The changing look of Tom Baker's Doctor

[Carol Baynes]

I’ve been thinking about Tom Baker’s Doctor Who costume- or the clothes his Doctor wears, to put it another way.

The template was undoubtedly created and put in place for season 12, although that particular combination of clothes would never be used again after the beginning of season 13 (and “Planet of evil” I think). The red corduroy jacket, cardigan, occasional brown overcoat, checked shirt and green neck scarf all disappeared after that story (although oddly I think the stories were filmed out of order, so in ‘real life’ Tom would have alternated that costume at some point). In “Pyramids of Mars” he gets a gorgeous long ruby frock coat and begins to make his Doctor’s image more heroic and bohemian looking. Less like a '60s or '70s Art student! He starts wearing red neck scarves around this point too. Soon after a grey tweedy style coat is introduced with black arm patches. The soft floppy hat is also often worn in Tom’s early period, along with the multicoloured scarf of course (of various lengths). Another great brown frock coat is used around this time too.

Now, Tom’s wardrobe stabilises for a couple of seasons, through to the end of season 15 I’d say (with the obvious exception of the Holmesian/scarf-less turn in "Talons")
Yet just as Hinchcliffe and Holmes’ more gothic take on the series was on it’s way out, so Tom’s look began a subtle but distinct change. The neck scarves had gone by season 15 to be replaced by more traditional modern ties, but his shirts were still high collared Victorian style ones (now only seen at weddings and the like). However into season 16, the old shirts and ties had gone all together to be replaced by a more modern style shirt, left open. A white cravat appears early in season 16, but is ditched well into the season. The more formal buttoned up waistcoats and tweedy trousers also disappear at this point, and brown checked pants come in. Tom also stops wearing shoes in favour of boots.

Was this a diliberate move by Graham Williams and his production team, or was it largely decided by Tom? Could Tom just not be arsed putting as much effort into the Doctor’s costume and dressing for the part, so he just didn’t wear half of what he should or could?

Towards the end of season 16 the ubiquitious ‘oatmeal coat’ gets introduced (as Gareth Roberts described it) in “The power of Kroll” (I think) and The Doctor never seems to wear any other coat until “Nightmare of Eden”, well into the next season. Even then he alternates it with the brown frock coat seen in most of season 16. Where had the other (arguably better) coats gone? Did Tom not like them??

Although Tom wears a waistcoat around this time, you often don’t see it under his coat, and the open collared shirts give the late period Baker Doctor a more casual air. It’s aesthetically difficult for me to imagine this less refined version of his clothing being worn in the early Hinchcliffe produced serials. His more strongly Victorian/Edwardian bohemian influenced attire back then, suited the gothic horror flavour to a tee. By late season 15-17 we’re in more light hearted territory and the more laid back approach seems reflected in Tom’s image.
Also, the famous hat (of which I believe there were at least two designs- one in brown and another in dark green) began to make far less appearances during Williams’ era. Tom often stuffed it into his coat pocket, or if he wore it at all it was for very brief moments before it was swiftly taken off again.
Maybe Tom didn’t like wearing it very much?

What’s left of Tom’s costume by the end of season 17 is essentially the multicoloured scarf and the two long coats (often worn with checked pants and boots). Perhaps new producer John Nathan -Turner saw how much the fourth Doctor’s dress sense was disintegrating that he considered a complete change of image. Thankfully he didn’t go with that idea, and instead June Huston re-designed it in matching burgundy. It’s a gorgeous twilight era costume, and perfectly reflects the more serious direction of the show at the time, but it’s obviously a heavily stylised and designed costume which is why it’ll never compare to the style highs of season 13-14 in my opinion.

Again, how much did Tom have to do with this costume’s eventual appearance? Granted, he didn’t really initially like it (if reports are true), and the hat, shoes and socks all disappeared long before the end of season 18. Infact, I could swear that the burgundy hat only gets worn in “The Leisure hive”. Most people also missed the multicoloured scarf I imagine.

So, what does anyone think?

Which version of Tom’s costume is your favourite? Which combo worked the best? Is one look more definitive than the others?

Why do you think it changed so much, or lost so much over the course of Tom’s first six seasons?

Was the season 18 costume a good move?

And...is the season 18 costume the only one available for Tom to wear these days?!!

[SiHart]

The bucanner boots came from the Deadly Assassin costume you know. Apparently Tom really liked them, and was disappointed when they disappeared from his Season 18 costume and asked for them to be reinstated for the muddy loaction work of Full Cirlce and then didn't stop wearing them!

It's interesting to look at how his costume evolved over time. A gradual smartening up of the original bohemian thrown together look that then gets less smart and then over styled at the end. I suppose in many ways it was down to Tom himself in many ways. I'd imagine the frock coat, waistcoat Hinchcliffe look was quite heavy and warm to wear in the studio (I'm sure I've heard in the past that Tom stopped wearing the hat in the studio because it was too hot under all the lights) and so as he got a bit confident he started dressing down a bit. And the JNT comes along and demands changes (and lets not forget, it was only down to June Hudson not wanting to get rid of the familiar sillouhette that the costume wasn't completely redesigned).

Personally, while I love the Burgundy S18 costume, I'm not sure it was actually his best look- the coat is great, and so's the scarf, but it's so big! It kind of swamps him at times. I really like the tweed jacket and red necktie as seen at the end of S13. He looks good in it. It's light and breezy and I like the leather patches on the elbows! It also looks good when it returns in S15 with the spotty tie. That's a good look too.
I'm not so fond the dressed down s16/17 look although the oatmeal jacket isn't too bad. I prefer it to the brown velvet one.

Apparently both Philip Hinchlciffe and Graham Williams used to choose which jacket was worn in which stories!
Si xx

[Andrew Curnow]

I'm no fashion guru, but... I'm sure I've read somewhere that somebody (maybe the costume designer, maybe Tom) didn't like the short burgundy jacket of his first year, saying that it didn't look right. Certainly, seeing it for the first time on the video of Revenge of the Cybermen, it looked odd to me.

Talking of videos, because they were of course released in no particular order, it was years and years before I realised that the first shot of Tom in Pyramids of Mars, that full-length short more or less, was in context the first big 'reveal' of a new look to his Doctor. To my mind it suits him a lot better, and is a much more striking image, the long jacket.


ANDREW CURNOW IN 'DISLIKE OF SEASON 17' SHOCKER!!!

The one thing that always drives me mad when I watch season 17 is Tom's bloomin' lapels - he always wears them up, and I just wish somebody had put them down.

Phew, now I've got that out of my system, I must say I do like his season 18 costume, but it does look far more like A Costume than his earlier ensembles. But I think that burgundy image, and even the fact that it does (as Si rightly says) seem to swamp him at times, somehow fits his more subdued, even doomladen, performance in that last year.

As for a favourite, I have tried to warm to the lighter coloured jackets of season 17, or the even lighter ones of stories like Fang Rock and The Invisible Enemy. For me, though, I think the Pyramids of Mars-era look is the best one - the darker colours, a suggestion of the coat being quite a rich fabric, that image is my favourite I think.

[Andrew Curnow]

Apparently both Philip Hinchlciffe and Graham Williams used to choose which jacket was worn in which stories!

Can you imagine if Tom was in a bad mood, particularly with Graham W? "I'm not wearing that bloody dreary jacket!"

[Captain Tancredi]

Also, the famous hat (of which I believe there were at least two designs- one in brown and another in dark green) began to make far less appearances during Williams’ era. Tom often stuffed it into his coat pocket, or if he wore it at all it was for very brief moments before it was swiftly taken off again.
Maybe Tom didn’t like wearing it very much?

There's also the continuity aspect- there are enough sequences where the scarf appears or disappears between scenes, or between location filming and studio interiors, without having to take the hat into account as well, bearing in mind that in studio they wouldn't easily have been able to check the film work to see whether Tom was wearing it at the end of a particular scene. Bearing in mind the way Who was filmed as well, having a couple of coats to choose from presumably meant that he could be wearing one in location filming for a particular story one week, then the next wearing another in studio for a completely different story- perhaps this was the reason for the producers picking them?

I would guess that part of the point of the original look was to help define the anarchic and irreverent aspect of Tom's Doctor in opposition to the stylish and mannered Pertwee incarnation, but as the Hinchcliffe/Holmes era began to take a particular route, it's appropriate that the Doctor's costume should evolve into something particularly appropriate to the house style. The Season 14 look is probably the best one- perhaps in S16-17 it had reached the stage where Tom was simply wearing what he felt most comfortable in and occasionally adding badges to the lapel as a visual joke.

The waistcoat in June Hudson's version is beautiful, though, and it's a shame it's seen so infrequently in good light. I think it's been noted before now that Tom came back for S18 poorly and having lost weight, so the costume would have been cut for a bigger man, but while I can see the point about making the Doctor's costume more uniform it's verging on self-parody (question mark collars, anyone?) and the whole idea of a fixed appearance doesn't really suit the Fourth Doctor.

[Carol Baynes]

Apparently both Philip Hinchlciffe and Graham Williams used to choose which jacket was worn in which stories!
Si xx

Really?! Well I never. That could say a lot about them!

[Jonno]

I really like his one-off in Talons!

Also, I'm going to agree with Andrew for the second time this week and say that he looks great in Pyramids, and also in Seeds of Doom. Looks so iconic in those two.

[Si Hunt]

I've never liked the Season 18 garb. Previously of course, Tom's "costume" wasn't a costume at all - it varied from story to story, and was more a 'style'; like normal people, the Doctor wore clothes he seemed to like and feel comfortable in or that he thought looked good. There's absolutely no reason why he should suddenly start wearing the same matching coat, jacket and shirt every day of the year, let alone one that looks so heavy, uncomfortable and... well, designed. It's as if the Doctor has gone off somewhere and ordered a matching outfit which he's just going to wear forever. It's totally at odds with his ramshackle, fickle, wanderer character or indeed, any character aside from someone with some sort of burgundy obsession.

Si.

[Pip Madeley]

I absolutely loved Tom's costumes when I was a kid and the style definitely had an effect on the clothes I wear, I have a long scarf for winter & a long grey coat that bears a passing resemblence to the one he wore in The Seeds of Doom and similar...



Just love it.

[Carol Baynes]

I absolutely loved Tom's costumes when I was a kid

Some of us were actually kids (ie: 8 years or younger) when he was still the current Doctor- imagine what my wardrobe is like!

[Pip Madeley]

imagine what my wardrobe is like!

Made of some sort of wood?

[Andrew Curnow]

No, no, lacquered bronze!