- Peter Capaldi, 55 actor had been the odds-on favourite to play the part
- Flurry of bets led bookmakers to change his odds from 40-1 to 5-6
- Suggestion that the choice for the coveted role was leaked by BBC insider despite top secret campaign
By Laura Cox
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He is best known for playing a foul-mouthed spin doctor. Now Peter Capaldi has become one who travels in time and space.
But while 55-year-old Capaldi was favourite to win with punters, others were not so enthralled by the decision.
His official unveiling during a live programme on BBC1 led many on Twitter to ask if he is too old to play the role.
The actor is the same age as William Hartnell was when he became the first Doctor in 1963.
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Did you put your money on him? The choice of Peter Capaldi as the new Doctor Who seems to have been the worst kept secret in TV
Big secret: The BBC are said to have gone to great lengths to keep the identity of the new Time Lord a secret in an operation they nicknamed 'Houdini'
Some users on the social networking site described his announcement as 'exciting' and 'perfect', but others were more critical – one wrote: 'Peter Capaldi is not attractive because he's old', while another posted: 'I'm not watching Doctor Who any more. Peter Capaldi is too old.'
But producer Steven Moffatt defended his choice saying: 'The Doctor just chooses a face off the rack. He doesn't care whether he's young or old.'
Capaldi, the bullying Malcolm Tucker in political satire The Thick Of It, was last night unveiled as the 12th actor to play the lead role in Doctor Who.
The Scottish star had been the odds-on favourite to become the next inhabitant of the Tardis, and it appears the result may have been known three days ago, when a flurry of bets led to bookmakers suspending betting on him and lowering his odds from 40-1 to 5-6.
They now stand to lose around £100,000.
Joe Crilly, a spokesman for William Hill, said: 'We have seen people trying to back Peter Capaldi as much as possible at every price available.'
That raised questions last night about whether someone at the BBC had leaked the name – despite the corporation going to great lengths to keep the identity of the new Time Lord a secret in an operation it had codenamed Houdini.
Coincidence? The flurry in bets backing Peter Capaldi raised questions as to whether someone at the BBC had leaked the name
TODAY'S POLL
Some 400 Doctor Who fans, some dressed as their favourite characters, were in the audience last night to see the announcement.
Capaldi, who appeared in a 2008 episode of the series alongside tenth Doctor David Tennant, told presenter Zoe Ball of his excitement at taking on the role.
'It's so wonderful not to keep this secret any longer,' he said. 'For a while I couldn't tell my daughter who kept on looking on the internet and kept seeing people saying so and so should be the Doctor and she got rather upset.
'But it has been absolutely fantastic in its own way, so many wonderful things have been happening.
Peter Capaldi becomes the new Doctor Who on BBC
Big reveal: The BBC spent half an hour building up to their big announcement- which was a foregone conclusion to most. Departing Doctor Matt Smith gave words of advice to his successor
Out of this world: Freya Lightfoot came dressed for the occasion as she waited outside the BBC Centre in Elstree
In costume: Fans dress as the tenth Doctor Who and his loyal assistant Rose, as they wait to hear the big announcement
CAPALDI WROTE TO RADIO TIMES PRAISING DR WHO WHEN HE WAS 15
A lifelong fan of the show, Peter Capaldi even wrote a letter to the Radio Times about the Daleks when he was a teenager.
In the letter, the then 15-year-old who attended the Glasgow School of Art, wrote: 'Your Special has certainly made the year for Dr Who fans.
'A rather sad year due to the untimely death of the Master, alias Roger Delgado.
'But I hope that in 15 years' time, in 1988, you will publish another Special to celebrate 25 years of wandering in time with the Doctor.'
Lifelong fan: A 15-year-old Peter wrote to the Radio Times about Doctor Who
'It was quite hard because even though I'm a lifelong Doctor Who fan, I haven't played Doctor Who since I was nine in the playground. I downloaded old scripts from the internet and read those.'
Capaldi will appear briefly in a Christmas special as the current Doctor, played by Matt Smith, leaves, and his first series will be broadcast late next year. Speaking in a pre-recorded video, Smith said: 'I know what's coming and he's gonna have a blast.'
The live unveiling came after weeks of speculation about who would be the next Doctor.
Suggestions included Harry Potter star Rupert Grint, James Bond actors Ben Whishaw and Rory Kinnear, and Homeland actor Damian Lewis.
Familiar face: Capaldi as a Roman merchant alongside the 10th Doctor David Tennant in 2008
Can't stand the tension! Zoe Ball announced Peter as the new Doctor in a TV special
Comedy star: Peter won a BAFTA and British Comedy Award for his portrayal of Malcolm Tucker in The Thick Of It
And the new Doctor is... Peter walked out to rapturous applause by the studio audience
Oscar winner: Peter won an Academy Award for Live Action Short Film for Frank Kafka's It's Wonderful Life in 1995
The first 11 Doctors....
Starting the legacy: The First Doctor William Hartnell (1963-1966)
Second and Third: Patrick Troughton (1966–1969) and Jon Pertwee (1970–1974)
Fourth and Fifth: Peter Davison (1981–1984) and Tom Baker (1974–1981)
Sixth and Seventh: Colin Baker (1984–1986) and Sylvester McCoy (1987–1989, 1996)
Eighth and Ninth: Paul McGann (1996) and Christopher Eccleston (2005)
Tenth and Eleventh: David Tennant (2005-2010) and Matt Smith (2010-2013)
Video courtesy BBC
Peter Capaldi biography
Family man: Peter, his wife Elaine and their daughter Cecily in 2004
Capaldi was born in Glasgow in April 1958 to an Irish mother and Italian father.
He enrolled at the Glasgow School of Art, but was also a member of the Antonine Players during high school.
During his studies at the School of Art, he fronted a punk band called Dreamboys, whose drummer Craig Ferguson, is now an actor and chat show host.
He made his big screen debut in 1983 film Local Hero and appeared in an episode of Minder two years later.
Over the past three decades, roles followed in Dangerous Liaisons, Peep Show, Waking The Dead, The Crow Road and The Devil's Whore.
However, it was his role as Government spin doctor Malcolm Tucker in BBC comedy series The Thick of It which earned him the most acclaim.
The Scottish star won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Male Performance in a Comedy Role for The Thick Of It in 2010.
Acclaim: Peter with his BAFTA TV Award in 2010
The same year, he won the first for two Best TV Comedy Actor accolades at the British Comedy Awards for the show, followed by a second in 2012.
As well as TV and film, Peter has also starred on stage, starring in The Ladykillers in the West End last year.
However, Peter is equally talented behind the camera and in 1995 won an Oscar for Best Short Film (Live Action) for Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life.
He has also written Soft Top, Hard Shoulder, which won the audience award at the London Film Festival in 1993.
Recently, Peter starred alongside Brad Pitt in World War Z and BBC2 series The Hour, for which he received a BAFTA nomination.
He has already filmed roles in the forthcoming films The Fifth Estate and Maleficent and is currently shooting BBC drama series The Musketeers.
Peter lives in North London with his wife Elaine Collins and their daughter Cecily.
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Source : http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2384614/Doctor-Who-Fans-ageism-row-dub-Peter-Capaldi-old-play-Time-Lord.html?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490
