Tennant pledges his support forDiEM25's Your NHS Needs You campaign Recorded 8 November 2021
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David John Tennant (néMcDonald; born 18 April 1971) is a Scottish actor. He is best known for portraying thetenth andfourteenth incarnations ofthe Doctor in the science fiction seriesDoctor Who (2005–2010, 2013, 2023). His other notable screen roles include portraying Barty Crouch Jr. inHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), DI Alec Hardy in the British crime drama seriesBroadchurch (2013–2017) and its American remakeGracepoint,Kilgrave in the superhero seriesJessica Jones (2015–2019), Crowley in the fantasy seriesGood Omens (2019–present) and various fictionalised versions of himself in the comedy seriesStaged (2020–2022).
At the age of three, Tennant told his parents that he wanted to become an actor because he was a fan ofDoctor Who,[12] but they encouraged him to aim for more conventional work.[6] He later said that he was "absurdly single-minded" in pursuing an acting career. He watched almost everyDoctor Who episode for years and once spoke toFourth Doctor actorTom Baker at a book-signing event in Glasgow.[6] He was educated at Ralston Primary School andPaisley Grammar School; he acted in various school productions.[13] His talent was noticed by actressEdith MacArthur, who told his parents that she believed he would become a successful theatre actor after she saw him perform when he was 10 years old.[14]
Tennant attended Saturday classes at theRoyal Conservatoire of Scotland before passing an official audition at the age of 16, becoming one of their youngest students and studying there between the ages of 17 and 20.[13] In 1991, Tennant obtained here aBA degree in Dramatic Studies.[15]
After discovering that there was another David McDonald already represented by the actor's unionEquity, he created hisstage name by adopting the surname ofPet Shop Boys frontmanNeil Tennant, whom he had seen inSmash Hits.[16][17] He later legally changed his surname to comply with rules set by the AmericanScreen Actors Guild (which was later merged intoSAG-AFTRA).[18]
Tennant made his professional acting debut while still in secondary school. When he was 16, he acted in an anti-smoking film made by the Glasgow Health Board which was shown on television and was also screened in schools.[14] The following year, he played a role in an episode ofDramarama. Tennant's first professional role upon graduating from drama school was in a staging ofThe Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui co-starringAshley Jensen, one of a few plays in which he performed as part of theagitprop7:84 Theatre Company.[13] He also made an early television appearance in the Scottish TV sitcomRab C Nesbitt as atransgender barmaid called Davina. In the 1990s, he appeared in several plays at theDundee Repertory Theatre.[19]
Tennant was awarded his first major TV role as Campbell Bain in theBBC Scotland drama seriesTakin' Over the Asylum (1994), after impressing directorDavid Blair during filming of another drama –Strathblair (1992). As Tennant recalled from the audition, "they needed someone who could believably act 19 and bonkers".[20] During filming ofTakin' Over the Asylum he met comic actress and writerArabella Weir. When he moved to London shortly afterwards, he lodged with Weir for five years[13] and became godfather to her youngest child. He has subsequently appeared with Weir in many productions: as a guest in her spoof television seriesPosh Nosh, in theDoctor Whoaudio dramaExile (during which Weir played an alternative version of theDoctor), and as panellists on theWest Wing Ultimate Quiz onMore4 (Weir later guest-starred onDoctor Who itself after Tennant left the series). One of his earliest big-screen roles was inJude (1996).
Tennant developed his career in the British theatre, frequently performing with theRoyal Shakespeare Company. His first Shakespearean role for the RSC was inAs You Like It (1996); having auditioned for the role of Orlando, the romantic lead, he was instead cast as the jesterTouchstone.[21] He subsequently specialised in comic roles, playing Antipholus of Syracuse inThe Comedy of Errors and Captain Jack Absolute inThe Rivals, although he also played the role ofRomeo inRomeo and Juliet.[13] He also starred in the 2003 London production ofMartin McDonagh'sThe Pillowman.[22]
A fan of Doctor Who since childhood, Tennant had had a small role in the BBC's animatedDoctor Who webcastScream of the Shalka and appeared in severalaudio plays based on theDoctor Who television series which had been produced byBig Finish Productions.
Doctor Who returned to British screens in March 2005, withChristopher Eccleston playing the role of theNinth Doctor in the first series. Tennant replaced him as of the second series, making his first, brief appearance as theTenth Doctor in the episode "The Parting of the Ways" (2005) at the end of the regeneration scene. Tennant's first full-length outing as the Doctor was a 60-minute special, "The Christmas Invasion", was broadcast on Christmas Day 2005. He appeared in three full thirteen-episode series of Doctor Who, broadcast in 2006, 2007 and 2008, plus Christmas specials.[citation needed]
Tennant featured as the Doctor in an animated version ofDoctor Who forTotally Doctor Who,The Infinite Quest, which aired onCBBC. He also starred as the Doctor in another animated six-partDoctor Who series,Dreamland.[27] Tennant guest starred as the Doctor in a two-part story inDoctor Who spin-offThe Sarah Jane Adventures, broadcast in October 2009.[28] In October 2008, Tennant announced that he would be stepping down from the role after three full series.[29] He played the Doctor in the 2008 Christmas special, The Next Doctor, followed by three special episodes in 2009, before his final episode aired on 1 January 2010, where he was replaced by theEleventh Doctor, portrayed byMatt Smith.
In October 2015, Big Finish Productions announced that Tennant would appear in the role of the Tenth Doctor alongsideCatherine Tate as his former companionDonna Noble in three new stories fromBig Finish. The three stories were released in May 2016.[31] In November 2017, three new audio dramas were released by Big Finish Productions, with Tennant once again starring as the Tenth Doctor, alongside Billie Piper as Rose Tyler.[32] Tennant also returned to the role on 13 July 2018, as part of the live Muppets showThe Muppets Take the O2 in London (in which the Tenth Doctor appeared onstage as part of a livePigs in Space sketch).
In May 2022, in relation to the show's60th anniversary, it was announced that Tennant would once again return to the show, alongside Tate, who would reprise her role as Donna Noble.[33][34] Previously thought to be returning as the Tenth Doctor, in October 2022, the ending of the special episode "The Power of the Doctor" revealed that Tennant would return as theFourteenth Doctor, a role previously expected to be played byNcuti Gatwa, who would follow on as theFifteenth Doctor.[35] The three 60th anniversary special episodes aired between November and December 2023.[36]
In early 2007, Tennant starred inRecovery, a 90-minuteBBC One drama written byTony Marchant.[38][39] Later that same year he starred inLearners, a BBC comedy drama written by and starringJessica Hynes, in which he played a Christian driving instructor who became the object of a student's affection.Learners was broadcast on BBC One on 11 November 2007.[40][41] In November 2008, Tennant playedSir Arthur Eddington in the BBC andHBO biographical filmEinstein and Eddington.[42]
On 7 March 2010, Tennant appeared as George in a one-partBBC Radio 4 adaptation ofOf Mice and Men in theClassic Serial strand.[46] In October 2010 he starred as Dave, a man struggling to raise five children after the death of his partner, in the British dramaSingle Father. For this role he was nominated as Best Actor at theRoyal Television Society Programme Awards 2010.
Tennant has described theatre work as his "default way of being".[47] He joined theRoyal Shakespeare Company (RSC), to play Hamlet withPatrick Stewart and Berowne inLove's Labours Lost in 2008.[48] From August to November 2008 he appeared at theCourtyard Theatre inStratford-upon-Avon as Hamlet, playing that role inrepertory with Berowne that October and November.[13]Hamlet transferred to theNovello Theatre inLondon'sWest End in December 2008, but Tennant suffered aprolapsed disc during previews and was unable to perform from 8 December 2008 until 2 January 2009, during which time the role was played by his understudyEdward Bennett.[49] He returned to his role in the production on 3 January 2009, and appeared until the run ended on 10 January. Tennant's performance of Hamlet was critically acclaimed.[50][51] In 2009, he worked on aTV film version of the RSC's 2008Hamlet forBBC Two.[52] On 12 April 2011, a photograph of Tennant as Hamlet featured on a stamp issued by theRoyal Mail to mark the RSC's fiftieth anniversary.[53]
In 2011, he starred inUnited, about theManchester United "Busby Babes" team and the 1958Munich air disaster, playing coach and assistant managerJimmy Murphy.[54] In September 2011, he appeared in a guest role in one episode of the comedy seriesThis is Jinsy, and also started filmingTrue Love, a semi-improvisedBBC One drama series which was broadcast in June 2012. Later in September 2011, it was announced that Tennant would voice a character in the movie adaptation ofPostman Pat with a planned3D theatrical release for spring 2013.[55] In October 2011, Tennant started shooting the semi-improvised comedy film,Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger inCoventry.[56][57]
Tennant at the 2017 Wizard World Columbus Comic Con
Between April and June 2012, he filmedSpies of Warsaw for BBC Four, in the lead role of Jean-François Mercier. This drama series shot in Poland is an adaptation ofAlan Furst's novelThe Spies of Warsaw.[58] In 9 June 2012, he started filming the 3-part political drama seriesThe Politician's Husband forBBC Two, playing an ambitious cabinet minister who takes drastic action when his wife's career starts to outshine his.[59][60] In 2012, Tennant also presented the comedy quiz showComedy World Cup.[61]
In January 2012, Tennant was appointed to the Royal Shakespeare Company board, to be on the selection committee interviewing and choosing the new artistic director.[62] It was announced on 23 January 2013 that Tennant would return to the RSC for the company's 2013 winter season, playing the title role inRichard II at Stratford-upon-Avon (from 10 October to 16 November) and transferring to theBarbican Centre in London (from 9 December to 25 January 2014).[63] Tennant repeated his performance as Richard II at the Barbican Theatre in 2016[64] before transferring to theBrooklyn Academy of Music in New York.[65]
Tennant starred in the ITV detective seriesBroadchurch as DI Alec Hardy between 2013 and 2017.[66] He reprised the role for the 2014American remake.[67]
On 9 February 2015, Tennant appeared on theRadio 4 panel showJust a Minute, becoming the show's most successful debut contestant.[70] Tennant also portrayed the villainousKilgrave inJessica Jones, a television series fromMarvel andNetflix. All 13 episodes were released on 20 November 2015.[71]
2016–2023
Tennant at aGood Omens panel at New York Comic Con 2018
Tennant starred as a doctor suspected of murdering his family inDeadwater Fell, a Scottish true crime miniseries, which premiered in January 2020 onChannel 4. He also received his first credit as an executive producer for the series.[82][83][84] In September 2020, he portrayed Scottish serial killerDennis Nilsen inDes, a three-part miniseries on ITV.[85] For his performance, he won theInternational Emmy Award forBest Actor.[86]
From 2020 to 2022 he starred and produced three seasons of the TV seriesStaged, withMichael Sheen.[citation needed] In September 2022, Tennant starred as Reverend Harry Watling in BBC1'sInside Man, which was written bySteven Moffat.[87] The series premiered on 26 September 2022 to mixed reviews from viewers and critics alike.[88][89][90][91] In December 2022, Tennant starred asAlexander Litvinenko in the ITV1 dramatisationLitvinenko. The drama was based on the 10-year fight of Marina Litvinenko and the London police force as they work to prove the guilt and release the names of those responsible for the 2006poisoning of Litvinenko.[92][93]
Tennant in 2023
In August 2023, Tennant once again provided the voice for the droid Huyang in the live-actionStar Wars seriesAhsoka, having voiced the character in two episodes of season 5 ofThe Clone Wars in 2012. His character, also voiced by Tennant, had a cameo in an episode in season 2 ofYoung Jedi Adventures in 2024. He played the lead part in Max Webster's production ofMacbeth, which ran at theDonmar Warehouse in 2023 as well as theHarold Pinter Theatre in 2024.[94][95]
Tennant was named "Coolest Man on TV" of 2007 in aRadio Times survey. He won theNational Television Awards award for Most Popular Actor in 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2010. He was voted 16th Sexiest Man in the World by a 2008Cosmopolitan survey.[101]
Tennant was ranked the 24th most influential person in the British media on 9 July 2007, according toMediaGuardian. He appeared in the paper's annual media rankings in 2006. In December 2008, he was named as one of the most influential people in show business by British theatre and entertainment magazineThe Stage, making him the fifth actor to achieve a ranking in the top 20 (in a list typically dominated by producers and directors.)[citation needed]
In December 2005,The Stage placed Tennant at No. 6 in its "Top Ten" list of the most influential British television artists of the year, citing his roles inBlackpool,Casanova,Secret Smile, andDoctor Who.[102] In January 2006, readers of the British gay and lesbian newspaperThe Pink Paper voted him the "Sexiest Man in the Universe".[103] In October 2006, he was named "Scotland's most stylish male" in the Scottish Style Awards.[104]
Tennant remained neutral on the issue ofScottish independence in the run-up to the2014 referendum, stating that it was not his business as he no longer lived in Scotland.[111] FollowingBrexit, which he called "depressing", he said in 2017 that he would support an independent Scotland in the event of asecond referendum.[112]
Tennant is a supporter of theLGBTQ+ community, particularly those who identify asnon-binary, frequently appearing in interviews wearing pride pins.[113][114][115] He received the LGBT+ Celebrity Ally award at the 2024British LGBT Awards for his ongoing support for the LGBTQ+ Community.[116] While accepting the award, Tennant criticised Women and Equalities MinisterKemi Badenoch for her views on trans issues, saying that "acknowledging that everyone has the right to be who they want to be and live their life how they want to live it" should not merit special recognition, but that "until we wake up and Kemi Badenoch doesn't exist anymore — I don't wish ill of her, I just wish her to shut up — whilst we do live in this world I am honoured to receive this [award]".[117] Badenoch, Prime MinisterRishi Sunak, and Labour leaderKeir Starmer criticised the tone of Tennant's remarks,[118] but Labour candidateDawn Butler expressed support for his position.[119]
Tennant has rarely discussed his private life in interviews, citing his belief that "relationships are hard enough with the people you're having them with, let alone talking about them in public".[13][124] Tennant, whose father was a Church of Scotland minister, believes religion "must have" shaped his character, and revealed that he is an occasional churchgoer.[125]
^ab"McDONALD, David John".Who's Who. A&C Black. 2008. Retrieved10 April 2009. Online edition Oxford University Press December 2008 (subscription or library card required).
^Dickson, Andrew (6 November 2013)."Ask David Tennant anything! – livechat".The Guardian. UK.I am now actually Tennant – have been for a few years, it was an issue with the Screen Actors' Guild in the US, who wouldn't let me keep my stage name unless it was my legal name. Faced with the prospect of working under 2 different names on either side of the globe, I had to take the plunge and rename myself! So although I always liked the name, I'm now more intimately associated with it than I had ever imagined. Thank you, Neil Tennant.
Smallwood, Robert (editor) (2000).Players of Shakespeare 4: Further Essays in Shakespearean Performance by Players with the Royal Shakespeare Company, David Tennant on playing Touchstone in As You Like It, pp. 30–44. Cambridge University Press;ISBN0-521-79416-1
Smallwood, Robert (editor) (2005).Players of Shakespeare 5: Further Essays in Shakespearean Performance by Players with the Royal Shakespeare Company, David Tennant on playing Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, pp. 113–130. Cambridge University Press;ISBN0-521-67698-3
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