John Simm: Doctor Who - by TV and Satellite Weekly - 18 June 2007

After being transported back to the 1970s as Sam Tyler in Life on Mars, John Simm meets the ultimate time-traveller this week in The Sound of Drums, the first in a two-part Doctor Who adventure that wraps up the series. The 37-year-old actor stars as Harold Saxon, a sinister and power-crazed politician who launches a reign of terror after he is elected prime minister of Britain. But as the Doctor discovers to his horror, Saxon is in fact his longtime nemesis the Master, a renegade Time Lord who is controlling people’s minds through a mobile phone network. After Saxon wipes out the Cabinet and kills a prying journalist, he announces the arrival of an alien race, the Toclafane, who he has secretly enlisted to destroy the Earth. Armed with his own deadly sonic screwdriver and a stolen Tardis, Saxon then orders the police to hunt down the Doctor, Martha and Captain Jack, who face a desperate race against time as they try to prevent his plot to decimate the planet. Here, Simm reveals how his ruthless role as one of the most famous of Doctor Who baddies has made him a hero in his own household…

How did you get the role of Harold Saxon?
I’d been talking to BBC producer Julie Gardner, who is responsible for both Life on Mars and Doctor Who, quite a bit over the last year or so about the possibility of me appearing on the show. We were trying to find something for me to do in Doctor Who. When they came up with the role of Harry Saxon I thought it was perfect.

How did you hear the good news?
Russell T Davies came up to Manchester where I was filming Life on Mars, and we had a top-secret midnight meeting in a hotel after a night shoot. Russell described what was going to happen and I was like, ‘Yes, absolutely, I’ll do that’.

Are you a fan of the show?
When I was a kid I was a fan. I’m not a sci-fi maniac or anything, but I enjoy the show, so it’s very exciting and an honour to be in the Tardis. It was great filming the two episodes.

Is your five-year-old son Ryan proud of you being a Doctor Who baddie?
He is obsessed with the show, so wouldn’t have forgiven me if I hadn’t taken the part. I would never be able to show my face in the house again. That’s the wonderful thing about the new Doctor Who – it’s something that you sit down with your family and watch.

Navigation

http:// John
http:// Gallery
http:// Media
http:// Domain
http:// Online
http:// Guestbook
http:// Homepage

elite affiliates

http:// John-Barrowman.org
http:// Simply Simm Forums

Site Stats

Top Affiliates

http:// Mischa Project
http:// James McAvoy Fan
http:// Lily Allen Fan
http:// Katie Price Online
http:// Adoring Alex
http:// Leona Lewis Fan
http:// Tennantively