10 Insane Doctor Who Rumours That Never Happened
2. Paul Daniels IS The Doctor
If anything was indicative of how Doctor Who was viewed by the UK tabloids before 2005's barnstorming return, it's this insane rumour. By the time of the article's publication in 2004, Paul Daniels had largely been out of the spotlight. His most recent TV appearance of note had been in a Louis Theroux documentary three years previously, which had interrogated whether Paul was ready to retire.
Clearly not, if the Sunday People was to be believed! It feels like something that was completely made up to fill space during a slow news week. "He may even be able to use his magic to defeat Daleks and Cybermen!" the article quips, and it would be interesting to see how a cup and ball trick could take out Skaro's finest.
It concludes by suggesting that Shane Richie, Eddie Izzard and Stephen Fry are also in the frame for RTD's new series, all of which seem equally unlikely, albeit for very different reasons!
Anyway, Paul Daniels never did play the Ninth Doctor, but could you imagine that iconic Series 1 trailer with Christopher Eccleston running from an explosion? "Do you wanna come with me? Because I warn you, you'll like it, not a lot, but you'll like it!"