Doctor Who: The Tom Baker Years

The longest-running Doctor, Tom Baker is also the fan's favorite. Along with Jon Pertwee his era probably contains the biggest bulk of best stories, and he was also largely responsible for securing the show's success overseas, particularly in America. But the beginning of his career was inauspicious. A former monk, Baker was between acting jobs and working on a building site when he was asked to play the Doctor. With his floppy hat, endless scarf, his shock of curly hair and Harpo-Marx-like bulging eyes, Baker was an instant hit, particularly with children who enjoyed his off-the-wall humor, eccentric manners and obsession with jelly babies. Baker also collected some of the series' more memorable companions: roving journalist Sarah Jane Smith, the scantily-clad warrior Leela, the robot dog K-9 and Romana, played by Lalla Ward, whom Baker later married in a blaze of publicity. Sadly the marriage didn't last, and neither did Baker, finally quitting the role. But for many, his remains the face of Doctor Who.