Peter Capaldi turned down Doctor Who

Peter Capalidi has revealed that he once turned down the chance to audition for the role of the Doctor.

The actor was speaking at a special event in London to launch the Series 8 DVD/Blu-Ray. He revealed that he was asked to audition for the role of the Eighth Doctor in the 1996 TV Movie, a role that eventually went to Paul McGann. Capaldi said he turned down the chance to play his dream role as he knew he wouldn't get the part. "I turned down the opportunity," he said. "I loved it so much that I didn’t want to have the disappointment of going for something that I would never get."

Capaldi is not the only Doctor to have turned down the chance to audition for the role in the 1990s. After he was cast as the Doctor in 2004, Christopher Eccleston also revealed that he had declined an invitation to audition for the role of the Eighth Doctor in the TV Movie.



The special event, hosted by Frank Skinner, was attended by fans who won a special competition held by BBC Worldwide. As well as Capaldi it featured Jenna Coleman and showrunner Steven Moffat who were joined onstage by Michelle Gomez, who played Missy in the latest series, and Samuel Anderson, who played Danny Pink.