The Master and the Rani

[charliequinn]

I've heard a lot of people complain that the Master (as Eric Roberts and John Simm) were totally over the top. My opinion is that those people have never seen the Anthony Ainley Master, who was completley OTT and was loving every minute of it (I point to Time Flight as evidence

Comments

[dougs]

As I recall, the Rani played a totally unconvincing Mel; it's just that the Doctor was so confused post-regeneration.

I think I'd like to see Jenny Eclair playing the Rani. Or maybe Sue Perkins.

[rhiannon_s]

Be fair, Bonnie Langford was pretty unconvincing as Mel too :o)

But anyone who complains "such and such" was too OTT has obviously missed the point of Dr Who. It's where actors go to to have fun in as hammy a manner possible. And I love it, would not have it any other way.

Dr Who, where cast go home well fed, having chewed on all the scenery.

[dougs]

If we're in the business of being fair, then we have to concede that the question of what Mel was like has to be answered with reference to Langford's portrayal, and so pretty much by definition, she got it right. Whether the character itself was unconvincing is a different question.

Having considered the matter further, I'd like to add Miranda Richardson to my list of candidates for the Rani.

[shinydinosaur]

YES.

Oh man, Miranda Richardson would be hilarious as the Rani. All I've got in my head is her as Queenie from Blackadder although I'm sure I'm not alone in this.

[sudipal]

The only thing I hated about Simm's Master was the drumming, but I found his portrayal very fitting. The Master has always been a foil to the Doctor: just as Pertwee's Doctor was a suave gentleman, so was Delgado's Master; and just as Tennant's Doctor exhibited an over-the-top playfulness, so too must his Master.

In terms of the Rani, although I'd love to see her again, I haven't thought about who should play her. I like the above idea of Miranda Richardson. (Although, to be fair, as an American, I'm not very familiar with a wide list of British actresses.)

[bodyline]

RUTH WILSON.

[nrrrdy_grrrl]

The Master wouldn't be The Master if he were all nuanced and reserved and laconic. Once you've seen a character wearing an outrageously cartoonish moustache or being portrayed as a dung-covered skull in a bin liner hoodie, any pretense of theatrical boundaries simply evaporates. I say the more OTT the better.

[laura_luvage]

I doubt Billie would come back, I feel like David was the one that convinced her to come back several times, as I remember in an article just after she left in 2006, she seemed a little annoyed that she had become so known for playing Rose and the younger fanbase that came with it. Freema or Catherine would be far more likely to come back, but both have pretty busy schedules.

I'd really like to see someone who hasn't been in Doctor Who before, Britain has such a fantastic range of actresses, it would be a waste to not give one of them the chance.

[viomisehunt]

Freema said, (or joked) that she would only return if Martha is over the Doctor, because, her words, "All that pining was getting old." But I agree, Britain has a fantastic range of Actors to choose from.