Russell Tovey Auditioned For 'Doctor Who' Lead Role, But Admits 'It Would Have Terrified Me' | HuffPost

Almost 'Doctor Who'

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Russell Tovey has admitted he auditioned for the lead role in Doctor Who - but lost out to Matt Smith.

The Him & Her star told The Independent he was relieved not to get the part in the BBC sci-fi series.

He said: "It would have terrified me. I don't know what I would have done with all the attention."

Russell, 31, had appeared in the 2007 Doctor Who Christmas Special and was thrown into the series spotlight when producer Russell T Davies blogged that he thought the actor would be an ideal replacement for David Tennant.

The Being Human star told The Independent: "Russell texted me to say, 'Look, I've said this quote about how you should be the next Doctor Who, so if it goes a bit crazy...' And I was, 'Oh, that's fine...', and then suddenly it just went everywhere: people messaging me from my childhood and lots of remarks like, 'His ears are too big for the Tardis, they'll be flapping about.'

"People were starting to get really personal."

After Russell tested to be the 11th Doctor it was Matt who eventually got the part.

Russell, currently appearing in ITV sitcom The Job Lot, would have been the first openly gay actor to play the Doctor, but said he is happy to have been cast as only straight characters so far.

Russell, said: "For me to play gay it has to be something special, because it might actually be more of a risk. So I'm waiting for that role - I want it to be something that moves things forward."

Doctor Who Companions

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British actress Carole Ann Ford (centre, right) makes a horn sign at a Dalek from the BBC television science fiction series 'Doctor Who', at the Daily Mail Schoolboys' and Girls' Exhibition at Olympia, London, 28th December 1964. In the series, Ford plays Susan Foreman, the companion of the first Doctor, played by William Hartnell. (Photo credit: Victor Drees/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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Dr Who encounters the ancient Aztecs in an episode of the famous TV series in 1964. From left to right, the actors are John Ringham, William Russell, Jacqueline Hill, William Hartnell (1908 - 1975) and Keith Pyott. (Photo credit: Moore/Fox Photos/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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British actors Tom Baker and Elisabeth Sladen pose in 1974, who star in the new BBCTV series 'Dr Who'. (Photo by Victor Blackman/Express/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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Tom Baker as the new Dr Who in 1974. He is shown here with a Cyberman and his assistant Sarah Jane Smith, played by Elisabeth Sladen, at the BBC television centre. (Photo credit: Frank Barratt/Keystone/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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Dr Who (actor Peter Davison) and female companions of the Doctor's past and present pose in 1983. (l-r) Louise Jameson, Carole Ann Ford, Caroline John, Sarah Sutton, Elisabeth Sladen and Janet Fielding. (Photo credit: PA) (credit:PA)

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Paul McGann (as The Doctor) and Daphne Ashbrook (as Dr. Grace Holloway) in Doctor Who, shown in 1996. (Photo credit: WENN.com) (credit:WENN)

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Actress Catherine Tate arrives at the press launch of 'Dr Who' series 4 at the Apollo West End in 2008 in London. (Photo credit: Dave Hogan/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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Doctor Who, played by Sylvester Mccoy, poses with his companion Melanie, played by Bonnie Langford, in 1987. (Photo credit: Photoshot/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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Doctor Who, played by Colin Baker, with companion Peri, played By Nicola Bryant in 1986. (Photo credit: Photoshot/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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20th November 1980: Tom Baker, who plays Dr Who in the childrens TV series, is to marry Lalla Ward, who plays his assistant Romana in the series. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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1980: Actress Lalla Ward, Dr Who's assistant in the BBC television series, riding K9, the doctor's robotic 'dog', in a park (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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Actor Jon Pertwee, a former Dr Who, and actress Elisabeth Sladen, who played his companion in the series, at Heathrow Airport where they departed to Miami to attend a Dr Who convention (PA) (credit:PA)

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Tom Baker, as Doctor Who, and Mary Tamm as his companion, Romana, on the set of the BBC television science fiction series 'Doctor Who', at BBC TV Centre, London, 25th April 1978. (Photo by Fred Mott/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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English actors Jon Pertwee (1919 - 1996) and Elisabeth Sladen (1946 - 2011) outside BBC TV Centre, London, 26th June 1973. Pertwee and Sladen play Doctor Who and his companion Sarah Jane Smith in the British television series 'Doctor Who'. (Photo by William H. Alden/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)

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Peter Purves

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DR Who: Billie Piper, Christopher Eccleston (credit:WENN)

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Bernard Cribbins (and David Tennant collect the award for best Drama received for Dr Who during the National Television Awards 2010.

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Dr Who (credit:BBC )

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The eleventh Doctor Who, actor Matt Smith, and his companion Amy Pond, actress Karen Gillian, arrive at the screening of an episode of the new Doctor Who series at Cineworld, Cardiff (Ben Birchall/PA Wire) (credit:PA)

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James Corden and Matt Smith take a break from filming the BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who Penarth, Wales. Photo: WENN.com

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K-9

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