What Does Russell T Davies think of Peter Capaldi’s Casting?

Russell T Davies brought us two Doctors under his tenure as Doctor Who showrunner. He also saw the future Doctor cast in the Whoniverse twice without realising. So what does Moffat’s predecessor think of Peter Capaldi’s appointment as 12?

“Perfect casting, just perfect!” Davies exclaims in DWM #464

. “I’d kept Peter’s number after we worked together on The Fires of Pompeii and Torchwood. I loved him as an actor, and a writer, and a director, I was actually in awe of him, and so clung to his number, in a slightly stalkerish way. Quite apart from his five million wonderful appearances on screen, I think that the scene in Episode 3 of Torchwood: Children of Earth, where Peter’s character faces the 456 for the first time, is one of the finest performances in anything ever. Seriously. Anything. Ever.”

He adds: “I was as surprised as anyone! I’d heard rumours about Peter in the weeks beforehand, but I’d convinced myself it couldn’t be true, because he’s in The Musketeers. In fact, I was quite sad, cos I thought about him a lot, and realised how good he’d be, and now we’d never get to see him. Damn. So the moment Zoe Ball said his name was actually quite mind-blowing. I still find it difficult, even now to find adjectives big and bold enough to describe how brilliant this is!

“So I texted him on Sunday, saying ‘Oh my God’. And imagine, just imagine how many texts he got that night. But then today, the phone went ping, and there he was. Doctor Who. On my mobile. And a new golden age begins! That’s four golden ages in a row now!”