How Much Money Doctor Who's Biggest Stars Got Paid

In a 1987 interview shortly after his forced exit from Doctor Who, Colin Baker gave a candid interview to The Sun, revealing, among other things, his pay:

“I’m by no means a rich man from Doctor Who… I earned around £1,000 an episode.”

It’s not clear whether Baker is referring to Season 22 episodes, which were 45 minutes in length, or Season 23 episodes, which were 25 minutes in length.

Regardless, at £1,000 an episode, he would've made £13,000 for Season 22, and £14,000 for Season 23. Respectively, that's around £38,000 and £40,000 today – a meagre sum for the star of one of the biggest shows in the world, even if it was on the ropes at that point.

The Sixth Doctor also had a much shorter era than almost any other Doctor. So whichever way you look at it, Baker came away with much less than his predecessors.

Thank god then for the renaissance old Sixie has experienced in recent years. It’s no coincidence that ‘convention’ rhymes with ‘pension’!