Matt Smith

Hello, Matt. That was one hell of a series finale. How was it for you?
“Well, I don’t want to blow smoke up our own you-know-what, but I just think it’s one of the best bits of television that I’ve ever been part of and, may I add, had the fortune to see – he says rather vainly. But it’s nothing to do with me, really. It’s all Steven [Moffat, showrunner]. It’s the best thing he’s ever written, I think. I relish working with Steven. He’s my friend, and a great inspiration to me. He’s probably the greatest writer that I’ve ever worked with.”

You must be pretty pleased with how this series has been received?
“It’s gone okay, hasn’t it? I was nervous about being part of the legacy, but people are generally very kind – although I don’t go online to the forums and things. There was a nice editorial about me in DWM the other month, which said, ‘It’s all right, guys, he’s nailed it.’ [Laughs] What’s great is, we just got better and better.”

The Guardian called Flesh and Stone ‘the greatest episode of Doctor Who there has ever been’.
“Really? Those were the first episodes we filmed. I was really nervous about all those beach scenes. I was struggling in those first couple of weeks.”

Struggling in what sense?
“I just thought, I’m not in control of it. I didn’t know if I was coming or going. I rang up my dad and went, ‘I don’t know how to do this. What the hell am I going to do?’ He said, ‘You’ve just got to keep going. I know you’ll get there.’ It’s wonderful now to hear him say, ‘Told you so. I was right. You are the Doctor. There is no question now.’ That means the world to me. I’m very close to my dad. He’ll ring me up after every episode, and analyse it, and throw superlatives at me, and encourage and support. My mum’s the same. Because it changes their lives as well – [Matt’s mobile goes off] Mum! I’m doing an interview. I’m just talking about you and dad. I’ll put you on loudspeaker. Let’s get a quote for Doctor Who Magazine.”
Matt’s Mum: “Do they want to interview me?”
MS: “Of course. Well, probably. [To DWM:] She loves it really.”
MM: “[Laughs] I’m the most proud mummy in the universe.”
MS: “And what’s been your favourite episode so far, mum?”
MM: “Um… Episode 1.”
MS: “Marvellous! Listen, I’ll phone you back in ten minutes. [Hangs up]”

She sounds nice, your mum.
“She is. Every week, she watches.”

And do you?
“Yeah, we have screenings – me, Steven and Piers [Wenger, executive producer]. I’m watching it as a fan as much as I am with me being in it. It’s just brilliant TV. As Steven says, every other TV format can hang its head in shame, frankly. But we have to get better. That’s the key. It has to get better next series.”

How do you want it to be better? It’s the difficult second album, Matt.
MS: “No, it’s going to be the best album we’ve ever made. I know it is, because I know what’s in store. We are only going to make this show better, I promise you. Because we know how to make it now. The first four or five months were… you know, if I got to 100 miles per hour by the end of the shoot, that’s where I’m starting from next series. You’ve got to bed into this part. I’m going to get better. I’m going to push the part to its limit. I know what I want to improve, and I know where I want to take him. And there have been good second albums. Some people make them, and that’s what we’re going to do. I can’t wait. I’ve been talking to Steven about the Christmas ep, and – oh my word!”

Is there really an Egyptian Goddess loose on the Orient Express?
“I know, right! In space. In a tuxedo.”

Are you lying, though?
“[Laughs] Maybe. Maybe not. Wait till you hear what Steven’s doing with it. He’s going to make it the most Christmassy episode ever. He told me about the first episode of next series as well, and again I just go, ‘How the hell do you come up with this stuff?’ Honestly, it’s going to blow your mind, just the very concept of it. Some great monsters, too.”

Any returning ones? Go on, tell us!
“All I’ll say is, every monster that comes back has to be a little better than it used to be – bigger, brighter, more advanced.”

So what are they going to do with the Daleks next year?
“They’re going to have hats. Yes! They are! And beards. I’m serious.”

Last year, before you started filming, you told DWM: “I understand that it will change my life – at least that’s what I’m led to believe.” How far has it?
“It’s weird. Even going to Tesco in the Bay is a different experience now. I remember talking to David [Tennant] about it – it’s just, like, head down, cap on, and keep moving. I was in a hotel yesterday, and someone got out a pack of Jammie Dodgers and said, ‘Could you sign these, please?’ But it’s fine. You try to give people some time. And then you run.”

In April, you were papped at [US musical festival] Coachella, holding hands with Daisy Lowe – cue a thousand tabloid rumours.
“Yeah. That was odd.”

Do you think you’ll ever get used to that level of interest in your private life?
“It is overwhelming. But you just have to deal with it. What else can you do? It was quite unexpected, out in the US. Then again, in New York, people were camping overnight to get seats for the Episode 1 screening, all in massive Tom Baker scarves, and then they literally went mental – like, screaming, as though we were the Beatles. UK fans are just as passionate, but more reserved, I think.”

You recently filmed two episodes of The Sarah Jane Adventures, opposite Elisabeth Sladen [Sarah Jane] and Katy Manning [Jo Grant]. Had you seen any of Lis or Katy’s 1970s Doctor Who episodes?
“I hadn’t, no. But I will do now. I’m so fond of Lis. She’s so gracious. Katy as well – she’s a barrel of fun, isn’t she? Steven was telling me about Jo’s miniskirts. Wow! But I had a ball of a time. It was fantastic. It’s a great script from Russell [T Davies], and we’ve got a great monster in it, so it’s been a privilege to do. You’re going to love it.”

Matt Smith was talking to Benjamin Cook.