Scholars’ Spotlight: Tom Baker

Early Life

Thomas Stewart Baker was born in Liverpool, England on January 20, 1934. Baker was raised in a strict and devout Catholic household, primarily by his mother as his father was a sailor who was often out at sea. When he was 15, Baker entered a monastery to dedicate his life to God. However, he became disillusioned, losing his faith as the years went by, finally leaving six years later.

In 1955, soon after leaving the monastery, Baker served in the Royal Army Medical Corps, where he served for two years. He then began to study acting in the London suburb of Sidcup at the Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama. It was here that Baker met his first wife, Anna Wheatcroft, whom he married in 1961.

Theatre and Early Television Work

Baker’s marriage did not last but his love of the theatre did. In 1966, he began to work at small, local theatres. Two years later Baker would get his big break. A performance of his in York was seen by a representative of the National Theater. He was granted an audition before Laurence Olivier (who was then the head of the company) and others.

Baker had impressed the troupe and was given a contract. As a result, he was with the theatre company from 1968 through 1971. During this time, he was primarily an understudy. The highlight of his time at the National Theatre was performing with Olivier in a production of The Merchant of Venice.

“The paradox of performers is that they are licensed liars. Actors can say things like, ‘It’s only by lies that the truth can be revealed,’ without cracking up. Plus, they’ve got some truly wonderful chat-up lines at their disposal. Just so long as you’re not trying it on with an actress who’s also read Bernard Shaw”

– Tom Baker

During this time Baker had stayed busy by appearing in several British television series. Examples of these included: Dixon of Dock Green, Z-Cars, Market in Honey Lane, and Softly, Softly.

Breaking into Movies

In 1971 Laurence Oliver recommended Baker for the role of Grigori Rasputin in the film Nicholas and Alexandra, which he won. The movie was shot on location in Yugoslavia and Spain. Although the film was a financial failure, it received six Academy Award nominations and earned Baker two Golden Globe nods (“Best Supporting Actor” and “New Star of the Year – Actor”).

Baker followed up his successful cinematic debut by appearing in three other notable film roles: The Canterbury Tales (1972), The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973), and The Vault of Horror (1973).

Doctor Who

In 1974 the BBC was looking for a man to play the fourth incarnation of the popular Doctor Who character in the series of the same name. Baker had recently appeared in the network’s series Play of the Month. He had impressed Bill Slater, the BBC’s Head of Serials, and Slater recommended Baker to Doctor Who producer Barry Letts.

Baker, at the time, was employed as a construction worker as acting jobs were scarce. He had a meeting with Letts who walked away from the conversation impressed by the actor. Letts then watched Baker in The Golden Voyage of Sinbad and immediately offered him the coveted role of the Fourth Doctor.

When Baker attended the press conference announcing him as the new Doctor Who, the network supplied him with a set of old wardrobe clothes. This was because he was deemed to be too shabbily dressed in his threads. As a result, this earned Baker the moniker of “Boiler Suit Tom” by the British press.

Almost immediately Baker’s version of Doctor Who became a ratings smash and a cultural phenomenon. His strangely identifiable wardrobe and his quirky personality were two factors that worked together to make Baker’s version of Doctor Who an icon for the ages. Additionally, the Gothic tone that the series contained during his years served to enhance his episodes. Thus, contributing to their popularity.

“When I was doing Doctor Who, it was the realization of all my childhood fantasies… so I took to it like a duck to water, and I still do. Doctor Who was more important than life to me—I used to dread the end of rehearsal… that’s why I can’t stay away from it.”

– Tom Baker

Stardom

Baker’s popularity on the series kept him in the role for seven seasons. Subsequently, making him the longest-tenured actor in the role ever. In 1980, at the tail end of his run as The Fourth Doctor, he married his co-star Lalla Ward. They divorced in 1982. In 1986, Baker married another Doctor Who staff member, assistant editor Sue Jerrard. Baker is still married to her over 35 years later.

Even after he departed Doctor Who in 1981, Baker would sporadically return to the series and role that made him a star. He performed audio for novelizations of books for BBC Audio. Baker also provided voice acting for new audio Doctor Who stories by Big Finish Production, including “Demon Quest.”

Baker’s most notable return to the character was in the 50th-anniversary special, “The Day of the Doctor.” In it, he appears as a museum curator who looks like an older version of The Fourth Doctor. Baker also completed a story from 1979. “Shada” written by Douglas Adams was never finished due to a strike. For this project, Baker provided his voice for animated new footage that accompanied what had been shot decades earlier.

“What I enjoy most of all in the last 50 years of my life is that gift of playing Doctor Who. Because he’s a good soul and I’m a good soul, it kind of licensed me to be my own rather silly but good-natured jolly self, you know, with pretensions to be heroic”

– Tom Baker

Later Years and Other Roles

After leaving Doctor Who behind Baker returned to the theatre. He starred in the role of Oscar Wilde in Feasting with Panthers at the Chichester Festival Theatre. Other plays he worked in included Educating Rita, Hedda Gabler, and The Mask of Moriarty in which he played both Sherlock Holmes and Professor James Moriarty.

Baker would also play Sherlock Holmes in a four-part BBC1 miniseries version of The Hound of the Baskervilles. Other notable roles included an appearance in Blackadder II, The Silver Chair, and the movie Dungeon & Dragons.

Baker is perhaps best known for his extensive voice-over work for BBC Radio, most notably Little Britain and Lionel Nimrod’s Inexplicable World. In 2006 his voice was voted as the fourth most recognizable in the UK. This was behind only the Queen, Tony Blair, and Margaret Thatcher. Over eleven days, Baker recorded 11,593 phrases for British Telecom’s text messaging service.

“What appeals to me most is the thought that I will be bringing good news to people whether it is a cheeky message, a birthday greeting or just a quick ‘Hello.'”

– Tom Baker

Tom Baker and his wife Sue moved to France in 2003 but returned to England three years later. They currently reside in East Sussex with their cats.

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