Lalla Ward), for two series of audio dramas for Big Finish Productions. [87] [88] Big Finish also arranged for Baker to record a series with Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith, but Sladen died in April 2011 before any stories could be recorded. [89] As of 2025, Big Finish has released 14 audio series starring Baker as the Doctor, featuring past co-stars such as Louise Jameson, Matthew Waterhouse and John Leeson. [88] It was announced in March 2020 that Baker would record "Return of the Cybermen" for Big Finish, an alternative version of the serial Revenge of the Cybermen (1975), with Sadie Miller, Sladen's daughter, cast in the role of Sarah Jane. [90] [91] In 2020 Baker returned to the role of the Curator for Big Finish, joining the cast of The Eighth Doctor Adventures . [92]

1982–2003: Return to character acting

Baker struggled with typecasting after leaving Doctor Who, withdrawing to the theatre. [93] [60] In 1981, he played Oscar Wilde for a second time on stage in Feasting with Panthers at the Chichester Festival Theatre. [94] [95] The same year he appeared in Treasure Island at the National. [60] He hosted The Book Tower , an ITV children's television series exploring literature. [36]

In 1982, he played Judge Brack in Hedda Gabler , with Susannah York as Hedda, in the West End. [95] He portrayed Sherlock Holmes in a four-part BBC miniseries adaptation of The Hound of the Baskervilles , produced by Barry Letts. [96] [60] He then played Dr. Frank Bryant in a touring Royal Shakespeare Company production of Educating Rita . [97] [95] He returned to the National Theatre in 1984 to play Mr Hardcastle in She Stoops to Conquer in the Olivier Theatre and on tour. The following year he played both Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty in Hugh Leonard's The Mask of Moriarty at the Gate Theatre in Dublin. [95] Baker narrated the 1985 science fiction film Enemy Mine.[ citation needed ] He appeared in Blackadder II (1986) as sea captain Redbeard Rum. [98] In 1987, he played Inspector Goole in a production of An Inspector Calls . [16] [60]

Baker in 2010 Tom Baker.jpg
Baker in 2010

Baker's autobiography, Who on Earth is Tom Baker? was published in 1997. [99] [60] He also authored two children's books: Never Wear Your Wellies in the House and Other Poems to Make You Laugh (1981) [100] and The Boy Who Kicked Pigs (1999). [101] [60]

By the early 1990s, Baker's now older appearance led to a reduction in typecasting; additionally he began to be cast by directors who grew up watching him on Doctor Who. [60] [102] He played Puddleglum, a "marsh-wiggle", in the 1990 BBC adaptation of C. S. Lewis' The Silver Chair . [102] He was cast as Professor Plum in the 1992 series of the game show Cluedo. [102] He played the titular "hammy" narrator in the 1992 radio comedy Lionel Nimrod's Inexplicable World. [65] Baker narrated the 1990s BBC puppet series Tales of Aesop, based on Aesop's Fables. [103] In 1994 he provided the narration for Channel 4's Equinox documentary Rave New World. [104] Baker's first long-running role since the Fourth Doctor was as Dr. Hoyt in the hospital drama Medics (1992–1995). [60] It was rumoured that Baker was a candidate for the role of Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings films; Baker himself stated that he would not have accepted a role which would mean spending months away filming in New Zealand. [105] [106] In 2000 he appeared as the elf Halvarth in Dungeons & Dragons . [107] Baker took on the part of Wyvern in Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased) (2000–2001). [60]

2003–present: Move into voice acting and Little Britain

Influenced by his role as Lionel Nimrod, [65] Baker was cast as the narrator of the sketch comedy series Little Britain (2003–2006). [108] His casting was also influenced by his popularity with creators Matt Lucas and David Walliams, part of the generation for whom he is the favourite Doctor. [109] [110] Baker credited Little Britain with "re-inventing" him. [111] [110] For the evening of 17 November 2005, to introduce the third television series of Little Britain, Baker read BBC One's continuity announcements in character. [112] The same year his "sonorous" voice was voted the fourth most recognisable in the UK, after Elizabeth II, Tony Blair and Margaret Thatcher. [113] Baker later returned to narrate Little Britain's 2019 radio special. [114]

In 2003 he played a blind priest in the BBC series Strange. [115] Baker was cast as Donald MacDonald in the sixth and seventh series of Monarch of the Glen . [116] [117]

In January 2006, BT Group used Baker's voice for their text-to-speech service for landline phones. This required him to record 11,593 phrases, containing every sound in the English language. [118] [119] The service returned from 1 December 2006 to 8 January 2007, with two pence from each text going to the charity Shelter. A cover of "You Really Got Me" by the Kinks, sung by Baker's text voice, was released on 18 December with proceeds going to charity. [120] [121]

Baker signing autographs in 2012 Tom baker.jpg
Baker signing autographs in 2012

Baker has appeared in various radio productions, including a role as "Britain's most celebrated criminal barrister", Sir Edward Marshall Hall in John Mortimer Presents the Trials of Marshall Hall (1996), [122] "Josiah Bounderby" in Charles Dickens' Hard Times (1998) and a part in the 2001 BBC Radio 4 version of The Thirty-Nine Steps as Sir Walter Bullivant. He guest starred in The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (a pastiche series written by Bert Coules) in the 2002 episode "The Saviour of Cripplegate Square".[ citation needed ] From 2000 to 2005 Baker voiced the character Max Bear in the Channel 4 animated series of the same name. [123]

He voiced the villain ZeeBad in the animated film The Magic Roundabout (2005). The character was redubbed for the US release. [124] [125] In 2007, he voiced Robert Baron in the BBC animated series The Secret Show . [126] He narrated the children's animated series The Beeps which was broadcast on Channel 5's Milkshake! [ citation needed ] Baker voiced the Bendu, a powerful Force-sensitive being in the animated series Star Wars Rebels (2016). [127]

His voice may be heard at London's Natural History Museum narrating commentary to some of the exhibits that demonstrate Darwin's theory of natural selection. Baker provides narration at two British tourist attractions: the Nemesis roller coaster at Alton Towers, Staffordshire; and the London Dungeon, a museum depicting gory and macabre events in the capital, narrating the events leading up to and comprising the Great Fire of London.[ citation needed ] He narrated Australian cartoonist Bruce Petty's 2006 film about world politics, Global Haywire . [128]

Baker played the role of the Captain in Challenge's version of Fort Boyard. [65] He also appeared as a guest on the quiz show Have I Got News for You and returned as a guest host in 2008. [60] [129] [130]

He was interviewed by his close friend Laurie Taylor for a 2010 episode of the television series In Confidence . [131] [16]

His voice has featured in the video games Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future (2000), [132] Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising (2001), [133] Warhammer 40,000: Fire Warrior (2003), [134] [135] Sudeki (2004), [136] MediEvil: Resurrection (2005), [137] Cold Winter (2005) [138] and Little Britain: The Video Game (2007). [132] [139] He has also provided vocals for musical artists. He appeared on Technocat's single "Only Human" in 1995.[ citation needed ] He appeared on the alternative rock band Mansun's 1998 album Six . [140] [141] [142] In 2002 he recorded a monologue for the track "Megamorphosis" for Stephen James' album Andabrek, though it was not released until 2009. [143] [144] Baker provided spoken vocals for character of The Storyteller on Ayreon's 2020 concept album Transitus . [145]

Personal life

Baker met Anna Wheatcroft (niece of wealthy rose grower Harry Wheatcroft) at Rose Bruford College; they married in 1961 and had two sons. [18] [146] In his autobiography, Baker recounted that the poor treatment he received from Wheatcroft's family led to him attempting suicide. [147] The couple separated in 1966. [18] He lost contact with his sons until a chance meeting with one of them in a New Zealand restaurant led to a reconciliation. [148] [147] In 2023, Baker said he was estranged from both of his sons. [149] His son Piers runs The Bath Inn in Sneinton, Nottingham. [150]

In December 1980, he married Lalla Ward, who co-starred in Doctor Who as his character's companion Romana. They divorced after 16 months. [151] [147]

Baker married his third wife Sue Jerrard in 1986; they met when she was working as an assistant editor on the Doctor Who serial Horror of Fang Rock (1977). They lived in Boughton Malherbe in Kent, before moving to France in 2003. [152] [65] The couple sold the property to Vic Reeves, with whom Baker had worked with on Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased). [152] In November 2006, Baker left France and moved to Royal Tunbridge Wells, before later moving to East Sussex. [153]

Baker has frequently scrutinised organised religion in the media. [154] He described himself as "sort of Buddhist" in 2001 [15] and "an atheist" in 2004. [155] During a 2010 interview with Laurie Taylor, Baker stated that he did not believe in God. [156]

He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2025 New Year Honours for services to television. [157] [158]

Filmography

Notes

  1. ↑ Attributed to multiple sources [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]
  2. ↑ Such as for Robot (1974–1975), [76] Pyramids of Mars (1975), The Brain of Morbius, [77] The Creature from the Pit (1979) [78] and The Power of the Daleks (1966). [79]

References

Citations

  1. ↑ Belam, Martin (3 May 2024). "The greatest Doctor Who – ranked!". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 25 October 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Ainsworth 2015, p. 4.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Lyons, Kevin (17 April 2013). "Tom Baker: the definitive Doctor Who?". BFI. Archived from the original on 17 May 2025.
  4. ↑ Jessop, Vicky; Davies, Rachael (2 June 2025). "Who did it best? Doctor Who's greatest Doctors, ranked". The Standard. Retrieved 25 October 2025.
  5. ↑ Edwards, Richard (29 May 2025). "Who is the best Doctor? Every 'Doctor Who' ranked". Space. Retrieved 25 October 2025.
  6. ↑ Bhowmik, Ananyaa (7 May 2025). "Doctor Who: 5 Episodes That Prove Tom Baker Is the Best Doctor". ComicBook.com. Retrieved 25 October 2025.
  7. ↑ Collis, Clark (5 December 2023). "14 faces of 'Doctor Who'". EW.com. Retrieved 26 October 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 "BAKER, (Thomas Stewart) 'Tom' [b. 1934]". Liverpool Footprints. Archived from the original on 26 February 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  9. 1 2 "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 2 October 2025. Mother's maiden name is Fleming.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Cabell, Craig (2011). "Chapter 5". The Doctors Who's Who - The Story Behind Every Face of the Iconic Time Lord: Celebrating its 50th Year. London: Kings Road Publishing. ISBN   978-1843585763 . Retrieved 20 May 2020. Thomas Stewart Baker was born in Scotland Road, Liverpool, on 20 January 1934. His father was John Stewart Baker, often erroneously reported as Jewish due to a passage in Baker's memoir where he referred to him as "a jewish sailor" using the term in the old fashioned British slang for wandering or itinerant. His father was in the merchant navy. His mother, Mary Jane Fleming, was of an Irish Catholic background. Tom Baker was of Scottish, Irish, and English ancestry. No wonder then that he left school at 15 to become a monk and live a monastic life for six years... After losing his faith, he left the order...
  11. 1 2 "Early Years". Tom Baker Official. 30 April 2025. Archived from the original on 3 June 2025. Retrieved 19 August 2025.
  12. 1 2 Ehrlich, Henry (19 October 1971). "Tom Baker: As the monk Rasputin, he sets the film "Nicholas and Alexandra" afire with evil excitement" (PDF). LOOK. pp. 60–62. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 June 2024.
  13. 1 2 Setchfield, Nick (10 July 2018). ""I am basically ridiculous" - Tom Baker talks Doctor Who, Jodie Whittaker, and the origins of that famously long scarf". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on 13 July 2018. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  14. ↑ Watkins, Jack (4 November 2013). "Tom Baker: how I made Doctor Who". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 25 October 2025.
  15. 1 2 3 Baker, Tom (29 September 2001). "Tom Baker interviewed by Mark Gatiss" (Interview). Interviewed by Mark Gatiss. British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011.
  16. 1 2 3 Taylor, Laurie (31 May 2007). "Alehouse rock: Laurie Taylor interviews Tom Baker". New Humanist. Archived from the original on 16 November 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  17. ↑ "Personal photos". Tom Baker Official. Archived from the original on 3 June 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Ainsworth 2015, p. 50.
  19. ↑ Jeffery, Morgan (20 August 2021). "Tom Baker: 'I didn't know what to do with Doctor Who'". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 8 September 2025. Retrieved 25 October 2025.
  20. 1 2 McGown, 1st paragraph.
  21. 1 2 "Early Career". Tom Baker Official. 30 April 2025. Archived from the original on 16 April 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  22. ↑ McGown, 2nd paragraph.
  23. 1 2 3 4 McGown, 3rd paragraph.
  24. ↑ "Pop Theatre". Theatricalia.
  25. 1 2 3 Evenden, Matt (30 April 2025). "The National Theatre and beyond". Tom Baker Official. Archived from the original on 19 April 2025. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  26. ↑ Ainsworth 2015, p. 51.
  27. ↑ McGown, 4th paragraph.
  28. 1 2 Ainsworth 2015, pp. 24, 50.
  29. ↑ "Tom Baker". Golden Globes. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  30. ↑ Westthorp, Alex (9 April 2014). "Doctor Who: the film careers of Patrick Troughton & Tom Baker". Den of Geek. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
  31. 1 2 "Casting the Doctor". National Galleries of Scotland. 31 December 2019. Archived from the original on 7 November 2025. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  32. 1 2 "Tom Baker Interview (Part Two)". Eye of Horus (2). May 1983. Archived from the original on 16 February 2017. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  33. ↑ Ainsworth 2015, pp. 24–25, 51.
  34. ↑ Ainsworth 2015, pp. 25, 51.
  35. ↑ Wright, Mark, ed. (2017). "Invasion of the Dinosaurs, Death to the Daleks and Planet of the Spiders". Doctor Who: The Complete History. 21. London: Panini Comics, Hachette Partworks. ISSN   2057-6048.
  36. 1 2 Evenden, Matt (30 April 2025). "Established career". Tom Baker Official. Archived from the original on 3 June 2025. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  37. ↑ Dowell, Ben (31 March 2017). "Watch former Doctor Who star Tom Baker in newly-discovered 1974 drama". Radio Times. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  38. ↑ "When the plot's a little too thick". The Sydney Morning Herald. 25 July 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  39. 1 2 3 4 Jeffery, Morgan (15 April 2014). "Tom Baker remembers classic Doctor Who: "Probably I stayed on too long"". Digital Spy. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
  40. ↑ Sladen, Elisabeth (7 November 2011). Elisabeth Sladen: The Autobiography. Aurum. ISBN   978-1-84513-685-7. They were going for something a bit more eccentric... more alien, if you like...
  41. ↑ Ainsworth 2015, p. 52.
  42. ↑ In Confidence . 2010. At 9:16: "My Doctor Who was entirely Tom. It was just Tom. I wasn't acting. It just fell into my lap you know, and they said how are you going to do it? And I said I don't know. And I started saying the lines and the children loved it... I thought hey, so who wants to act? I can be Tom. They're loving Tom..."
  43. ↑ "Tom Baker Interview." BBC News. BBC. London, 23 November 2013. Television. "I thought... this guy seems a little bit like Tom Baker, and so I played it like Tom Baker..."
  44. ↑ "Season 15". BBC Online . Archived from the original on 1 November 2006. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  45. 1 2 Masters, Tim (4 November 2013). "Tom Baker on Doctor Who: 'It was so much better than real life'". BBC News. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
  46. ↑ Plunkett, John (31 March 2005). "Fans from 70s keep Doctor's appointment". The Guardian . Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  47. ↑ Baker, Tom; Jameson, Louise; Hinchcliffe, Philip (20 April 2013). "Doctor Who: Robots of Death Event" (Interview). Interviewed by Justin Johnson. BFI. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  48. ↑ Marson, Richard (September 1984). "Tom Baker Interview". Doctor Who Magazine (92): 20–24.
  49. 1 2 Jeffery, Morgan (24 November 2017). "Tom Baker is back playing Doctor Who (in live action) for the first time in almost 40 years". Digital Spy. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  50. ↑ Jeffery, Morgan (25 June 2018). "Doctor Who's former producer Philip Hinchcliffe reveals his plans for 'lost' season of Tom Baker stories". Digital Spy. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  51. ↑ Burk, Graeme; Smith, Robert (1 September 2018). The Doctors Are In: The Essential and Unofficial Guide to Doctor Who's Greatest Time Lord. ECW/ORIM. ISBN   978-1-77090-782-9.
  52. ↑ "Doctor Who Classic Episode Guide – Season 14". BBC. 24 September 2014. Archived from the original on 18 September 2025. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  53. ↑ Clark, Anthony. "Doctor Who (1963–89, 2005–)". BFI Screenonline. Archived from the original on 30 January 2025. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
  54. ↑ Jeffery, Morgan (20 August 2021). "Tom Baker: 'I got Doctor Who right out of the blue – and I didn't know what to do with it'". Radio Times . Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  55. ↑ "David Tennant named 'best Dr Who'". BBC News. 6 December 2006. Retrieved 25 February 2007.
  56. ↑ Lewinski, John Scott (4 August 2009). "Tom Baker Back in Studio for Doctor Who Audiobooks". Wired. ISSN   1059-1028 . Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  57. ↑ McGown, 9th paragraph.
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