alternatehistory.com

The Ninth Doctor was portrayed by American actor Avery Brooks, only the second non-British actor to play the role. Before his casting, he was best known as Hawk from the franchise Spenser: For Hire. Despite the fact that he was not the first, the casting of an American actor in the role of the Doctor was controversial.

Response to the Ninth Doctor was more mixed than his predecessors. In this incarnation, the Doctor would in many ways, seem more alien, and had far fewer action scenes, with the show taking a more subdued but darker approach to the story. As a result, some fans felt alienated by this shift in tone, and viewing figured dipped accordingly. In more recent times, the fan reaction has been more positive, and has become a more “cult classic” type of Doctor. [2]

Avery Brooks would admit in later interviews that he was surprised by the reaction to his portrayal at the time, as while he received praise for his acting, may disliked the characterisation. Nonetheless, Brooks said that it was one of his favourite roles to portray, and has returned to reprise it on many occasions, both officially and unofficially. [3]


The Ninth Doctor would see the Doctor take on a more sedentary role, as during the entirety of his run, he also worked as a professor of nuclear physics at the University of Washington, in order to keep an eye on the Rift nearby for UNIT. Accordingly, his attire was different to any of his predecessors, and tended to blend in better with other humans, though not in personality. The majority of the time, he wore a white collared shirt with a black waistcoat, though he would occasionally be seen in a longer brown shirt with a Mandarin collar.

In contrast to many of his previous incarnations, the Ninth Doctor had no real desire to appear human, making no secret of his alien heritage to people that he encountered. His sometimes impersonal and unfeeling demeanour would, at times, put him at odds with his companion, Jennifer, but he would open up more with time.

Due to his work at the University of Washington during this incarnation, the TARDIS would undergo a major redesign from the more simplistic designs of the Seventh and Eighth Doctors, with the console room being much larger, and doubling as an office for the Doctor. This larger console room would be carried over to the Tenth Doctor and later, though the furnishings would be different in each incarnation. [4]


His first “full canon” appearance was at the beginning of “A New Semester”, though where exactly this occurs within this Doctor’s lifetime is never explicitly stated, as the Doctor does not experience any post-regenerative trauma. Many “grey-canon” sources would flesh out the time before this, showing new companions and adventures. During his time on-screen, the Ninth Doctor would have only one companion, Jennifer, played by Winona Ryder.

Brooks’ run as the Doctor would see his other skills put to use, as he had an opportunity to showcase his musical talents, particularly his past work in opera, in the Season 29 story “The Crooner”. He would also become the first, and to date only, actor to both portray the Doctor and direct an episode of the show. [5]


Following his time on the show, Brooks would make relatively few television or film appearances, working on stage and on documentaries. In addition, he would continue to teach theatre at Rutgers University, a job he would draw on his experiences during his time on the show. [6]


Many years after his departure from the role, the Ninth Doctor still remains a divisive figure among fans, often appearing at the extremes of rankings of the incarnations. [7]


[1] Why yes, that photo is from "Our Man Bashir", the same episode of DS9 I got the photo for the Eighth Doctor profile from.
[2] I don't like making strict equivalences between OTL and TTL Doctors, but there's a decent pattern to TTL's 7, 8 and 9. They mirror a run of three Doctors from OTL, but telling you which would be a bit spoilery.
[3] There's nothing quite like BBV in TTL, but things like Devious will still be made. Expect it to be a bit like how Star Trek used to be with New Voyages, Renegades and the like, they're tolerated by the BBC provided they don't try to pass themselves off as official work.
[4] An answer to a question by @Ogrebear, which I had alreadyanswered. I just wanted to make it "canon" by putting it in an update.
[5] I like his music and directing work, so why not include both, I thought.
[6] This is one of the reasons I made the Doctor also a professor here, because the actor is also a professor. This sort of mirrors his post-Trek career from OTL.
[7] Sort of like the Twelfth Doctor. A lot of fans really like him (as will TTL's version of me), but some just don't like him and were a bit turned off.