10 Roles That Showed Doctor Who Actors In A Completely Different Light

2. Patrick Troughton - Richard III

Patrick Troughton was a gifted character actor who brought a cheeky, avuncular spirit to Doctor Who, turning it into the show it is today. Matt Smith and Peter Davison have both drawn influence from Troughton's jovial but shrewd incarnation; it was a performance that in the hands of anyone else, could have ended the series. Laurence Olivier's Richard III is another example of a Troughton masterclass, but it's a polar opposite to his take on the Doctor. Tyrrel was a scheming murderer, eager to prove his worth, that Troughton played with nimble restraint: he was quietly deadly and a genuinely dangerous threat in the story. Troughton always had a strong presence on screen but gave one of the most understated performances of his career in Richard III; it was fascinating to see such subtlety and malevolence from a Doctor often labelled a clown. Rather like Eccleston, Troughton was an actor renowned for his work in drama, but unlike Nine, the Second Doctor let go an awful lot more, allowing the character to be fun and childish. It's a surprise watching Troughton in early work that he wasn't always like this, and it's a reminder of what a fantastic actor he was.