Did Bettors Know New 'Doctor Who' Too Soon?

By MICHAEL HINMAN Jan-6-2009

Fans were in the dark right up until the last minute last weekend on who would portray the 11th Doctor in the BBC series "Doctor Who," but some journalists are pointing out that a flurry of bets on actor Matt Smith just before the announcement increased his odds from 31-to-1 to a favorite 1-to-3.

BBC executives said they had no plans to investigate any potential leak from its production department leading up to the announcement saying that it's unaware of any of its employees that interested in entertainment gambling, and any tainting of betting lines would be a problem of bookies, not them, according to Brand Republic.

Before Smith's announcement, many people believed that one-time "Doctor Who" guest Paterson Joseph would take control of the Tardis from David Tennant, creating the first black Doctor. BBC, however, went with accomplished stage actor Smith, instead, who will be the youngest actor to take on the role, and will continue a trend of making The Doctors younger with each passing regeneration beginning with Christopher Eccleston, who was 41 when he starred as the Ninth Doctor, and handing off to Tennant, who was 34 when he took on the role. Smith is 26, born during the Tom Baker era, who had been the youngest Doctor until Peter Davison took over the show at the age of 30.

William Hartnell, the first Doctor, is still the oldest actor to take on the role at 55, although John Pertwee is not too far behind at 51.

"It does look like somebody knew and went on the betting exchanges, but this was not necessarily someone from the BBC," a source for the network told The Evening Standard. "It could have been an individual connected to the actor, through his associates or a friend, or even people working on the promotional material. Who knows?"

Smith will take over the role in 2010.

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About the Author: Michael Hinman is the founder and site coordinator for Airlock Alpha and the entire BlipNetwork. He owns Quantum Global Media Inc., the parent corporation of the BlipNetwork. He's a print journalist by day, and lives in Tampa, Fla.
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