Radio Times Cover

I was thinking, ‘Who in the world has a brain and a silliness which is close to the Doctor?’ and then I saw that photograph of Albert Einstein poking his tongue out and it just clicked. I found this book of quotes by Einstein – which I recommend as a life choice, he was such an insightful man – and I started writing short stories about Einstein and the Doctor, where the Doctor was getting irritated with the great man’s buffoonery. He’d be saying, ‘Come on, Albert, keep up!’ and I think that, more than anything, was my way in to the part.

I was never really into science fiction when I was growing up, though my mum was a big Doctor Who fan. Now I’ve turned into a real sci-fi geek. Once you get sucked into that world, it has its own logic and laws, which is why I think people are so passionate about it.