{"id":26219,"date":"2022-11-29T01:01:34","date_gmt":"2022-11-29T00:01:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1740648"},"modified":"2022-11-29T02:53:29","modified_gmt":"2022-11-29T01:53:29","slug":"shane-richie-says-he-was-approached-about-lead-role-in-doctor-who","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/shane-richie-says-he-was-approached-about-lead-role-in-doctor-who\/","title":{"rendered":"Shane Richie says he was approached about lead role in Doctor Who"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Morgan Jeffery\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 29 November 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Alfie Moon in the TARDIS? It could\u2019ve happened according to Shane Richie, who claims there was once \u201csome interest\u201d in his playing the Doctor in Doctor Who<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Richie is now officially entering the worlds of Doctor Who as he plays Drax \u2013 a Time Lord character previously portrayed by Barry Jackson in the 1979 TV story\u00a0The Armageddon Factor<\/a> \u2013 in Connections, the latest series of Eighth Doctor audio adventures<\/a> starring Paul McGann and produced by Big Finish.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI play a Time Lord \u2013 how cool is that?\u201d Richie told RadioTimes.com<\/a>. \u201cI am Drax. He\u2019s gone a bit astray. He\u2019s a wheeler dealer, he\u2019s a law unto himself. He\u2019s in it for what he can get out of it. He has no cares about anyone else. But there\u2019s still something endearing about him. Imagine Alfie Moon but a Time Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n

Drax will appear in the boxset\u2019s opening adventure, Here Lies Drax, which Richie described as \u201cbeautifully written\u201d, \u201cfunny\u201d, \u201cvery dark\u201d and a story that \u201cmoves at breakneck speed\u201d.<\/p>\n

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Doctor Who: The Eighth Doctor Adventures \u2013 Connections<\/span><\/figcaption> Big Finish<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

But when asked if he\u2019d ever been up for a role in the television series, Richie claimed that he\u2019d once been considered for the part of the Doctor \u2013 in the early 2000s, shortly after his first stint on EastEnders<\/a> as Alfie Moon.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe deal was I\u2019d go in [to EastEnders] for three months, see the reaction, and then they\u2019d talk about renewing the contract,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt took off, so I signed a three year deal \u2013 but what happened in the meantime was the papers had said I was only going in for three months\u2026 and then someone said, \u2018We just want to know the availability for Shane Richie to play Doctor Who.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, it wasn\u2019t the monster it is now, so I didn\u2019t think any more about it. But there was an availability check and there was some interest. I think my manager had a meeting about it. But I\u2019d signed up to [play] Alfie for three years.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Christopher Eccleston in Doctor Who<\/span><\/figcaption> BBC<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Christopher Eccleston was, of course, cast as the Ninth Doctor in Russell T Davies\u2019 revival of the iconic sci-fi series, though award-winning actor Bill Nighy has also suggested that he was approached about playing the part.<\/p>\n

Speaking to RadioTimes.com<\/strong>, Richie recalled a meeting with Nighy \u201cthree or four years\u201d after Doctor Who was revived. \u201cI\u2019m at some awards do in London and Bill Nighy\u2019s there and I go to the toilet \u2013 I\u2019ve never been introduced to Bill, we\u2019ve never met before, and we\u2019re standing by the cubicles\u2026 he just looks across and goes, \u2018Evening, Doctor!\u2019 \u2013 he was obviously aware that I was up for it and I knew he was up for it. Bill Nighy would have been a great Doctor, wouldn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

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