Departing 'Doctor Who' Star Peter Capaldi Praised By David Tennant

He was arguably the most divisive Time Lord of the modern era, but departing ‘Doctor Who’ star Peter Capaldi has been praised by his predecessor, David Tennant.

Peter made the shock announcement on Monday (30 January) that he would be stepping down as The Doctor at the end of the upcoming series, four years after taking over the role from Matt Smith.

Following the news, David Tennant, who played the lead in the sci-fi drama for five years, has now shared his feelings on Peter’s portrayal of the Twelfth Doctor, singling out his “intensity”, “bravery” and “cleverness”.

Speaking to ‘World At One’ on Radio 4, David said of Peter’s departure: “I know how much he has loved doing the job, so it's a difficult one to judge because it's such a special one. You don't want it to feel work-a-day, you want to get out while you're still having an extraordinary time.”

Attention now turns to who should replace Peter as the Thirteenth Doctor, with former assistant Billie Piper suggesting it’s about time the job went to a woman.

She’s said: “Given the spirit of the world at the moment, I think it would be timely [for a woman to get the role].”

Before Peter’s successor is named, though, there’s still the matter of his final series at the helm of ‘Doctor Who’, which is set to air later this year.

This series will also introduce The Doctor’s new assistant, Bill, played by Pearl Mackie.

Check out some of our suggestions for the job in the gallery below...