New Ten(n)ant Required For Best Role on TV

It was inevitable really but it doesn’t make it any easier to bear.  David Tennant is to leave Doctor Who after the last of 2009’s four special editions of the programme.  The versatile Scots actor, who has played the tenth incarnation of The Doctor since 2005, has decided enough is enough, saying, “I think it’s better to go when there’s a chance that people might miss you, rather than to hang around and outstay your welcome.”  Although we still have a year, and five new adventures, of his Doctor remaining, Tennant will be much missed.  For children only just starting school, he has been the only Doctor they’ve ever known, their Doctor, and a true hero he has been too; people reared on a diet (and the language) of disposable 80s and 90s American TV won’t appreciate the importance of every generation having its Doctor, but this has been a hugely comforting, enduring and culturally vital element of British television since the 1960s.  Tennant’s tenure and portrayal has been distinguished by some of the best episodes of Doctor Who ever made (in particular The Impossible Planet and Blink), as well as firmly re-establishing classic Doctor Who villains like the Cybermen, the Sontarans and The Master in the public consciousness, and returning the beloved Sarah Jane Smith to our screens. Still, like every other actor who has played the part, David Tennant is entirely replaceable; the new incumbent of the role will bring with them elements of their own personality we can only guess at, and ensure a new, exciting future for the programme.  We hope.  All the same, to the man who brought the smart suit back to the high street (albeit it with tragically disappointing shoes), IHGN looks forward to your remaining episodes with sadness-tinged anticipation.