Doctor Who: 20 Things You Didn't Know About The Ninth Doctor
Here's what River Song thinks of the first NuWho Time Lord...
The modern era of Doctor Who is about to celebrate its 16th birthday (Rose, the very first episode of the revival, aired in March 2005), and the fact that it's still going strong today is largely down to one man: the Ninth Doctor.
When Doctor Who returned in the mid-2000s, just imagine what would've happened if audiences had hated Christopher Eccleston's portrayal of the Doctor, if he hadn't clicked with hardcore and casual viewers in the way that he did. Subsequent series probably wouldn't have been greenlit, but all these years later... here we are.
The Ninth Doctor's time on the show was memorable and impactful despite its brevity, and from the production of his sole series to the character's adventures in other corners of the Whoniverse, there's so much to talk about when evaluating his run.
So, join us as we journey into the time vortex of Ninth Doctor trivia, uncovering some fantastic facts about the character, and his overall tenure - as well as the man behind the leather jacket, star Christopher Eccleston - that you might not be aware of.
20. His Reverse Regeneration Is The Only One Of Its Kind
Even though tons of Doctor Who stories meddle with time and depict events in a non-linear fashion, the Doctor's regenerations are usually shown in chronological order.
The Tenth Doctor regenerated into the Eleventh, who then regenerated into the Twelfth, who then regenerated into the Thirteenth, who then regenerated into... you get the idea.
However, the Ninth Doctor is different in this regard. To date, he's the only incarnation of the Doctor whose incoming and outgoing regenerations were televised in reverse order.
His incoming regeneration aired in 2013's The Day of the Doctor, eight years after his outgoing regeneration in 2005's The Parting Of The Ways.
Timey-wimey indeed.