William Hartnell
William Henry Hartnell (8 January 1908 – 23 April 1975), also known as Billy Hartnell or Bill Hartnell, was an English actor. Hartnell played the first incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, from 1963 to 1966. He was also known for his roles as Sergeant Grimshaw, the title character of the first Carry On film, Carry On Sergeant in 1958, and Company Sergeant Major Percy Bullimore in the sitcom The Army Game from 1957 until 1958, and again in 1960. Hartnell entered the theatre in 1925 working under Frank Benson as a general stagehand. He appeared in numerous Shakespearian plays, including The Merchant of Venice (1926), Julius Caesar (1926), As You Like It (1926), Hamlet (1926), The Tempest (1926) and Macbeth (1926). He also appeared in She Stoops to Conquer (1926), School for Scandal (1926) and Good Morning, Bill (1927), before performing in Miss Elizabeth's Prisoner (1928). This play was written by Robert Neilson Stephens and E. Lyall Swete. It featured the actress Heather McIntyre, whom he married during the following year. His first of more than sixty film appearances was in Say It With Music (1932). Hartnell continued to play comic characters until he was cast in the robust role of Sergeant Ned Fletcher in The Way Ahead (1944). From then on his career was defined by playing mainly policemen, soldiers, and thugs. Hartnell's performance in This Sporting Life was noted by Verity Lambert, the producer who was setting up a new science-fiction television series for the BBC entitled Doctor Who; and, mainly on the strength of that performance, Lambert offered him the title role.
Filmography (133 titles)
5.0MovieDoctor Who: Wish World & The Reality War
Dr. Who (archive footage) (uncredited) · 2025
MovieDoctor Who: The Savages
The Doctor (voice) · 2025
7.2MovieDoctor Who at the Proms
The Doctor (1) (archive footage) · 2024
8.0MovieDoctor Who: The Celestial Toymaker
The Doctor (voice) · 2024
6.1MovieDoctor Who: The Daleks in Colour
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2023
5.0MovieTalking Doctor Who
Self / The Doctor (1) (archive footage) · 2023
5.6ShowTales of the Tardis
The Doctor · 2023
6.0MovieDoctor Who: Galaxy 4
The Doctor (voice) · 2021
ShowDoctor Who: Galaxy 4
Doctor Who · 2021
MovieMission to the Unknown
Dr. Who · 2019
8.0MovieDoctor Who: Twice Upon a Time
The Doctor (1) (archive footage) · 2017
8.0MovieDoctor Who: The Husbands of River Song
The Doctor (1) (picture) (uncredited) · 2015
8.2MovieDoctor Who: The Day of the Doctor
The Doctor (1) (archive footage) · 2013
7.7MovieAn Adventure in Space and Time
The Doctor (1) (archive footage) · 2013
6.4ShowDoctor Who: The Doctors Revisited
Self · 2013
MovieDon't Lose Your Head: The Making of 'The Reign of Terror'
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2012
MovieVision On
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2012
MovieThe Sets of Marinus
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2009
MovieMounting the Rescue
The Doctor (1) (archive footage) · 2009
7.4MovieDoctor Who: The Next Doctor
The Doctor (1) (archive footage) · 2008
MovieThe Ties That Bind Us
The First Doctor (archive footage) · 2008
8.0MovieCreation of the Daleks
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2006
8.0MovieMasters of Sound
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2006
8.0MovieInside the Spaceship: The Story of the TARDIS
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2006
8.5MovieDoctor Who: Origins
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2006
9.0MovieFuture Memories: Making 'The Dalek Invasion of Earth'
The Doctor (1) (archive footage) · 2003
7.5MovieRemembering 'The Aztecs'
The Doctor (archive footage) · 2002
7.7MovieWhat's a Carry On?
Sergeant Grimshawe (archive footage) (uncredited) · 1998
7.9MovieDoctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks
The Doctor (1) (archive footage) (uncredited) · 1984
7.8MovieDoctor Who: The Five Doctors
The First Doctor (archive footage) · 1983