Peter Capaldi gets the children's vote
We've always known that Peter Capaldi is a very versatile actor, but we take our casting hat off to him as he segues from the profanity-riddled Malcolm Tucker to possibly the highest profile role in telly in Doctor Who, all via the sweet-sounding Paddington Bear, the swashbuckling Musketeers and the Angelina Jolie-starrer Maleficent.
The Scottish-born actor was unveiled as the new Doctor after feverish social media speculation which saw Twitter almost explode with anticipation. All kinds of names were in the mix, including David Harewood, Dominic Cooper and Olivia Colman.
So Capaldi collects the keys to the Tardis in time for filming on series eight to begin early next year. We can't wait to see what his sartorial signature will be.
In the meantime, Capaldi is keeping busy on the starry big-screen version of Paddington Bear as he plays the Browns' grouchy neighbour. He joins a stellar cast including Colin Firth (he voices the little bear), Nicole Kidman, Hugh Bonneville, Julie Walters and Jim Broadbent.
From Heyday Films and StudioCanal, we say this one has hit written all over it, and hope Capaldi gives a kind of Malcolm Tucker-lite performance as grumpy Mr Curry.
And in some inspired casting, The Thick of It actor has recently completed his role of the scheming Cardinal Richelieu in the BBC's shiny new 10 x 60 adaptation of The Musketeers, which wrapped in Prague a few weeks ago after a lengthy shoot. There should be plenty of swashes being buckled and sinister plotting in dark cobbled streets.
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Next summer sees the opening of Maleficent, in which Capaldi plays King Kinloch. The feature is the Mouse House's twist on the classic tale of Sleeping Beauty, told through the eyes of the eponymous wicked godmother, played by Angelina Jolie. The film shot at Pinewood Studios last year, and is directed by Robert Stromberg.
At some point, Capaldi will need to find time to make his directorial feature debut, based on his own screenplay: he is slated to helm Born to be King, a romcom about a young Scottish movie extra who bears a strong resemblance to the lead actor in a costume epic. He ends up standing in for the lead actor, and falling for his leading lady…
We have been following the progress of this one for some time, but with the small matter of eight months' filming on one of the biggest shows on TV, we may just have to wait a little longer.
Further information on the projects listed above can be found on Production Intelligence, our online database of advance and archive productions.
What's your favourite Peter Capa
