"Unveiled in a swirl of publicity and tantalizingly glimpsed as a furrowed brow in "Doctor Who"'s 50th anniversary special, the twelfth resident of the TARDIS made his debut at Christmas.
Peter Capaldi, who became a household Malcolm Tucker in "The Thick of It," had been a fan favorite to take over, although there was also widespread disappointment that producer Steven Moffat had cast yet another white man in the role, especially given the nature of the casting reveal -- a prime time special that implied the casting was going to shake up the format of the show. But there might still be a few surprises in store for this season, which is rumored to be darker than ever -- Capaldi describes his character as "100 percent rebel Time Lord."
For months, we were left to speculate about his character based on two sentences: He didn't like the color of his new kidneys and he needed Clara to drive the TARDIS. But here are some more (spoiler-free!) details we've gathered over the last few months...
1) Twelve is Technically ThirteenAlthough he's being billed as the Twelfth Doctor, Peter Capaldi is actually the 13th Doctor we've seen. John Hurt appeared in "The Day of the Doctor" as a past regeneration we'd never seen before -- the Doctor who destroyed Gallifrey in the Time War... Well, sort of. According to Steven Moffat, John Hurt's character "doesn't take the name of the Doctor. He doesn't call himself that. He's the same Time Lord, the same being as the Doctors either side of him, but he's the one who says, 'I'm not the Doctor.'" (Any clearer? Neither are we.)
2) Cancel Your August PlansThe season premiere, "Deep Breath," airs 23 August. No word on the plot -- even the trailers don't tell us much -- but we do know that everyone's favorite Victorian crime-fighting triumvirate will return. What will alien lizard detective Madame Vastra, her wife Jenny and their thuggish but sweet sidekick Strax think of the Doctor's new regeneration?
3) New Body, New WardrobeThe Doctor's new outfit was inspired by David Bowie. Capaldi describes it as "simple, stark, and back to basics. No frills, no scarf, no messing.
4) The Doctor's Staying ScottishUnlike David Tennant (a fellow Scot who played the 10th Doctor), Peter Capaldi, who was born in Glasgow, is retaining his Scottish accent - and in true 'weegie' style, refers to Clara as "my pal" in the trailer. Capaldi studied at the Glasgow School of Art and started the punk band The Dreamboys with Craig Ferguson, before getting his big break alongside Burt Lancaster in "Local Hero." He's also an Oscar-winning director, courtesy of his short film "Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life."
5) Repeat OffenderThe Doctor isn't the first role Capaldi has played in "Doctor Who" -- He played Lucius Caecilius in the fourth season episode "The Fires of Pompeii" (which also featured future companion Karen Gillan as a soothsayer). Re-casting actors is a bit of a tradition in the Who-niverse -- Colin Baker, the 6th Doctor, had already appeared in the show when he was cast, and companion Lalla Ward played Princess Astra in "The Armageddon Factor" before playing Time Lady Romana."