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

4. William Hartnell €“ The Army Game

It's hard to believe that William Hartnell was 55 when he took on the role of the Doctor. With his slicked-back, white wig and longing gazes into the far distance, he had a grandfatherly aura about him; this was a Time Lord who had been around a fair bit, even before the TARDIS landed in Totter's Lane. The Army Game was the show that showed Hartnell was perfect in as an authoritative lead; his performance as Sgt Major Percy Bullimore was snappy, no-nonsense and powerful, but it also showed sides of Hartnell that Doctor Who never could. Bullimore had a cockney twang, treated the boys like he would his children, and had an everyman quality that the otherworldly Doctor didn't. He was more of a father than a grandfather in The Army Game, evoking Captain Mainwaring from Dad's Army; it was a huge transformation to see Hartnell mature in quite the way he did to play the Doctor. Hartnell was reportedly fed up of playing hardmen, and that's why he agreed to do Doctor Who. It's a casting that could have so easily fallen flat, and he's not given nearly enough credit for pulling such a superb performance €“ totally unlike anything he'd done before €“ out of the bag.