10 Best Doctor Who Characters Only In One Episode
3. Vincent Van Gogh (Tony Curran) - Vincent And The Doctor
Doctor Who doesn't always do compelling things with its historical figures. A lot are just used as jokes (Robin Hood in Robot of Sherwood) or obligatory ornaments in the time period of the episode (Richard Nixon in The Impossible Astronaut).
Tony Curran's Vincent van Gogh is one of the exceptions here though, mainly because Vincent and the Doctor cleverly made him the hero of the episode.
Defying all conventional wisdom about how to integrate historical figures into a story, it's actually the Doctor who is the side character here. The core emotional arc of the episode is reserved for Vincent, and he's even the one who defeats the monster too. He gets action, he gets laughs, he gets tears, and Curran is more than up to the task, gobbling up his meaty role as the troubled yet brilliant 19th century artist.
It's also heartwarming how he manages to remain so strong, even when he's battling some pretty dark demons - both figurative and literal - an arc that is capped off with Curran's touching, tearful performance in the final museum scene. It's okay if you get the sniffles. We do too.