13 Great Non-Doctor Who Performances By Each Doctor

It's well known that, due to ill health, William Hartnell very rarely acted again following his exit from Doctor Who. He had a few guest roles in series like The Cliff Richard Show and appeared in a disastrous pantomime before retiring. What's also well known is that it was his role as Johnson in This Sporting Life that attracted the attention of producer Verity Lambert when casting for Doctor Who.

However, one of Hartnell's greatest performances is much lesser-known. Partly due to the fact that this 1945 film was believed lost for many years. In The Agitator, Hartnell plays Peter Pettinger, a socialist activist who is forced to question his beliefs when he inherits ownership of the factory in which he works. It’s an incredibly layered performance, in which Hartnell rattles off long speeches (with nary a fluffed line) with a palpable sense of righteous fury, whilst his later inner turmoil is utterly compelling viewing.

Pettinger is a fascinating character, the sort of extreme left-winger who irritates both the working man and the upper classes in equal measure. The feud that he has with his fellow factory worker is played with a simmering intensity by both Hartnell and Dad's Army's John Laurie, which builds to a violent showdown.