The Doctors Who's Who - The Story Behind Every Face of the Iconic Time Lord: Celebrating its 50th Year. Craig Cabell

faithful companion Jamie [Frazer Hines] alongside then incumbents Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant – showcased Troughton’s love for and humour in the role (through one ‘dinner party’ scene at least, where he is momentarily transformed into a creature with a love of human flesh with a counterpart chef from the same carnivorous race).

      All of these return visits show that Troughton had a place in his heart for the show right up until his untimely death; but let us not forget his other, now largely overlooked, roles.

      Doctor Who was neither saint nor sinner to Patrick Troughton. What the Doctor has done for him is to keep him in the minds of the young forever, as the immortality of Doctor Who will keep his work alive and, perhaps, tempt some people into finding old Troughton gems on TV and DVD.

      ‘It now seems so long ago that I played the part of the Doctor that there is really very little I can add to what has already been written. And, of course, I’ve played so many different parts in the last forty years.’

      Patrick Troughton from ‘Doctor Who Indulged My Passion for Clowning’ Doctor Who – A Celebration, Two Decades Through Time and Space

       Peter Haining

      Before moving on to the life and career of Jon Pertwee, I do wish to labour the fact that Patrick Troughton’s life and career is dreadfully understated. Unfortunately, the biggest culprit of this was Troughton himself, not wishing to do too many interviews. But also it is the BBC’s fault by erasing so many episodes of his Doctor Who and also destroying – or not recording – so many of those early live TV series such as Robin Hood, Gunpowder Guy or Kidnapped. In many ways, Patrick Troughton is the forgotten actor, let alone the lost Doctor. One thing I have saved to mention here is his fantastic performance as Adolf Hitler in the Gateway Theatre production of Eva Braun. This was in 1950, when feelings about the Nazis still ran high, but he did it and he did it well.

      Patrick Troughton isn’t quite overlooked nowadays; he has a legacy through his family. His daughter’s son is now Harry Potter’s nemesis Dudley Dursley (Harry Melling). His son David Troughton – apart from being an accomplished Shakespearean actor – appeared in Doctor Who during his father’s time, in stories ‘The Enemy of the World’ and ‘The War Games’, also playing a more substantial role as the dashing King Peladon opposite Jon Pertwee’s Doctor in ‘The Curse of Peladon’, and Professor Hobbes in David Tennant’s excellent story ‘Midnight’. David Troughton’s brother Michael is an actor and teacher, most notable for playing opposite Rik Mayall in The New Statesman as Sir Piers Fletcher-Dervish.

      The Patrick Troughton Theatre opened at Mill Hill School in 2007 to celebrate one of its most accomplished former actor students and, along with his family and many Doctor Who fans around the world, Troughton’s legacy is somewhat secured. That and, of course, the latest Doctor Who, Matt Smith, singling him out as a huge influence on his own interpretation of the Doctor.

      ‘For who would bear the whips and scorns of time.’

       Hamlet

       William Shakespeare