Doctor Who star Peter Capaldi: 'I was delighted to share my first episode with Matt Smith'

(Image credit: BBC/Ray Burmiston)

Doctor Who fans enjoying Peter Capaldi's first adventure as the regenerated Doctor got a huge shock when Matt Smith appeared on screen near the end of the episode.

Matt's former Doctor was seen on the phone giving Clara some advice about accepting the new Doctor and continuing her travels with him through time and space.

The new Doctor, Peter Capaldi, was only too pleased to share some of the limelight with Matt Smith in his first full epsiode, Deep Breath.

"I loved Matt as the Doctor - he had such a great wisdom about him, with youthfulness but an old soul. He was very unique. So I was delighted to share my first Doctor Who episode with him," says Peter. "Matt and the previous Doctors all gave such fantastic performances and all are so different from what my version of the Doctor will be!"

Doctor Who's executive producer Steven Moffat also stands by his decision to put Matt in Peter's first full episode: "Bringing Matt back just felt totally right," he says. "Both for what we're planning for Peter's Doctor and also for Matt's Doctor. It had never been done before, but why not?

"I had to write that scene first, before the rest of the episode, while the show still had Matt. I remember sitting in the cutting room after all the filming was done wondering if it felt strange. But then I remembered we were making Doctor Who so things could be strange!"

 

 

Nicholas Cannon
TV Content Director on TV Times, What's On TV and TV & Satellite Week

I'm a huge fan of television so I really have found the perfect job, as I've been writing about TV shows, films and interviewing major television, film and sports stars for over 25 years. I'm currently TV Content Director on What's On TV, TV Times, TV and Satellite Week magazines plus Whattowatch.com. I previously worked on Woman and Woman's Own in the 1990s. Outside of work I swim every morning, support Charlton Athletic football club and get nostalgic about TV shows Cagney & Lacey, I Claudius, Dallas and Tenko. I'm totally on top of everything good coming up too.