Doctor Who: Top 10 Celebrity Cameos
Doctor Who has an uncanny power to capture the hearts and imaginations of viewers. The concept of a man (or woman!) whizzing around time and space in a blue box in one that has truly stood the test of time.
It’s currently the longest sci-fi series on TV and has been on our screens (in the UK at least) since “An Unearthly Child” was broadcast in 1963. Because of its legendary status, the show has attracted a plethora of acting talent over the years.
Here are a few of the most memorable celebrity cameos of its (mostly) modern era:
10. Michael Gambon
Weirdly, Dumbledore turns up on the 2010 Christmas special. Well not quite, but renowned actor and knight of the realm Sir Michael Gambon does. In the aptly named “A Christmas Carol,” Sir Gambon plays the gloomy Kazran.
Inspired by Dickens’s novel, The Doctor attempts to manipulate time in order to inspire Kazran and alter his perception of the world.
9. David Walliams & Matt Lucas
Both members of the comedy duo behind “Little Britain” have delved into the world of Doctor Who at one point or another. David Walliams crops up on 2011 episode “The God Complex” alongside Matt Smiths’ incarnation. While Matt Lucas held a more prominent role, that of recurring character and eventual companion to the Doctor, Nardole.
8. Felicity Jones
Long before her stint in Hollywood blockbuster Rogue One, Felicity Jones was part of another sci-fi legend. She played the part of Robina Redford on Agatha Christie inspired episode “The Unicorn and the Wasp,” complete with a murder mystery and a giant wasp… of course.
7. James Corden
James Corden has cemented himself as an American chat-show and Carpool Karaoke superpower. Way before he was ‘late late-ing’ he starred alongside Matt Smith, playing Craig Owens in two separate stories, “The Lodger” and “Closing Time.”
6. John Cleese
Although an albeit fleeting cameo, John Cleese pops up at the end of 1979 serial “City of Death.” Filmed on location in Paris and at the height of Monty Python-mania, Mr. Cleese stars as an art gallery visitor, admiring the TARDIS before it dematerialises with Tom Baker’s Doctor inside.
5. Sir Ian McKellen
On the 2012 Special “The Snowmen,” thespian royal Sir Ian Mckellan lent his marvellously booming voice to Christmas villain “The Great Intelligence.”
Eleventh Doctor Matt Smith investigates mysterious romping Snowmen, while companion Clara Oswald enjoys her second adventure with the Doctor before she is officially instated as a full-time companion.
Sam Wilkinson
Sam Wilkinson is a resident of London who studied English Literature at Portsmouth University. He works as an assistant producer and researcher at an animation studio in East London, sometimes watching Netflix in the corner of his screen (whoops). While he’s an avid Doctor Who, Stranger Things, and House of Cards fan, new drama is his bread and butter. Ben and Jerry are currently his bingeing companions of choice.