Matt Smith has been named the 11th Doctor and he’s as old as I am. That’s just…weird. 

The official announcement finally came after months of internet rumors. There was speculation we could see our first female or African American Doctor but instead we get another tall, skinny guy with crazy brown hair. That’s really my only issue with the choice, I wish they had gone with someone physically different from David Tennant. At least get a red head in the role!

Last time there was a switch in Doctors, from Christopher Eccleston to Tennant, it was a surprise. This time I’d venture to say, it’s one of the most publicized announcements since Heath Ledger was named the Joker. Not only that but Smith is a relative unknown actor. His Imdb profile lists only seven roles to date and rather ironically he’s the 11th Matt Smith on Imdb. Coincidentally, three of those seven roles were alongside Doctor Who veteran Billie Piper in Secret Diary of a Call Girl, The Ruby in the Smoke and it’s counterpart, The Shadow in the North.

BBC did an interview with our new Time Lord on Doctor Who Confidential over the weekend. The UK version of their site doesn’t allow you to watch the video in the US but it has been uploaded to YouTube for your enjoyment.

I’m a wait and see kind of gal. I’m not going to make any judgments (except that one I already made above) until I see Smith in action. Steven Moffat, who is of course replacing Russell T. Davies as writer/executive producer, will also be under the microscope at first but definitely not as much as this poor guy is gonna be for the next year or so.

What do you think of the news? What’s your first impression of the new Doctor? The next question that begs to be answered: Who will/should be the Doctor’s new companion? I nominate myself. I’m certainly old enough!  :)

You can also view and discuss this article at my blog, TheNerdyBird.com.