Christopher Eccleston in Doctor Who. Photograph: BBC
The secret of carving out a good career is knowing when to move on. Ask Christopher Eccleston. He may have played a vital part in the Doctor Who revival (alongside producer Russell T Davies), but amid the critical and public acclaim, Eccleston alone recognised his job for what it was - a bit of pre-watershed hamming that hardly stretched his considerable talent. His task was to add a whiff of authenticity to the role - but not a lot. And so, after 13 episodes, and already in danger of slipping into self parody, he was off. Let David Tennant take on that mantle instead. Personally, I never bought the hype around the new Doctor Who. It's OK. But hinting at the Doctor's insanity and shouting a lot, is hardly a new development. And don't even get me started on flying daleks and gas masks as props.
The fact is, there's only so far you can go with Doctor Who. It's a good kids' show, nothing more. Predictably, Eccleston has landed on his feet - turning up as the invisible man in Tim Kring's Heroes. Again, it's hardly Chekhov, but it is one of HBO's biggest shows, meaning he has joined the current wave of British TV stars making it big in the US - Hugh Laurie, Michelle Ryan, Eddie Izzard ... It's time we saw some more British stalwarts have a Stateside makeover - how about Anne Kirkbride in a big budget remake of Space 1999, or the original 80s cast of the of The Bill turning up as the crew in a new version of Blake's 7? We can only dream.
