Doctor Who: 10 Best Historical Figures Who Have Appeared In Nu-Who

Played by Goran Visnjic.

Nikola Tesla appeared in the series twelve episode Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror. This episode put a real focus on the fact that the success and significance of these historical figures on Earth could potentially attract the attention of alien races across time and space.

In this instance, it was the Queen of the Skithra who had sought out the engineering genius of Nikola Tesla to repair her ship. But perhaps the most significant element to this episode, is the exploration of Tesla’s rivalry with Thomas Edison and the harsh reality of his legacy. Whilst the real Nikola Tesla didn’t fight aliens, he did dedicate his life to a vision which was never truly realised or appreciated in his lifetime.

The hope and optimism portrayed by Goran Visnjic makes it all the more heart breaking when we as an audience know that he never received the recognition he deserved. Yaz’s disappointment that his heroic efforts had no positive impact on his future emulate the same sympathy we have for the real Tesla who fundamentally changed the way we live in the modern day and yet he will never know.

The casting of Goran Visnjic was absolutely fitting for the role of Tesla, who (although Serbian by blood) was born and raised in what would later become Croatia, the same country in which Visnjic was also born and raised.