7 Worst Politicians In Doctor Who

Dodgy politics: a staple of fiction as well as reality.

Doctor Who The Sound Of Drums Prime Minister Harold Saxon the Master
BBC Studios

Doctor Who is a show that often uses sci-fi and fantasy to talk about real things. While the majority of episodes are constructed as escapist entertainment first and foremost, the writers regularly fuse their stories with commentary on some serious topics, whether it's Rosa's exploration of racism in 1950s America, or classic serial The Sun Makers' takedown of the tax system.

Sure, these themes aren't always weaved throughout their episodes in a subtle or enjoyable way - see the Thirteenth Doctor almost breaking the fourth wall to condemn global warming in Orphan 55 - but they've been there since the show's earliest days.

This desire to discuss social issues also means that Doctor Who regularly dabbles in politics, and in that area, the show has a habit of portraying political authorities as selfish, useless, violent, or just plain evil. We're not talking about those times when real-world figures like Barack Obama pop-up for a second or two: here, we're talking about those fictional politicians who exist purely within the world of the show.

More specifically, we're talking about the ones who are pretty damn lousy at what they do, whether they're murdering innocent civilians, abusing their power for personal gain, or whether they're simply a bad person through to the core.

7. Jack Robertson

Doctor Who The Sound Of Drums Prime Minister Harold Saxon the Master
BBC Studios

Writer Chris Chibnall and actor Chris Noth clearly had one goal in mind when creating Jack Robertson: to make him a complete a-hole. And they did just that.

A businessman with political aspirations, Robertson appeared in Series 11's Arachnids In The UK, and almost immediately, it's clear that he's a massive dick. His first act in the episode is to fire Yaz's mum for trying to do her job, and generally, he acts like he's the king of the castle, like everyone is beneath him, like he's better than everyone else.

Oh, and he absolutely loves using guns, because apparently, that's just what American people are like. Real subtle, Chibnall.

Clearly based on Donald Trump (if the character's behaviour or hotel empire didn't give it away, then his appearance certainly did), it's mentioned that Robertson is running for president in the 2020 election, and while the episode doesn't reveal how his campaign worked out, he does refer to himself as "president-elect Robertson" in a video uploaded to the Doctor Who YouTube channel.

What a relief nobody like this is the American president in our real world! Oh wait.

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WhoCulture Channel Manager/Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture. Can confirm that bow ties are cool.