Doctor Who: 20 Things You Didn't Know About The Ninth Doctor
10. Martin Clunes Was Considered For The Role
It's fairly common knowledge that Hugh Grant was considered for the role of the Ninth Doctor before Eccleston was cast, but someone else who was also quite high on Russell T Davies' list was British TV star Martin Clunes.
In Doctor Who Magazine #551, Davies and Steven Moffat discuss the casting process for the Ninth Doctor, and during this conversation, Moffat mentions that Clunes was being considered by Davies.
While he's most famous for shows like Men Behaving Badly and Doc Martin, Clunes actually appeared in Doctor Who way back in 1983 - his first major TV gig - in the Fifth Doctor serial Snakedance. With some very questionable earrings.