Doctor Who: 10 Reasons Tom Baker Was The Greatest Doctor

7. The Humour

Fourth Doctor Off all the classic Doctors (I consider Matt Smith€™s Eleventh to be the funniest Doctor of all), Tom Baker had the greatest moments that make you laugh. There is a great droll humour in his performance that runs throughout a great number of Fourth Doctor episodes. Like the Eleventh, there is a great kooky alien-ness about the Fourth Doctor, demonstrated by a number of €˜odd€™ moments that show just how alien he can be. It€™s that manic-eyed craziness, the seemingly disregard for everyone around him and a killer wit that makes the Fourth Doctor so enjoyable to watch. One of the best bits of banter takes place between the Doctor and Harry (in his second adventure) during The Ark In Space The Doctor: You're improving?!! Harry: Am I really? The Doctor: Yes! Your mind is beginning to work. It's entirely due to my influence, of course, you must not take any credit. Another great moment of humour occurs in the closing moments of episode two of The Image of the Fendahl. It is a creepy, evocative episode, full of strange deaths in the mist and a glowing skull unearthed. It is that skull that appears in the great scene, where the Doctor, seemingly unfazed by the creepy goings on, strolls into the room where the creepy looking skull has been placed, puts his feet up and offers it a jelly baby. A moment later, the skull begins to glow and the Doctor screams with pain. It€™s that brilliant mix of humour and shocking drama that shows the Fourth Doctor at his very best. But the best moment for me is this little encounter in the first episode of City Of Death. The Doctor and Romana are enjoying their little holiday in Paris, sitting at a quaint café€ The Doctor: You know, I think something very funny's going on. You remember that man that was following us? Romana: Yes. The Doctor: Well, he's standing behind me, poking a gun in my back. We immediately cut to Duggan holding a gun to the Doctor€™s back. The comic timing is priceless. The matter of fact way the Doctor reveals this little moment to an equally casual Romana shows Tom Baker at his comic best.
Contributor
Contributor

A writer for Whatculture since May 2013, I also write for TheRichest.com and am the TV editor and writer for Thedigitalfix.com . I wrote two plays for the Greater Manchester Horror Fringe in 2013, the first an adaption of Simon Clark's 'Swallowing A Dirty Seed' and my own original sci-fi horror play 'Centurion', which had an 8/10* review from Starburst magazine! (http://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/eventsupcoming-genre-events/6960-event-review-centurion) I also wrote an episode for online comedy series Supermarket Matters in 2012. I aim to achieve my goal for writing for television (and get my novels published) but in the meantime I'll continue to write about those TV shows I love! Follow me on Twitter @BazGreenland and like my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/BazGreenlandWriter