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92-520: On television, Pertwee starred as the third incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction series Doctor Who (1970–1974), hosted the game show Whodunnit? (1974–1978), and played the title character in Worzel Gummidge (1979–1981 and 1987–1989). Towards the end of his life he maintained a close association with Doctor Who by appearing at many fan conventions related to

184-681: A pocket universe to protect it from the Daleks . A star was nicknamed after him in 1986. In 2016, his work was honoured with a blue plaque at the New Wimbledon Theatre , which was arranged by the Doctor Who Appreciation Society . Third Doctor The Third Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor , the protagonist of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who . He

276-520: A .22 bullet. All sorts of incredible things." In 1942, as a Sub Lieutenant , Pertwee was posted to HMS Valkyrie . Whilst stationed on the Isle of Man he was actively engaged in amateur variety shows appearing in character sketches. It was during this time that Pertwee became one of the founding members of the Service Players, a drama society which remains active to this day. During his time in

368-639: A Girl in My Soup . In a lost interview from 1986, which was later rediscovered and published in 2008, he did not want his work on the Carry On films to overshadow his reputation as a serious actor. His television career had started off with small parts in children's shows featuring Richard Hearne 's Mr Pastry character. Later he made an appearance in The Avengers episode " From Venus With Love " (1967) as Brigadier Whitehead, and later, he guest-starred as

460-520: A Time Lord symbol signifying exile, removed once the Doctor's exile was formally ended following the events of The Three Doctors . The Third Doctor stories were the first to be broadcast in colour. The early ones were set on Earth because he had been exiled there when the Second Doctor was banished to Earth by his people, the Time Lords , and forced to regenerate. On Earth, he worked with

552-546: A UNIT scientist named Liz Shaw were to face the Autons for the first time. The Autons were to be one of the Doctor's recurring foes. At the conclusion of this adventure, the Doctor became UNIT's scientific advisor. After facing Silurians , the so-called Ambassadors of Death and the Inferno project, Liz was replaced as the Doctor's assistant by a feisty but slightly scatter-brained young woman named Jo Grant . After meeting Jo,

644-484: A difficult time removing him from somewhere when he did not want to be removed ( The Mind of Evil ). The Third Doctor was a skilled diplomat (keeping talks going in The Curse of Peladon , for example) and linguist, as well as having a penchant for disguises. When asked to attend a Radio Times photo-call in 1969, Jon Pertwee arrived in what he thought was "a suitably eccentric outfit" from his family wardrobe, and

736-538: A genuine vampire cloak. In 1973, Pertwee endorsed the Co-op 's Baking Your Cake and Eating It , a recipe book written by Sarah Charles. It has been given the unofficial title of The Jon Pertwee Recipe Book . In early 1974, Pertwee announced he would step down as the Doctor to resume his stage career in The Bedwinner , also citing potential typecasting in the role as the reason for leaving, though he later said that

828-631: A good working relationship with Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart , whom he had first encountered, in his previous incarnation, as a Colonel in command of troops fighting Yeti and the Cybermen . As well as the Brigadier, he developed friendships with other regular UNIT colleagues including Sergeant Benton and Captain Mike Yates . When meteors were seen falling to Earth in Essex, the Doctor together with

920-698: A great favourite Danny Kaye . Ella Fitzgerald performed at the Empire for a week in September 1948. Other performers from Britain who became regulars included Nat Gonella , Jimmy Young , Harry Secombe , Max Bygraves , Ken Dodd (who brought the house down), Eddie Cochran , Adam Faith , Cliff Richard , the Springfields and Frankie Vaughan before he headlined at the Alhambra Theatre . Welsh singer Dame Shirley Bassey made her debut at

1012-755: A hapless old postman with the catch-phrase "It doesn't matter what you do, as long as you tears them up." On 15 November 1948, at the Wood Green Empire, he was billed as "The Most Versatile Voice in Radio – Jon ('Tear 'em Up') Pertwee from the Radio Shows Merry-go-Round and Up the Pole ". From 1959 to 1977, he performed the role of the conniving Chief Petty Officer Pertwee in The Navy Lark on BBC Radio . The fictional ship in

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1104-468: A longer stint than either of his predecessors in the role, although he ultimately appeared in fewer episodes than William Hartnell as the BBC had reduced the production schedule. Pertwee credited his performance as the Doctor with helping him work out exactly who he really was when he was not resorting to comedic disguises or voices. This was because the BBC's Head of Drama, Shaun Sutton , had advised him to act

1196-648: A remote control, dramatically increased speed capabilities and inertial dampers. He also maintained a hovercraft-like vessel that fans nicknamed the Whomobile. The First Doctor , upon meeting the Third, described him indignantly as a " dandy ", while the Second Doctor , with whom the Third had something of an antagonistic relationship on the occasions they encountered each other, referred to him as "Fancy Pants". While this incarnation spent most of his time exiled on Earth—grudgingly working as UNIT 's scientific advisor—he

1288-502: A role that continued into his future incarnations. In general, this incarnation of the Doctor was more physically daring than the previous two and was the first to confront an enemy physically if cornered (both of his previous incarnations nearly always attempted to dodge, flee or negotiate rather than attack). This often took the form of quick strikes, with the occasional joint lock or throw — usually enough to get himself and anyone accompanying him out of immediate danger, but usually not to

1380-499: A run of more than 900 performances: Pertwee features on the cast recording album, produced by Norman Newell for EMI Records (EMC3139). He also voiced the character of " Spotty " in the cartoon series SuperTed (1983–86) and, in 1985, starred in Do You Know The Milkyway? , a television adaptation of Karl Wittlinger's stage play in which Pertwee played Dr. Neuross and another nine characters. In 1995, he also had

1472-559: A stylish actor." Another of his successors in the role, Colin Baker , said: "He was a man of such presence and stature. I can't believe he has gone – it is a great shock. Of all of the interpretations of the Doctors his was the most straight in terms of avoiding comedy." His body was cremated , at Putney Vale crematorium, with a toy Worzel Gummidge affixed to the coffin, following the instructions in his will. His death came six days after

1564-583: A vicar in The Goodies' episode " Wacky Wales " (1975). In 1969, shortly before leaving the series, producer Peter Bryant cast Pertwee as the Third Doctor in Doctor Who . Pertwee had asked his agent to apply for the role for him and was surprised to find he was already on the shortlist. He was the second choice for the role; Ron Moody was the first but was unavailable. In a departure from

1656-468: A working relationship with the British contingent of UNIT , an international organisation tasked to investigate and defend the Earth against extraterrestrial threats. It was a partnership initially born out of convenience — the Doctor required facilities to try to repair his TARDIS to break the exile, and UNIT needed his expertise to combat the threats they encountered. There is some disagreement about when

1748-568: Is followed by the Fourth Doctor ( Tom Baker ). Pertwee portrays the Third Doctor as a dapper man of action, in stark contrast to his wily but less action-orientated predecessors. While previous Doctors' stories had all involved time and space travel, for production reasons Pertwee's stories initially depicted the Doctor stranded on Earth in exile, where he worked as a scientific advisor to the international military group UNIT . Within

1840-587: Is held by The Andy Stewart Show, twice-nightly with a change of programme each six weeks, for 26 weeks in 1961 and again in 1962, with 400,000 tickets sold each year. The final curtain came down on the theatre on 31 March 1963 with a cast that included the Red Army Choir , Duncan Macrae , Robert Wilson , Iain Cuthbertson , Albert Finney , Rikki Fulton and Andy Stewart . The site is now occupied by Empire House, an office and retail development, at

1932-540: The BBC Radio 4 comedy series Harry Hill's Fruit Corner , playing a Time Lord and also spoofed the role in the Radio 4 comedy The Skivers . He also presented the Doctor Who video releases The Troughton Years (1991), showcasing selected surviving episodes of otherwise lost stories, and The Pertwee Years (1992), the latter a look back at his time on the show, with three selected episodes. In 1993, Pertwee

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2024-687: The Brigadier and the rest of the UNIT team. However, as his tenure progressed he had reasons to leave Earth, on occasion being sent on missions by the Time Lords. Eventually, after his defeat of the renegade Omega in The Three Doctors , he was granted complete freedom by the Time Lords in gratitude for saving Gallifrey . The Third Doctor's era introduced adversaries including the Autons,

2116-648: The Children in Need story Dimensions in Time , in two radio adventures and on stage in Doctor Who – The Ultimate Adventure . After a stint between 1974 and 1978 as the host of the Thames Television murder-mystery game show Whodunnit? , Pertwee took the starring role in Worzel Gummidge , based on the books written by Barbara Euphan Todd . Produced by ITV franchise contractor Southern Television in

2208-462: The Doctor Who convention circuit, and with his voice and television acting, until his death; he died in his sleep from a heart attack in Connecticut on 20 May 1996, at the age of 76. He was survived by Ingeborg and their two children. His immediate successor in the starring role of Doctor Who , Tom Baker , paid tribute, saying: "I am very sorry to hear the news. I was a great admirer of such

2300-525: The Eleventh Doctor rhetorically asks the Atraxi how previous alien invasion attempts were stopped. Footage of Pertwee was used in " The Name of the Doctor " to depict his Doctor interacting with a version of Clara Oswald , in " The Lodger " in a montage of bits from the Doctor's past, and in " The Day of the Doctor " to depict the Third Doctor assisting his other incarnations in sending Gallifrey to

2392-426: The "ridiculous situation of people turning me down for parts because, they say, I am too well known as the Doctor." He observed that after he left the show he only ever worked in a BBC drama on one occasion. This was in the role of "an aging Basque arsonist and pornographer" in an episode of Virtual Murder titled "A Torch for Silverado". He considered this to be one of "the best things I've ever done" He returned to

2484-618: The American broadcast of the Doctor Who television film , which used in its opening credits a logo based on that from his era of the television series. The BBC broadcast of the film, on 27 May 1996, featured a dedication to Pertwee at its end. His last association with Doctor Who was posthumous. With the approval of his widow, Ingeborg, his voice was used as part of the plot of the Big Finish Productions ' 40th Anniversary audio drama, Zagreus , appearing as messages from

2576-597: The Attic as a flashback, and visions appear in " The Eleventh Hour ", " The Lodger ", " Nightmare in Silver ", and The Sarah Jane Adventures serial Death of the Doctor . He was also seen in the episode " The Name of the Doctor " driving Bessie (taken from " The Five Doctors "), and archival footage was used for his appearance in " The Day of the Doctor ". See List of non-televised Third Doctor stories . Glasgow Empire Theatre Glasgow Empire Theatre , known as

2668-623: The Doctor ", the Eleventh Doctor invokes the phrase when confronting a time portal with the Tenth Doctor, suggesting that they both "reverse the polarity" with their sonic screwdrivers (which merely neutralizes each other's efforts). In " The Girl Who Died ", the Twelfth Doctor tells Clara Oswald he is "Reversing the polarity of the neutron flow", followed by "I bet that means something. It sounds great." Clara herself uses

2760-467: The Doctor as himself: in effect, to "play Jon Pertwee". Pertwee's interpretation of the Doctor was described as "a man of action, supremely confident, articulate, yet also warmly reassuring". This incarnation was credited with being more action-orientated and scientifically minded than early versions of the Doctor. In The Making of Doctor Who , Pertwee himself said "Doctor Who is me – or I am Doctor Who. I play him straight from me." On 14 April 1971, Pertwee

2852-644: The Doctor – Jon Pertwee’s Final Memoir , ( ISBN   9781852276218 , published in November 1996 by Virgin Publishing Ltd. under the Doctor Who Books imprint and co-written with David J. Howe ), which covered his life during and after the series. In 2000, Jon Pertwee: The Biography by Bernard Bale ( ISBN   0-233-99831-4 ) was published by André Deutsch , and it included a few chapters by Pertwee's widow Ingeborg. Pertwee continued on

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2944-483: The Doctor's TARDIS as it attempted to help the currently corrupted Eighth Doctor (voiced by Paul McGann ). Pertwee's voice was culled from the fan-produced Doctor Who film Devious . Archival footage of Pertwee has been used several times in the revived Doctor Who . Footage appears in " The Next Doctor " when the Tenth Doctor shows Jackson Lake an infostamp about himself, and in " The Eleventh Hour " when

3036-482: The Doctor's first two incarnations, Pertwee's era was influenced by the James Bond film series . He played the character as an active crusader with a penchant for action and fancy clothes, while the character was exiled to Earth by the Time Lords for much of his tenure and serving as the scientific adviser to Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart and UNIT . He played the Doctor for five seasons from early 1970 to mid-1974,

3128-654: The Doctor's new companion after stowing away in his TARDIS. The Third Doctor's final adventures saw them defeating the Sontarans in medieval England and the Daleks on the planet Exxilon. The Third Doctor contracted radiation poisoning on the planet Metebelis 3, during the events of Planet of the Spiders . When the TARDIS brought him back to UNIT headquarters, he collapsed, regenerating into the Fourth Doctor . The Third Doctor

3220-573: The Empire re-opened in 1931 with a seating capacity of 2,100. The main attraction on the re-opening was Jack Payne and the BBC Dance Band . The Empire presented variety, revues, musicals and dance, including Pavlova, winter circus, pantomimes and ice spectaculars especially those produced by Tom Arnold. Over the years many stars appeared including Lilly Langtry , Laurel and Hardy , Sir Harry Lauder , G. H. Elliott , Tommy Lorne , Evelyn Laye , Will Fyffe , Harry Gordon , Robert Wilson ,

3312-699: The Glasgow Palace Empire until the early 1900s, was a major theatre in Glasgow, Scotland , which opened in 1897 on the site of the Gaiety Theatre at 31–35 Sauchiehall Street . It was one of the leading theatres in the UK chain of theatres owned and developed by Moss Empires under the chairmanship of Sir Edward Moss , who served his apprenticeship in Greenock and elsewhere. The Empire Theatre

3404-584: The Glasgow audience started jeering his act and was duly dragged off stage. Roy Castle survived because of his versatility. Comedian Ken Dodd famously disparaged attempts to psychoanalyse humour with the rebuttal, "The trouble with Sigmund Freud is that he never played second house at the Glasgow Empire after both halves of the Old Firm had just lost!" The record for the longest running shows

3496-607: The Logan family and Andy Stewart . Dance bands included Jack Hylton and Joe Loss . Top quality American artistes were greatly welcomed, including the Andrews Sisters and Billy Eckstine . Fats Waller made his European debut in the Empire in 1938. Tony Bennett , Johnnie Ray , Frankie Laine , Connie Francis , Eartha Kitt , Howard Keel , Guy Mitchell , Mel Tormé and Liberace were joined by Frank Sinatra , Dorothy Lamour , Bob Hope , Judy Garland , Jack Benny and

3588-577: The Master and an even older enemy — the Daleks . Although the Master was a criminal genius, the Doctor was always able to outwit him in all his schemes. Whilst facing the ecological destruction wrought by Global Chemicals and the super computer BOSS, Jo met and fell in love with Dr. Clifford Jones. Marrying Jones and following him to the Amazon on an expedition, Jo left a saddened Doctor. The fiercely independent investigative journalist Sarah Jane Smith became

3680-615: The Master, Omega, the Sontarans , the Silurians and the Sea Devils . The Daleks returned after a five-year absence about halfway through Pertwee's run. The Third Doctor was the only one from the classic series not to have a story featuring the Cybermen (although they were seen briefly in The Mind of Evil and Carnival of Monsters ), but he did eventually encounter them during " The Five Doctors ". A catchphrase devised during

3772-447: The Master, whose voice Pertwee said was an impression of Herbert Beerbohm Tree . Pertwee did not appear in the 1959 film version of The Navy Lark . In his 1996 memoir he attributed this to producer Herbert Wilcox refusing to employ his co-star Dennis Price on the grounds that "he was gay", a decision Pertwee made clear that he thought "was ridiculous". Shortly after voicing his support of Price he found out he had been dropped from

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3864-636: The Navy, Pertwee woke up one morning after a drunken night out while in port to find a tattoo of a cobra on his right arm. After the war, Pertwee worked as a stage comedian, which included performing at the Glasgow Empire Theatre and sharing a bill with Max Wall and Jimmy James . He began to work as a comedy actor on radio, becoming known for being able to do a variety of comedic voices and accents. He featured Waterlogged Spa , alongside Eric Barker , and Puffney Post Office in which he played

3956-534: The Third Doctor encountered his greatest nemesis (next to the Daleks) — the Master . A renegade Time Lord, the Master plagued the Third Doctor with his diabolical schemes, including the summoning of an ancient Dæmon, and unleashing the terrifyingly powerful Kronos, a Chronovore. The Doctor's exile continued until it was lifted by the Time Lords after he helped save them from destruction at the hands of Omega. The Third Doctor, free to roam space and time again, soon ran into

4048-421: The Third Doctor genuinely cared for his companions in a paternal fashion, and even held a thinly veiled but grudging admiration for his nemesis, the Master , and for UNIT's leader, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart , with whom he eventually became friends. In fact, even when his much-resented exile was lifted, the moral and dashing Third Doctor continued to help UNIT protect the Earth from all manner of alien threats,

4140-621: The Third Doctor titled The Third Doctor Adventures , with Tim Treloar voicing the role. Visions of the Third Doctor appear in The Brain of Morbius , Mawdryn Undead , and Resurrection of the Daleks . A portrait of him is seen in Timelash . A brief clip of the Third Doctor taken from Terror of the Autons appears in " The Next Doctor ", another appears in The Sarah Jane Adventures serial The Mad Woman in

4232-416: The Third Doctor's UNIT stories were set, with some evidence that they were contemporary stories set at the same time they were broadcast (the early 70s), and some evidence that they were set in the near future. According to the production team, there was an intention to set the stories in the near future, but the writers did not always remember this and set the stories in the present. The Doctor also developed

4324-409: The Third Doctor's era was "reverse the polarity of the neutron flow". Terrance Dicks recalls that he had used the line in a script, and Pertwee approached him about the line. Knowing that Pertwee struggled with technobabble in the role, Dicks had feared that he would have to remove the line, but Pertwee stated that he found it manageable and wanted to see it more often. The Third Doctor only said

4416-523: The Way to the Forum with Frankie Howerd and appeared in the smaller role of Crassus in the 1966 film version . He appeared as Sidney Tait in the comedy film Ladies Who Do (1963). In 1966, Pertwee starred alongside Donald Sinden in the original West End production of the long-running comedy There's a Girl in My Soup and in this period appeared in several Carry On films : Carry On Cleo (1964), as

4508-512: The catalyst for his departure was the death of his good friend and co-star Roger Delgado ( The Master ) and the departures of co-star Katy Manning , producer Barry Letts and scriptwriter Terrance Dicks . Also, according to Elisabeth Sladen in an interview on the DVD release of Invasion of the Dinosaurs , Pertwee asked for a substantially increased fee for another year on the series, however,

4600-401: The colour scheme changed from story to story, though the basic look was maintained. In his first episode, when the Doctor evades capture by taking a shower, a tattoo of a serpent can be seen on his arm. Whereas Pertwee obtained it during his service in the Royal Navy , an in-universe reason for it was eventually provided in the New Adventures novel Christmas on a Rational Planet as being

4692-419: The end of the production run, by Colin Baker as the Sixth Doctor ). In 1993, he played the role again for the 30th Anniversary charity special Dimensions in Time , and in the audio drama The Paradise of Death . Months before his death, he played the Doctor for the final time in the audio drama The Ghosts of N-Space . From 2015, Big Finish had produced a new series of audio drama adventures featuring

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4784-442: The extent of a brawl, in keeping with the Doctor's non-violent nature. He only used his fighting skills if he had no alternative, and even then generally disarmed his opponents rather than knocking them unconscious. Indeed, his martial prowess was such that a single, sudden strike was usually enough to halt whatever threatened him, and at one point he reminded Captain Yates of UNIT (physically as well as verbally) that Yates would have

4876-445: The film's cast and replaced by Ronald Shiner . He was known as a Danny Kaye look-alike, and his impersonation of Kaye can be seen in the film Murder at the Windmill (1949). He played Charlie Sterling in Will Any Gentleman...? (1953). Future Doctor Who actor William Hartnell was also in the film; he played Inspector Martin. On stage, he played the part of Lycus in the 1963 London production of A Funny Thing Happened on

4968-399: The first four seasons of Pertwee's tenure would later be used again, in modified form, as the logo for the 1996 Doctor Who TV movie . This version subsequently became the official Doctor Who logo, most notably with regards to products connected to the Eighth Doctor . With the introduction of a new official series logo in 2005, the 1996 logo continued to be used by Big Finish Productions as

5060-412: The flamboyant image stuck with producer Barry Letts . Through the first two seasons, he wore a flowing, crimson-lined cape over a black velvet smoking jacket and a ruffled shirt with a variety of neckties such as jabots , bow ties or cravats . Beginning in the 1971 season, when the look was refashioned by Ken Trew, Pertwee wore a red jacket and a cloak with purple lining. In the final two seasons,

5152-450: The full phrase "reverse the polarity of the neutron flow" twice on screen – in The Sea Devils (1972) and the 20th Anniversary special " The Five Doctors " (1983), with numerous other examples of "reverse the polarity" and earlier instances of "fusing the control of the neutron flow" and "change the polarity". Pertwee used the phrase when he acted in the stage play Doctor Who – The Ultimate Adventure in 1989. When Colin Baker took over

5244-421: The initial run, it was first transmitted on ITV from 1979. Pertwee had first been approached to play the part of Worzel Gummidge in a film to be written by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall . When this project fell through, Pertwee encouraged the writers to create a television pilot instead, and via his agent pitched the idea to the BBC , which turned it down, and then Thames Television, which likewise rejected

5336-426: The key voice of Death and other voice characterisations in the PC and PlayStation renditions of Discworld . Also in 1995, he played General Von Kramer in the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles episode "Attack of the Hawkmen". Writing shortly before his death in 1996, Pertwee stated that while he enjoyed his association with Doctor Who , he had perhaps spent too long in the title role. He believed that this led to

5428-423: The logo for all pre-2005 series material including books and audio dramas, and by the BBC on DVD releases of episodes from the 1963–89 series, books and audio. The Third Doctor appeared again in the 20th anniversary special " The Five Doctors ", broadcast in 1983. A stage play, Doctor Who – The Ultimate Adventure , was produced in 1989, starring Jon Pertwee (occasionally replaced by an understudy then later, until

5520-422: The more wide-eyed Jo Grant ( Katy Manning ), who then continues to accompany the Doctor after he regains use of his TARDIS. His final companion is intrepid journalist Sarah Jane Smith ( Elisabeth Sladen ). After the Doctor was found guilty of breaking the Time Lord laws of non-interference and forced to regenerate, he began his third incarnation in exile on 20th century Earth. The Third Doctor immediately formed

5612-470: The neutrons ). The full phrase was used in several Target novelisations. It was subsequently used by the Fourth Doctor (in City of Death ) and the Fifth Doctor (in Castrovalva and Mawdryn Undead ). Together with "The Five Doctors", this resulted in the phrase being used as a nostalgic reference. In the Tenth Doctor episode " The Lazarus Experiment ", the Doctor, while hiding in Lazarus' machine, comments that it had taken him too long to reverse

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5704-424: The phrase, saying she "reversed the polarity" of a mind-wiping device to prevent the Doctor from erasing her memories of him from her mind (" Hell Bent "). In " It Takes You Away ", Yaz Khan suggests that the Thirteenth Doctor reverse the polarity on the sonic screwdriver in order to (successfully) open a locked inter-universe portal. The original title sequence for the Third Doctor's seasons introduced colour and

5796-429: The polarity due to being out of practice. The Tenth Doctor uses the full phrase in " Music of the Spheres ". During the episode " The Almost People ", a clone of the Eleventh Doctor speaks the phrase while reliving the memories of all his predecessors. He goes on to conflate it with his regeneration-spanning love of jelly babies , remarking that they need to "reverse the jelly baby of the neutron flow". In " The Day of

5888-442: The project. Pertwee later admitted that he "began to lose faith in the project", until Southern Television's Lewis Rudd heard about it and enthusiastically agreed that the company would make the series. The series saw Pertwee as a scarecrow , as well as using several comedic voices. The show was an immediate hit, with Pertwee describing it as "becoming something of a cult" after only four episodes had been broadcast. Press interest in

5980-444: The request was rejected, and he subsequently resigned from the role. Pertwee was also dealing with chronic back pain at the time, and was becoming less interested in the character of the Doctor. His last full-time appearance in the series was in the story Planet of the Spiders in June 1974, which finished with Tom Baker replacing him in the role. Pertwee later reprised the role in the 20th anniversary story " The Five Doctors " and

6072-403: The role in the play he amended the line to "Reverse the linearity of the proton flow." In the radio play The Paradise of Death , the Brigadier asks "Reverse the polarity of the neutron flow?" and the Doctor proceeds to explain that the phrase is meaningless (though in reality neutrons can be polarized by a magnetic field, such that reversing the magnetic field's direction reverses the polarity of

6164-412: The role of the Doctor in 1983 for the 20th-anniversary television special " The Five Doctors " and in the 1993 charity special Dimensions in Time for Children in Need . He also portrayed the Doctor in the stage play Doctor Who – The Ultimate Adventure which toured theatres in the United Kingdom from March to June 1989. During the 1990s, he made a guest appearance in the "Lords and Ladies" episode of

6256-413: The series HMS Troutbridge almost shared its name with the real HMS Troubridge whose commanding officer at one point was a relative of Pertwee's, who wrote to the BBC to provide details of comic incidents on the ship which were then used in The Navy Lark's scripts. After Ronnie Barker left the series Pertwee took on various additional roles in the series. These included a villainous character called

6348-451: The series and giving interviews. Born in Chelsea , London , and, having French Huguenot ancestry, his surname was an Anglicisation of "Perthuis", the origins of his surname being "de Perthuis de Laillevault", the family being counts descended from Charlemagne . Jon was the son of screenwriter and actor Roland Pertwee and distant cousin of actor Bill Pertwee . Pertwee's mother, Avice Scholtz, separated from his father Roland when Pertwee

6440-421: The series was high, and it ran on the channel until 1981. Keen to continue beyond this, Pertwee campaigned for the series and it was picked up by a New Zealand network, TVNZ , in 1987. Worzel Gummidge Down Under aired for the next two years and was screened in the UK on Channel 4 . In 1995, Pertwee played the role one last time in a one-off special for ITV, which celebrated 40 years of the channel. Pertwee played

6532-399: The sidecar. He then worked in repertory theatre before being contracted with the BBC at 18 as an actor. During the Second World War , Pertwee spent six years in the Royal Navy . He was a crew member of HMS  Hood and was transferred off the ship for officer training shortly before she was sunk by the German battleship Bismarck , losing all but three men in May 1941. Later, he

6624-684: The soothsayer; Carry On Cowboy (1965) as Sheriff Earp; and Carry On Screaming! (1966) as Dr. Fettle. ( Carry On Columbus , with Pertwee in his fourth Carry On role, this time as the Duke of Costa Brava and coincidentally opposite Marc Sinden , Donald Sinden's son. It was released in 1992). In 1967, he was chosen by Dad's Army producer David Croft for the role of Captain George Mainwaring , but Pertwee turned it down – possibly because he preferred to extend his role on Broadway in There's

6716-451: The story, the Third Doctor came into existence as part of a punishment from his own race, the Time Lords, who forced him to regenerate and also disabled his TARDIS. Eventually, this restriction is lifted and the Third Doctor embarks on more traditional time travel and space exploration stories. His initial companion is UNIT scientist Liz Shaw ( Caroline John ), who unceremoniously leaves the Doctor's company between episodes to be replaced by

6808-536: The television advertisement that promoted the Green Cross Code by use of the mnemonic "SPLINK". Also in 1976, Pertwee starred with Australian singer Julie Anthony in a West End production of the musical Irene (originally 1919, revived Broadway 1973), playing the camp fashion-designer Madame Lucy (originally Liam O'Dougherty). The production opened at the Adelphi Theatre , London, and enjoyed

6900-432: The theatre in 1959 and was initially given a hard time before asking the audience to give her a chance, whereupon the singer finished her set and was warmly applauded. The Empire was notorious within showbiz circles as "The English comic's grave" , if their act was slow or thin. Among those judged this way were Bob Monkhouse , Tommy Cooper , Bernie Winters and Morecambe and Wise . Des O'Connor pretended to faint when

6992-724: The title character in Worzel Gummidge, the Musical , book and lyrics by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall , music by Denis King , which opened at London's Cambridge Theatre in December 1981, co-starring Una Stubbs and Geoffrey Bayldon . Pertwee also recorded an album, Worzel Gummidge Sings , as well as a Christmas single. Pertwee played the role of The Colonel in the Disney children's film One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing (1975). The following year, he voiced and appeared in

7084-429: Was "never meant to be the Doctor" and that the third will complete him. Pertwee's scenes in that role were among the first pieces of the video that were released (on the DVD of The War Games ). In the same year, he starred in a one-man show called Who Is Jon Pertwee? . Pertwee's final film role was in a short film entitled Cloud Cuckoo for Scottish Screen, released on 18 June 1994. His last formal television appearance

7176-426: Was a suave, dapper, technologically orientated and authoritative man of action who practised Venusian Aikido . A keen scientist, he maintained a laboratory at UNIT where he enjoyed working on gadgets in his TARDIS. In his spare time, he was fond of motoring, handling all manner of vehicles. His favourite car was a canary-yellow vintage roadster that he nicknamed "Bessie", a machine which featured such modifications as

7268-412: Was an extension of the "howlround" kaleidoscopic patterns used for the previous Doctors. It features red, black then green flaming hands, then shows Jon Pertwee's face followed by a series of swirling lines to represent the time vortex. As the vortex turns red it speeds up only to start reversing, and in some cases it is seen turning pink and yellow. In the Third Doctor's final season, a new title sequence

7360-471: Was attached to the top secret Naval Intelligence Division , working alongside future James Bond author Ian Fleming , and reporting directly to Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Deputy Prime Minister Clement Attlee . In an interview conducted in 1994 and published in 2013, he said, "I did all sorts. Teaching commandos how to use escapology equipment, compasses in brass buttons, secret maps in white cotton handkerchiefs, pipes you could smoke that also fired

7452-522: Was designed by the renowned theatre architect Frank Matcham for the Moss Empires theatre chain. Vesta Tilley topped the opening bill. Its predecessor the Gaiety Theatre had opened in 1874 under Charles Bernard, staging pantomime, opera, musicals and plays but changed to variety, which Moss Empires developed further. Expanding westwards towards Renfield Street and after a major Art Deco redesign by Sunderland-based architects W & TR Milburn ,

7544-594: Was expelled. After school, he applied to the Central School of Speech & Drama , but was denied admittance because of his lisp. He was admitted to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), graduating in 1939. He was accused of writing graffiti about the tutors on the lavatory walls. While still at school, Pertwee worked as a circus performer riding the Wall of Death on a motorcycle with a toothless lion in

7636-484: Was featured in the unofficial 30th anniversary VHS release entitled 30 Years of Time Travel and Beyond . When asked in an interview for this documentary if the show should be brought back he simply replied with "No, no", but believed if it did come back a lot more money would need to be spent on the series, along with a new production team. Pertwee would continue to act in films and television as well as make appearances worldwide in support of Doctor Who . Ultimately, Pertwee

7728-578: Was his godfather. Coincidentally, Ainley's son Anthony appeared as the Master – a renegade Time Lord who was The Doctor's greatest enemy – alongside Pertwee in the Doctor Who anniversary story " The Five Doctors " (1983). Pertwee was educated at Frensham Heights School , an independent school in Rowledge , near Farnham in Surrey, at Sherborne School in Dorset, and at some other schools from which he

7820-431: Was in 1955, to Jean Marsh , whom he divorced in 1960; later that year he married Ingeborg Rhoesa (born 1935). Together they had two children, both of whom became actors: a daughter, Dariel, in 1961, and a son, Sean , in 1964. Pertwee wrote two autobiographies: Moon Boots and Dinner Suits (published in 1984), which primarily covers his life and career prior to Doctor Who , and the posthumously published Doctor Who: I Am

7912-598: Was introduced using a full-body picture of Pertwee, designed by Bernard Lodge. Partially inspired by the slit-scan hyperspace sequence in Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey , one portion of this sequence is the prototype for the time tunnel sequence of the Fourth Doctor's seasons. The Third Doctor's final season also introduced the diamond logo which would remain in use until 1980 and be revived in 2022. The series logo introduced in 1970 and used for

8004-489: Was occasionally sent on covert missions by the Time Lords, where he would often act as a reluctant mediator. Even though he developed a fondness for Earthlings with whom he worked (such as Liz Shaw and Jo Grant ), he jumped at any chance to return to the stars. Though he had a somewhat patrician and authoritarian air, he was quick to criticise authority, and often exclaimed "Now listen to me!" when dealing with people seeking to obstruct him. Despite his occasional arrogance,

8096-508: Was on Cilla Black 's Surprise, Surprise , broadcast on 21 April 1996, in which he appeared as the Third Doctor. At the time of his death, Pertwee was regularly being seen in the closing moments of a UK TV advert for mobile phone operator Vodafone , dressed in the style of his version of the Doctor. This character walked wordlessly across Pilgrim Street, Liverpool , entering a garage marked 'Doctor on Call' evidently containing some kind of time machine. Pertwee married twice. His first marriage

8188-479: Was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee . Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey who travels in time and space in the TARDIS , frequently with companions . At the end of life, the Doctor regenerates . Consequently, both the physical appearance and personality of the Doctor changes. Preceded in regeneration by the Second Doctor ( Patrick Troughton ), he

8280-494: Was successful in seeing the Third Doctor return to the airwaves with two audio productions for BBC Radio , The Paradise of Death and The Ghosts of N-Space . In April 1995, he appeared in Devious , an amateur video drama set between the second Doctor's trial at the end of The War Games and before the start of Spearhead from Space . It shows an interim Doctor (between second and third), played by Tony Garner, being told he

8372-466: Was the subject of Thames Television 's This Is Your Life . During his tenure as the Doctor, Pertwee appeared in the Amicus horror anthology The House That Dripped Blood (1971), which was filmed in the summer of 1970 between his first and second Doctor Who seasons. Pertwee played the lead in the last segment of the film as Paul Henderson, an arrogant horror film star who meets his doom thanks to

8464-488: Was young. His father remarried, and his mother found a new partner, Louis Auguste De La Garde, with whom Pertwee did not build a relationship; she died in 1951, leaving Pertwee's elder brother Michael as her executor. Avice's sister Daphne married Captain Philip Cecil Clowes and became the mother of Pertwee's cousin, the writer St John Legh Clowes (1907–1951). Actor Henry Ainley , a close friend of his father,

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