"Am I Annoying?" asks... David Tennant

[Dave Lewis]

Oh, why the bloomin' heck not?

Somebody - possibly slightly inebriated or in the grip of a moment of supremely excitable chemical high - recently pondered if there were any possibility we might see a return of the nearly-popular Planet Skaro thread called "Am I Annoying". The premise of this absolutely original idea - which has no connection or similarity to anything else - was to establish or not if the stars, writers, directors, script editors, producers, disturbed nobodies that ordinary people are unaware of, or anybody else with a vague connection with Doctor Who were talented, interesting, or relevant; quite clearly they are already all or none of these things already. The premise of "Am I Annoying" is quite simple - do they get on your nerves or not?


For newcomers, all the questions about the original concept of "Am I Annoying?" are answered here; all the answers about the Planet Skaro version are answered here... eventually.

Not that I'm knocking Lis or her disturbingly youthful plastic face in anyway; that's not for me to do. It's for you to do - or strenuously disavow. But not yet. I can't remember who briefly illuminated the "Am I Annoying" world back in 2003/04 (or whenever it was) but I'm almost certain that the first subject of this glossy, shiny, it's-nearly-Christmas-so-let's-not-be-too-f***ing-nasty-and-let's-be-fair-he's-done-so-much-for-the-programme, was never part of the original canon. So it's irrelevant anyway and therefore doesn't matter. So...

Am I Annoying? ponders...



A Scotsman

Oh dear; what a place to start. The best actor to play the Doctor in all of eternity, despite his gurning and over-excitable excitability.

The case for the defence

- He is, has been, and probably will be to the end, great; really, actually, utterly, great
- The end of "Doomsday"; and the end of "Journey's End"; and all the other emotional bits where he actually does ditch the adolescent-allowed-to-stay-up-at-his-parents'-dinner party showing off and demonstrates his sensitivity
- "The Christmas Invasion"; people seem to have forgotten that pjyama-clad-ruthlessness that only occasionally surfaced in the subsequent yearage
- Him and Rose. Okay, ignore all the dreadfulness at the end of the last series; this was actually and entirely the one time that the Doctor and his companion were allowed to be in love. And they so nearly were. It's the greatest tragedy in the universe except... oh; excuse me - there's something in my eye
- The fact that this exists

The case for the prosecution

- He can't act to save his life! His over-enthusiastic shouting ruins every scene he's in; it's like a Murray Gold soundtrack on crack. His emotional range stretches from happily excited to excitedly angry, taking in excitedly miserable to a kind of sanguine excitement along the way
- He's single-handedly responsible for turning the programme into a corporate, impersonal, money-grabbing machine by allowing his image to be used on everything from reusable toilet paper upwards; and I mean, upwards
- Too young; FAR too young
- He's starred in Big Finish audios; what next? Conrad Westmass in real Doctor Who? India Fisher in real Doctor Who? Sarah Sutton in real Doctor Who? Do me a faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaavah....
- He's a fan; fans should never be allowed to play the Doctor because they inevitably f*** it up


Obviously, there are some actually real reasons why any number of PS viewers might find David Tennant annoying - or not - and nobody should be hampered or tied up like a fish in a nappy by these paltry and pathetic possibilities suggested above. If Mister David McDonald gets on your nerves, vote "ANNOYING"... if he is anything else then vote "NOT ANNOYING". It really is as simple as that. Or less so. Just tell us the reasons behind your vote and don't hide behind the cloak of anonymity that I nearly denied you...



Fingers on buzzers; lies on psychic paper; let's hear it for the boy.... VOTE NOW!

[Wayne]

Yep, he's definitely annoying. Anyone who's read my posts on Tennant over the last 2yrs will know what i think of him. And if you haven't well life's a bitch 'coz i can't be arsed saying it all again. But let's just say that much of Dave's case for the prosecution gets it pretty close.

[Andrew Curnow]

I haven't voted yet, I'm just pleased that Dave & Am I Annoying are back!!

[WhiteCrow]

I think he's a great guy in interviews, he's done well in Doctor Who - it's now impossible to imagine anyone else as the Doctor.

But I do find him a little annoying at times. I don't know if it's his fault, or this bizzare cult which has grown up around him. Hence I voted for annoying. But saying that I'm still a fan. Hmm - I might be doing him a huge injustice ...

[Si Hunt]

Like David Beckham, he's one of those people that appears to have it all - he's good looking, rich, hugely talented and in demand and he's Doctor Who for a living! So I think if you were the sort of person to be envious or bitter, then you'd find him annoying. But personally I don't, as I just think, good for you. He seems like a lovely man, and quite honestly I will never be Doctor Who, or a millionaire, or irrestable looking, so I'm glad someone out there is - and that it's a nice, humble guy like David Tennant.

Si.

[Dino]

David is not annoying!
Now if you asked me about John Barrowman then yes, seriously yes.
David could release nerve gas into an orphanage and I'd still think he was great!
Would be great if the other six who voted not annoying posted here too!

[Rob McCow]

He's a wonderful guy and a fabulous actor. What's not to love?

I was utterly convinced that he was 'The Doctor' from the word Barcelona. He was instantly at home in the role in a way that Eccleston never quite managed. Any doubts over his acting skills were settled after Human Nature. If you saw him in Eddington and Einstein, you'd be just as convinced. He's the most celebrated and loved actor in Britain (going by Radio Times covers at least). He couldn't get away with being 'crap', 'bad' or even 'indifferent'. People would notice.

Although - it's clear that the way he plays the Doctor isn't to everyone's tastes.

[SiHart]

He's not annoying. The female fans who worship him are annoying, but he's not, he's great.

Si xx

[Dirk Gently]

Nah, so far not annoying. He was very good in Loves Labour's Lost.

[Pip Madeley]

Not annoying, he's awesome.

[MacNimon]

Not annoying. A tad disappointing, yes. But not annoying.

Perhaps annoying that when I saw him in the pilot episode of the Randall & Hopkirk remake, I thought he was tremendous...if only he could have given us more performances as intense as this as the Doctor; but the fact that he hasn't so far remains a disappointment for me. Tennant has been good, but the problem for me is that he had fulfilled his potential, he could have been truly great.

Also he has been a great ambassador for the series in a way that hasn't been seen since the days of Pertwee and Tom Baker...and he is very much the public face of Doctor Who, for the first time in too long a whole generation of children have a Doctor of their own...

But like I said, disappointing is a better description than annoying.

[Rob McCow]

But... if he had been as 'intense' as Eccleston over four years, he would never have been as popular as he is. He played the Doctor in a fun and accesible way that appearled to children, men, women, Who fans and grannies alike. That's whats been so impressive.

Perhaps people would have preferred it if he'd done it the same way as he played Doctor John Smith - a bit more serious but staid.

[Dave Lewis]

This is an open and shut case for me, for once; despite me being disappointed with quite a lot of his second and third series, the only thing that has ever annoyed me about David Tennant's Doctor was when he turned into a giant Gollum during Last Of The Time Lords - and that's not his fault. Apart from that, I've thoroughly enjoyed his portrayal of that bloke in a blue box. So nothing annoying there. As a person, in interviews and in every way he has represented the series, Mister Tennant has seemed to be the absolute embodiment of what I think an actor playing the Doctor should be. Nothing annoying there either. So unequivocally not annoying - there's a mirror with his name on singing, 'we're gonna miss you when you're gone.'

[Wayne]

Yep, i agree. Half the reason Tennant's Doc was shite half the time is not because of David, it's because of RTD/writing team.

[Jon Masters]

Not annoying - as a person and an actor he's done a very good job, and has remained respectful of the privelege that playing the Doctor gives you rather than becomming some god awful pumped celebrity.

The fact that, as the Tenth Doctor, he's been given a fairly annoying character to play and some really poor situations to be in is not his fault.

[WhiteCrow]

Yep, i agree. Half the reason Tennant's Doc was shite half the time is not because of David, it's because of RTD/writing team.

Well I think Tennant's Doctor is probably now my favourite of all time.

However, I do find his Doctor to sometimes be irritating. I don't like the whole Cult of Tennant which has sprung up with obsessives in every branch.

So I voted yes.

In some ways though I think Tennant has been too successful. Doctor Who has become synonymous with David Tennant. I don't see anyone else filling the whole he'll leave, which will be bad for the series.

[Larry]

Mr Tennent Annoying.....absolutly not.

[Andrew Curnow]

No, I think he's lovely - Si's post above pretty much sums it all up. It took me a while to warm to his Doctor I'll admit (it was Fear Her in fact before I got over losing old big ears) but since then I've think he's been great. He'll be, like Tom, a tough act to follow. In interviews he comes across as just a nice, sensible, rather down to earth guy, and comments from people who've worked with him, or who know him, seem to suggest the same thing.

So that's another NOT!

[Stuart Wallis]

Not annoying. His Doctor's like Tom's portrayal during seasons 15 to 17, but in a more "I'm serious about what I do, but not neccessarily how I do it" way, rather than "Aaaahh! let's just muck about". And as himself, he's decent enough. He'll do.

[Lord President]

I am a huge fan of DT (sorry Wayne), he is a great actor (sometimes a bit enthusiastic), with range from incandecant rage to heartbreaking tenderness! He has worked wonders for DW and boosted the fanbase back up to Tom Baker levels! ;-)

[Zbigniev Hamson]

Tenth Doctor = annoying. David Tennant seems okay though.