Fans of Doctor Who whose curiosity doesn’t extend prior to 2005 might well be dismissive of the impact Roger Delgado had in Doctor Who, knowing he was the original Master but, like William Hartnell, part of the dusty dingy past, and certainly no patch on John Simm or Michelle Gomez.
It’s an old argument, and one which won’t go away. In fact it’ll be amusing one day, say when series 18 has come and gone, that Michelle Gomez will be unfavorably compared to whoever the incumbent would be then.
But Delgado did more than set the original template for one of the essential Doctor Who villains, he had one the rarer ingredients in Doctor Who. He had style. Whereas Doctors are in part defined by eccentricity, Delgado was smooth, especially in Terror of the Autons and The Sea Devils. And although he was overused in Season 8, his loss to everyone in 1973 left an indelible mark which old-school fans will never forget.
The Centenary of Delgado’s birth was March 1st.
The Tour has scraped together a small point update for his gallery to commemorate the occasion. The new pix are great, and so was he.
