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Tom Baker facts for kids
Thomas Stewart Baker (born January 20 1934), or Tom Baker, is an English actor. He is best known for playing the Fourth Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who.
Early life
Baker was born in Liverpool. His father was a sailor, and was Jewish. His mother was Roman Catholic. Baker was not very academic and struggled at school. He failed the eleven plus exam. Baker became a monk when he was 15. When he decided to change his life, he first worked in the Royal Army Medical Corps, and then as a construction worker. He took up acting first as a hobby, then professionally.
Career
His first big part was as Grigori Rasputin in the 1971 movie, Nicholas and Alexandra. Baker is best known for playing the Fourth Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who. He played this role from 1974 to 1981. When he got the job, he was working on a building site, because it was hard to find work as an actor.
He is famous for playing the Doctor longer than any other actor. His version of the character is probably the best remembered by many people. As he thought of himself as a role model for children, he would always pretend to be the Doctor in real life, and sign autographs for them. He did not like to see too much violence in Doctor Who. He once changed the script so the Doctor threatened a character with a jelly baby instead of a knife.
He was a narrator for the comedy sketch show Little Britain.
Baker has had many jobs as a voiceover artist. He is very recognized for his voice. In a 2005 survey of British adults, Baker's voice was the fourth most recognisable after the Queen, Tony Blair and Margaret Thatcher.
Works
Movies
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | The Winter's Tale | The bear | |
| 1971 | Nicholas and Alexandra | Rasputin | |
| 1972 | The Canterbury Tales | Jenkin | |
| 1973 | Cari Genitori | Karl | |
| 1973 | The Vault of Horror | Moore | |
| 1973 | Luther | Pope Leo X | Doesn't appear in some versions of the film |
| 1973 | Frankenstein: The True Story | Sea captain | |
| 1973 | The Golden Voyage of Sinbad | Koura | |
| 1974 | The Mutations | Lynch | |
| 1980 | The Curse of King Tut's Tomb | Hasan | |
| 1984 | The Passionate Pilgrim | Sir Tom | Short film |
| 1984 | The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood | Sir Guy de Gisbourne | |
| 1998 | Backtime | Sarge | |
| 2000 | Dungeons & Dragons | Halvarth | |
| 2005 | The Magic Roundabout | Zeebad | |
| 2010 | The Genie in the Bottle | Narrator | Short film |
| 2011 | Jacqueline Hill: A Life in Pictures | The Doctor | |
| 2012 | Saving Santa | Santa Claus | Voice |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Dixon of Dock Green | The man | Episode: "The Attack" |
| 1968 | Market in Honey Lane | Doorman | Episode: "The Matchmakers" |
| 1968 | George and the Dragon | Porter | Episode: "The 10:15 Train" |
| 1968 | Z-Cars | Harry Russell | Episode: "Hudson's Way" |
| 1968 | Dixon of Dock Green | Foreman | Episode: "Number 13" |
| 1969 | Thirty-Minute Theatre | Corporal Schabe | Episode: "The Victims: Frontier" |
| 1970 | Softly, Softly | Site foreman | Episode: "Like Any Other Friday" |
| 1972 | Play of the Month | Dr. Ahmed el Kabir | Episode: "The Millionairess" |
| 1973 | Arthur of the Britons | Brandreth / Gavron | Episode: "Go Warily" |
| 1974–1981 | Doctor Who | The Doctor | 172 episodes |
| 1975 | Jim'll Fix It | The Doctor | 1 episode |
| 1976 | Piccadilly Circus | Mark Ambient | |
| 1977 | Nouvelles de Henry James | Mark Ambient | |
| 1978 | Late Night Story | Host | 4 episodes |
| 1979 | The Book Tower | Presenter | 22 episodes |
| 1982 | The Hound of the Baskervilles | Sherlock Holmes | |
| 1983 | Jemima Shore Investigates | Dr. Norman Ziegler | Episode: "Dr. Ziegler's Casebook" |
| 1983 | Doctor Who | The Doctor | Episode: "The Five Doctors" |
| 1984 | Remington Steele | Anatole Blaylock | Episode: "Hounded Steele" |
| 1985 | Jackanory | Storyteller | Episode: "The Iron Man" |
| 1986 | The Life and Loves of a She-Devil | Father Ferguson | |
| 1986 | Blackadder II | Captain Redbeard Rum | Episode: "Potato" |
| 1986 | The Kenny Everett Television Show | Patient John Thompson Blu-Tac Tom |
Season 1, Episode 2 |
| 1986 | Roland Rat: The Series | BBC Three presenter The Doctor |
Season 4, Episode 1 |
| 1990 | The Silver Chair | Puddleglum | |
| 1990 | Tales of Aesop | Narrator | |
| 1990 | Hyperland | Software agent | |
| 1990 | Boom | Co-presenter | |
| 1991 | Selling Hitler | Manfred Fischer | 4 episodes |
| 1992 | Cluedo | Professor Plum | 6 episodes |
| 1992 | Screen Two | Sir Lionel Sweeting | Episode: "The Law Lord" |
| 1992–1995 | Medics | Professor Geoffrey Hoyt | |
| 1993 | Doctor Who | The Doctor | Episode: "Dimensions in Time" |
| 1994 | The Imaginatively Titled Punt & Dennis Show | Actor in supermarket | Cameo |
| 1998 | Have I Got News For You | Himself | |
| 2000 | This Is Your Life | Himself | |
| 2000 | The Canterbury Tales | Simpkin | Voice Episode: "The Journey Back" |
| 2000 | Max Bear | Max Bear | Voice |
| 2000–2001 | Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) | Professor Wyvern | 10 episodes |
| 2001 | Fun at the Funeral Parlour | Quimby | Episode: "The Jaws of Doom" |
| 2003 | Swiss Toni | Derek Asquith | Episode: "Cars Don't Make You Fat" |
| 2003 | 2DTV | The Doctor | Voice Series 4, Episode 1 |
| 2003 | Strange | Father Bernard | Episode: "Asmoth" |
| 2003 | Fort Boyard | Captain Baker | |
| 2003–2006 | Little Britain | Narrator | 36 episodes |
| 2004 | The Little Reindeer | Santa Claus | Voice |
| 2004–2005 | Monarch of the Glen | Donald MacDonald | 12 episodes |
| 2006 | The Secret Show | Robert Baron | Voice Episode: "The Secret Room" |
| 2007 | Marple | Frederick Treves | Episode: "Towards Zero" |
| 2007–2008 | The Beeps | Narrator | 45 episodes |
| 2008 | Little Britain USA | Narrator | 6 episodes |
| 2008 | Have I Got News For You | Himself | |
| 2010 | Tom Baker: In Confidence | Himself | Interviewed by Professor Laurie Taylor |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Destiny of the Doctors | The Doctor | Voice and likeness |
| 2000 | Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future | Narrator | Voice |
| 2001 | Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising | Narrator | Voice |
| 2003 | Warhammer 40,000: Fire Warrior | Narrator | Voice |
| 2004 | Sudeki | Narrator | Voice |
| 2005 | Heretic Kingdoms: The Inquisition | Narrator | Voice |
| 2005 | MediEvil: Resurrection | Death | Voice |
| 2006 | Cold Winter | John Gray | Voice |
| 2006 | Little Britain: The Game | Narrator | Voice |
| 2007 | Little Britain: The Video Game | Narrator | Voice |
Radio
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | The Russia House | Barley Blair |
| 1998 | Hard Times | Josiah Bounderby |
| 1999 | Nicholas Nickleby | Vincent Crummles |
| 2009 | Hornets' Nest | The Doctor |
| 2010 | Demon Quest | The Doctor |
| 2011 | Serpent Crest | The Doctor |
Images for kids
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Tom Baker and a Dalek in London, 1991, at a photocall in Trafalgar Square