Matt Smith 'nearly turned down Doctor Who'

Actor Matt Smith has revealed he nearly turned down his career-making role as the 11th Doctor in Doctor Who.

Speaking on Desert Island Discs, Smith said he had had "a wobble" after being told he'd be David Tennant's successor.

"I was like, 'I don't think I'm going to do it'," he told BBC Radio 4. "My agent said, 'You're going to do it.'"

He also said he was "the wrong class" to play Prince Philip in The Crown but had pulled it off thanks to "a great wig".

"He's a rock star," Smith told presenter Kirsty Young, revealing he had "kind of sided" with the royal consort he played in two series of the Netflix drama.

Smith made his first appearance as the Doctor in 2010 and continued in the role until 2014, when he was replaced by Peter Capaldi.

The Northampton native said he had "loved every minute" of playing a Time Lord, even if it did lead to some curious encounters.

During the interview, he also recalled seeing tattoos of his face on the flesh of dedicated "Whovians", one of whom had "me and David [Tennant] on both thighs".

Smith described Jodie Whittaker as "a brilliant choice" to play the sci-fi drama's first female Doctor.

"The show relies on big, broad, creative brushstrokes," the actor continued. "It's brilliant, it's high time and she'll be sensational."

Smith said he had not given Whittaker any advice but admitted in the interview that playing the Doctor had sometimes been an ordeal.

"It's the hardest thing you'll ever do in your life," he said, citing the "gargantuan number of lines" as a major factor.

Smith also revealed he had been "thinking about kids quite a lot" recently and that he'd "like a lot of them".

"A lot of my friends are having children," he told Young. "I think I'd be a good dad."

Desert Island Discs is on BBC Radio 4 at 11:15 GMT.

Credit: BBC Entertainment News

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Karen Gillan On Set 30/5/2011

Here is a picture of Karen Gillan On Set filming We'll Take Manhattan on 30th May.

Below is the extract from the Daily Mail:

Playing one of the world’s most celebrated models must have been a daunting prospect.

But Doctor Who star Karen Gillan appears to have stepped into character as glamorous Sixties star Jean Shrimpton with ease.

The 23-year-old actress is pictured on set for the forthcoming BBC4 drama We’ll Take Manhattan, a film about Miss Shrimpton’s rise to fame.

It focuses on the iconic star’s four-year love affair with photographer David Bailey, played by 24-year-old British actor Aneurin Barnard.

The part is Miss Gillan’s first leading role since her debut in the 2010 series of Doctor Who as the Time Lord’s companion Amy Pond.

The film, to be screened later this year, follows the success of BBC4’s previous dramatisations of the lives of celebrity subjects including Enid Blyton, Gracie Fields, Hattie Jacques, Frankie Howerd and Tony Hancock.

BBC4 controller Richard Klein said the channel was committed to ‘dramatising moments that have changed the course of cultural life’.

The Shrimpton film will centre on a famous Vogue photo shoot which took place in 1962 in New York which helped propel the model, nicknamed The Shrimp, to worldwide stardom.

Speaking about playing the model, now 68, Miss Gillan said: ‘Jean Shrimpton is an icon of the Sixties and I am so excited to be playing somebody who had such a lasting impact on the fashion world.

‘I can’t wait to take on the challenge of bringing Jean and Bailey’s fascinating love story to life.’

Executive producer Claire Parker, of production company Kudos, said: ‘In Jean, Bailey found someone that he and his camera fell in love with.

‘We’ll Take Manhattan captures the essence of their dynamic affair and how they unwittingly changed the face of a decade.’

Sources: Daily Mail & Who is Karen Gillan

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