page_title: War Doctor
section_title: Costume
hierarchical_section_title: War Doctor / Costume
caption_attribution_description: John Hurt at the London premiere of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. BFI South Bank, Tuesday 13th September 2011
context_page_description: The War Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme Doctor Who. He was portrayed by the English actor John Hurt. Although he precedes Christopher Eccleston's Ninth Doctor in the show's fictional chronology, his first onscreen appearance came eight years after Eccleston's; the War Doctor was retroactively created by showrunner Steven Moffat for productions celebrating the show's 50th anniversary.
  Within the programme's narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien, a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey, who travels in time and space in his TARDIS, frequently with companions. When the Doctor is critically injured, he can regenerate his body, but in doing so, gains a new physical appearance and with it, a distinct new personality. This plot device has allowed a number of actors to portray different incarnations of the Doctor over the show's long run.
  The War Doctor, not so named within the episodes in which he appears, is introduced as the incarnation of the Doctor who fought in the Time War of the show's modern-day backstory.
context_section_description: In "The Name of the Doctor", Hurt wore a burgundy and ivory scarf in a herringbone style. He also wore a dark brown leather trenchcoat, similar to the Ninth Doctor's black leather peacoat as well as a green brown moleskin waistcoat, dark tan trousers, and gunmetal grey leather gaiters similar to ones worn by the Eighth Doctor. Costume designer Howard Burden said that Hurt's character was a "dark Doctor" existing between the Doctor's eighth and ninth incarnations.
  He was also seen to use a new sonic screwdriver with a scarlet light, closely matching the prop used by the Third and Fourth Doctors. He kept it in a bandolier originally worn by Cass, played by Emma Campbell-Jones, a young pilot who dies after refusing the Doctor's help due to him being a Time Lord.
caption: English actor John Hurt portrayed the War Doctor
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