Colin Baker

At 80 years old, Colin Baker has this physical status:

Colin Baker (born 8 June 1943) is an English actor who appeared in The Brothers, from 1974 to 1976, and the sixth iteration of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who from 1984 to 1986.

Baker's time as the Doctor was tumultuous, with a halt in development and subsequent replacements on BBC executive Michael Grade's orders.

Early life

Colin Baker was born in Waterloo, England. When he was three years old, he and his family moved north to Rochdale. He was educated at St Bede's College, Manchester, where he obtained his A'Levels in French, Latin, and Greek. Baker received two A grades, with particulars on Latin and Greek. He studied law at a London college and later trained to become a solicitor. Baker enrolled at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art at the age of 23 (LAMDA).

Personal life

Liza Goddard, who had appeared in the TV series The Brothers, was Baker's first wife. Their marriage lasted 18 months before crashing due to divorce. Baker's second wife, actress Marion Wyatt, whom he married in 1982, has four children. They also had a son who died of sudden infant death syndrome. Baker is a friend of American writer Stephen R. Donaldson, who dedicated his 1991 book Forbidden Knowledge to him.

Baker is a fox hunting enthusiast and was one of more than 20 people in 2015 who wrote a letter to members of parliament condemning Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron's decision to amend the Hunting Act 2004.

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Career

Baker appeared in a supporting role in Jean-Paul Sartre's trilogy The Roads to Freedom in 1970, a leading role as Count Steinbock in the company's adaptation of Cousin Bette that year, portraying Margaret Tyzack and Helen Mirren. In the BBC adaptation of War and Peace, Anatole Kuragin appeared opposite Anthony Hopkins in 1972. Baker's regular television presence continued, and in the Fall of Eagles, he appeared as Crown Prince Wilhelm of the German Empire.

Paul Merroney, the ruthless banker in the BBC Sunday evening drama The Brothers was his most popular role to date. Merroney became one of the leading characters in the 3+12 series from 1974-76, and Baker began the series half-way through its run.

He worked regularly in theatre and television appearances became less frequent, but in a 1980 episode of Blake's 7, "City at the Edge of the World," he appeared as Bayban the Butcher. He appeared on television and was also on television, and in 1983 appeared in a BBC production of A.J. The Citadel of Cronin is located in Cronin.

In the Peter Davison-era story Arc of Infinity (1983), Baker made his first appearance in Doctor Who as Commander Maxil. He was then the second of three actors to be cast as Doctor John Nathan-Turner's second cousin. Baker's first appearance in the role occurred in the closing moments of The Caves of Androzani (1984), where he gave his first few lines. In The Twin Dilemma's week, he made his full story debut the following week. The Doctor's portrayal of the Doctor caused immediate controversies, especially in the case where Peri Brown, the Doctor, strangles his companion. "Colin Baker's first appearance was just out-and-out dislikable," PopMatters wrote, showcasing a hubris and sternness that was otherwise unhearded in the Doctor's emotional canon.

Baker's career was halted by an 18-month hiatus, which was revealed in February 1985, midway through the broadcast of Season 22, the first complete season. Doctor Who had been overly violent in 1985, according to Michael Grade, the BBC1 controller at the time. Grade later admitted that he "hated" the series, which he referred to as a "very clunky studio show." During the hiatus, a one new Doctor Who tale, Slipback, was broadcast on radio, starring Baker and his regular television companion Nicola Bryant.

In September 1986, Doctor Who returned to television for its 23rd season. The season ended with a dramatic decline in episodes and was primarily based on video for location scenes, and was released as a 14-episode-long serial called The Trial of a Time Lord. This serial was a meta-textual reminder that the series itself was "on trial" at the time. "Tom Baker did it for seven years," Baker told an interviewer in 1986. ... I have a portion of me that likes to have a peek at records. I like to believe that maybe I'd still be doing it in eight years' time." However, Grade did commission another series on the understanding that Baker was suspended later this year. Jonathan Powell, the BBC's Head of Series, later said that the BBC was looking for "one last chance saloon" for an actor who would go out in front of the camera. Davison, on the other hand, said in 2018 that the decision was more to do with the executives' decision to get rid of Nathan-Turner, saying: "I was worried about what happened, but it wasn't to do with Colin, I know that." It had nothing to do with other problems. The BBC's control system had shifted, and they didn't want John Nathan-Turner around is the truth of it."

Baker was banned from the role after appearing in just eleven stories and just shy of three years in the series, including the hiatus, making his tenure as the Doctor the shortest at that time. Baker was given a single four-part story ending in his character's death and subsequent revival after his dismissal, but he turned down the offer. Baker promised to do the entire season and resurrectate at its conclusion, but the BBC never responded to his letter. As he recovers in Time and the Rani, instead, his replacement, Sylvester McCoy, portrays the injured Sixth Doctor in a blonde wig, with his face obscured by video effects as the regeneration process continues. Baker expressed regret for not returning to the scene in a recent interview, saying he was "brute selfish at the time" and that he wasn't worried about the fans.

Baker, and Pertwee, accepted the presidency of the Doctor Who Appreciation Society, which had previously been held by Jon Pertwee and Nicholas Courtney on September 4th. He was elected following an online poll of the society's members in which he received more votes than any of the other candidates combined.

Baker decided to appear in the stage play Doctor Who – The Ultimate Adventure from 5 June to 19 August 1989, replacing original lead Jon Pertwee who had fallen ill.

Baker, in 1992, became the first Doctor to write The Deal as part of Doctor Who Magazine's Brief Encounters collection. The following year, he wrote a second Brief Encounter. Both Doctors and Mel were featured in the Sixth Doctor and Melodra. Baker wrote "The Age of Chaos" in 1994, based on Doctor Who's "Missing Pieces" in which the Sixth Doctor and Frobisher appeared, and in 2001 contributed "The Wings of a Butterfly" in a charity short story anthology based on Doctor Who's "Missing Pieces" based on the Sixth Doctor and Frobisher. In 1992 and 1994, he hosted special Doctor Who Videotape: Cybermen's Inception (the early years of the series) and The Colin Baker Years, with the former offering a look back at the series's beginnings and memories highlighted by clips and memories.

Baker reprised his role on television just twice after his official run ended, in the 1993 Children in Need charity special Dimensions in Time, alongside Jon Pertwee, Peter Davison, and Sylvester McCoy, and subsequently in the 2022 special "The Power of the Doctor" alongside David Bradley, Davison, Paul McGann and McCoy.

Baker performed an audio dialogue for the BBC video game Doctor Who: Destiny of the Doctors in 1997.

Baker's first Doctor Who audio adventure for Big Finish Productions, The Sirens of Time, was recorded in 1999. Baker has been dubbed the Sixth Doctor in 166 publications as of October 20,22, with more planned for the future. Fans are generally enthusiastic about these audio plays, and Dr. Who Magazine's survey revealed that Baker was voted the "greatest" of the Doctors in this style. In 2006, he revived his role as Commander Maxil in the audio drama Appropriation, as well as an alternate War Doctor in the Unbound Series since 2022.

Baker has appeared on a number of DVD releases of his episodes, including in either "making" documentaries or commentaries in recent years. Trials and Tribulations, which was included in the 2008 DVD version of The Trial of a Time Lord, explores his turbulent three years on the program.

Baker co-starred in the one-off 50th anniversary comedy tribute The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot, which was released in November 2013.

Since leaving Doctor Who Baker, he has spent a lot of time on stage, including Peter Nichols' Privates on Parade, Ira Levin's Deathtrap, Ray Cooney's Run for Your Wife, and Ariel Dorfman's Death and the Maiden. He has been a pantomime stalwart for many years. He appeared in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs as an actor with actress Louise Jameson, who had appeared in the Fourth Doctor's companion Leela. He appeared in operetta H.M.S., which was produced by the Carl Rosa Opera Company in 2003. Timothy West's Pinafore was directed by Timothy West. In 2008, he toured with ex-wife Liza Goddard in She Stoops To Conquer. In House of Ghosts and a UK tour of The Woman in White, Baker also performed Inspector Morse in another theatre performance.

In the BBV video series The Stranger, Baker played a Doctor-like character in 1991. This character appeared in six video adventures as well as four audio books. In 1993, BBV's The Airzone Solution starred former Doctor Who actors Jon Pertwee, Peter Davison, and Sylvester McCoy.

During the 1990s, television appearances included guest appearances in the BBC's medical drama Casualty, The Knock, Dangerfield, the first episode of Jonathan Creek, Channel 4's expansion of A Dance to the Music of Time, and as himself as the resident celebrity in 'Dictionary Corner' on Countdown, as well as Channel 4.

Baker appeared on Top Gear in 2003, winning a one-lap run in a Honda Civic hatchback on the Top Gear circuit. Baker defeated a Klingon, a Cyberman, a Dalek, Darth Vader, and Ming the Merciless. Baker came in 4th place, with the Cyberman appearing 1st.

Little Britain's appearance in a comedy sketch show in 2005 was never broadcast, but it can be seen in the deleted scenes special feature on the Little Britain series 3 DVD. Baker appears in Kingdom, Hustle, and Doctors, among other television appearances.

Baker, who appeared in the audio dramas Sapphire and Steel: The Mysterious Hour and the 3 part Earthsearch Mindwarp, a Doctor Who works for Big Finish Productions (see above). The former, which was based on a James Follett book, was broadcast on BBC 7 in 2006.

Baker narrated and provided additional voices for Candy Jar Books' comedy sci-fi audiobook Kangazang, written by Terry Cooper in 2010.

Baker's film work over the years includes The Harpist (1999), The Asylum (2000), and D'Artagnan et les trois mousquetaires (2005). Shadows of a Stranger, an independent feature film, was shot in 2010. Baker has been writing a weekly column for local newspaper Bucks Free Press since 1995. In the book Look Who's Talking, a collection of his articles from 1995 to 2009 was published.

Baker appeared on the 12th season of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, ranked 8th out of a field of 12 celebrities.

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