7. Philip Olivier In The Crew
Philip Olivier is best known for his role as Tim 'Tinhead' O'Leary in the iconic soap Brookside but he has since made a name for himself in various other roles, most of which have involved him taking his clothes off. One character he doesn't strip down for, however (although since only his voice is required, nobody quite knows for sure if he's naked or not), is Thomas Hector Schofield - that's 'Hex' for short - who accompanies Seventh Doctor Sylvester McCoy on his ongoing audio adventures. Hex was working as a staff nurse in the year 2021 when he first encountered the iconic Time Lord and if you thought his subsequent timey-wimey liaisons were eventful, just wait until you get a load of this. Back in 2008, Philip starred in
The Crew which, as its title suggests (or maybe not), follows a respected crime boss who summons all of his street nous to aid him in an upcoming heist. It's basically your typical gritty British drama set in the criminal underworld of Northern England and it no doubt ticks all the right boxes if you're into that sort of thing. For those of us who know and love Philip as Hex, though, it all escalates very quickly. In fact, if the Doctor found out what Philip's character, Paul the Hom, gets up to in it, he'd probably banish Hex from time and space for good. Seriously, though. What
is it with Big Finish companions taking on roles that destroy your soul? You never even get to
see them in their Doctor Who adventures and then when they do pop up on your TV screen in something else, they're seemingly hell bent on burning your retinas. In one scene, for example, Philip's character forces a couple to have their wicked way with him - once again,
*ahem* - which is definitely
not something that would ever go down well in Doctor Who (although perhaps it would in
these versions of it). If you want to find out more (and viewer discretion is advised) The Crew is available on Netflix in the UK, though bear in mind that listening to Hex will never be the same again. You have been warned.