Doctor Who: 10 Most Compelling Series 9 Fan Theories
9. Reese Shearsmith Is The Second Doctor Or Maybe The Valeyard
If you spend more than five minutes on a Doctor Who-related forum, someone will claim that Reese Shearsmith is playing the Second Doctor or the Valeyard, the evil future incarnation of the Doctor (it's complicated). Rest assured, we're still in the territory of the incredibly unlikely.
All that's known right now is that Reece Shearsmith is co-starring in episode 9, written by Mark Gattiss. We've seen a publicity photo of Shearsmith's character and can see that he's wearing a uniform that wouldn't be out of place in an episode of Babylon 5 (that's not a bad thing, by the way), but we don't know much else.
Given the dearth of real information about this story, it's not surprising fan speculation has run rampant. But, the Second Doctor? The Valeyard? Really? I can't see it happening.
Fans who claim Shearsmith is reprising the Second Doctor's role are simply thinking of An Adventure In Space and Time, where he portrayed Patrick Troughton. As for the Valeyard, that plotline was a creation of 1980s Who - so much water has flowed under the bridge since then most of the current audience wouldn't have a clue who he is now.
No, my bet is that Shearsmith is playing an all-new character. Having said that, some kind of appearance by one or more past Doctors isn't impossible - more on that later...