14th Doctor Who: 10 Actors Who Could Play Russell T. Davies’ Doctor

10. Richard Ayoade

Richard Ayoade is a comedian and actor who first entered the public consciousness after nailing his role as socially inept IT engineer Moss in The IT Crowd. He is most commonly seen on panel shows nowadays, as well as hosting both The Crystal Maze and Travel Man.

We’ll start by saying this: Richard Ayoade just is the Doctor - or at least, one side of him. A quirky, witty man with a slightly manic energy, Ayoade is capable of playing the more alien, mad man in a box side of The Doctor to perfection. In theory, he’s a shoe in, as he’s practically been playing the character for years already. So where does this fall apart?

Unfortunately, we’ve seen very little of Ayode’s dramatic acting, with the star sticking mostly to comedy. Can we see him hitting the emotional beats, or trotting out a speech with the authority and gravitas of actors like Peter Capaldi? Maybe not.

Who knows, though. If Ayoade is hiding some secret talent, he may just be in with a shot. Might I remind you, we were skeptical of Catherine Tate’s acting ability…