Timothy Dalton

Hello, Timothy. Have you watched much Doctor Who before?
“Not that much. I’d seen it as a kid, but I’ve certainly not followed it as a fan. The last one I saw, I saw on BBC America, and I thought everything about it was fantastic. It’s really well done. David [Tennant] explodes into the part. He’s incredible. Such energy. What they usually do with franchises like this is screw it up. They try to identify what makes the series work, and then exaggerate it to the point where it doesn’t work at all anymore. It’s a wonder that Doctor Who hasn’t become a caricature of itself… although it did, didn’t it? It had a hugely long life, but then appeared to wind down in the 80s. If it hadn’t been for Russell Davies and the drama people at BBC Wales, who wanted to rejuvenate and reinvigorate it, then there wouldn’t be a whole new world of fans coming up. It’s amazing how many people love it. Doctors, lawyers, grown adults… I take it you’re a fan?”

Is it that obvious?
“[Laughing] Then you’re better equipped to know what makes Doctor Who work than I am. I’m not an expert. I’ve not studied it. But I do know that Russell’s script [for The End of Time] is one of the most extraordinary scripts that I’ve ever read. It covers so many genres. It’s like reading five or six different movies all at once. He’s blended the imaginatively outrageous with the ordinary and prosaic, and moves between them with ease.”

How do you know where to pitch your performance, then?
“I haven’t a clue.”

Now, that’s a bit worrying.
“Why? You’ll find out. You’ll judge the performance. You’ll say, ‘He’s overdone it,’ or ‘He’s underdone it,’ or ‘He’s missed it entirely.’ But you’re right, it’s got to be pitched a certain way. I guess it’s one of those things that you have to sense and feel. Do EastEnders or Coronation Street accurately reflect the lives of the people who watch them? Not a cat in hell’s chance. But they capture the essence of those lives, and heighten them. Look, you’re the expert – you tell me about Doctor Who. I should have talked to you before I started shooting.”

That would have been amazing. Do you think we could be friends?
“[Laughs heartily] No.”

Do people tend to get nervous around you, because you’re a famous movie star?
“I don’t know. It kind of passes me by. Are you nervous around me?”

I wasn’t until you said “Are you nervous around me?” in that voice.
“Right. I don’t hear it like you hear it. It always surprises me when I hear my voice played back on tape.”

It’s okay, you have a good voice.
“Thank you. I don’t notice it that much, because it’s mine.”

What do you think your Doctor Who co-stars make of working with Timothy Dalton?
“I know that I’ve got a sort of position. I’m not a beginner. I’m good at what I do, and I’ve had a successful career – still have, I hope – but there’s something implicit in the word ‘star’ that makes people think they’re above other people. I get bemused and a little uncomfortable talking about this sort of thing. Actors work together. We’re a community. We have to be open with each other, and trust each other, and that rather breaks through the sense of elitism or stardom. This is a British TV series, and I’ve done a lot of major motion pictures… but you’ve had lots of wonderful people on this show. I mean, Julie [Gardner, executive producer] seemed pleased to see me, because she should be pleased, but what I have to do is make sure that the work I do merits her pleasure at me being in this company. It’s no good her being pleased, and then I make a mess of it.”

In many ways, you’re a bit of a sex symbol…
“When was I ever a sex symbol?”

Er. James Bond?
“I don’t know about that. James Bond is some kind of big deal, I suppose.”

I’m sensing that you’re fed up of talking about Bond.
“It’s been hugely valuable to me, but at the end of the day it’s a couple of jobs in a career full of jobs, all of which I’ve loved, some of which I’ve done better than others. Bond was 20 years ago. To me, that’s history. It’s not the current thing. [A knock on his trailer door] Hello? Don’t worry about the door. I broke it. [It’s James, the second AD, calling Timothy for a make-up check] I don’t know that we need a make-up check just now. Let’s do it on set. [Exit James] Where were we?”

I was just going to ask you about your Time Lord cape. It’s very nice.
“Yes. It’s a great costume. Russell gave a stage direction about when the cape – the gown or whatever you call it – is opened, revealing a battered flak-jacket: the script says, ‘This man is a warrior.’ I know nothing about the Time Lords, but there’s a uniform, isn’t there? With the big collars? Uniform is about losing individuality. The robes were always done up, but the minute you open them, showing what’s underneath, you’re revealing something of the personal life, the kind of person that this Lord President is. Now, I’m not wearing a flak-jacket as such, but it is redolent of… I mean, it’s got texture, and feeling, and a history to it. Yeah. He’s a soldier.”

Timothy Dalton was talking to Benjamin Cook.