John Hurt Sir John Vincent Hurt ( 22 January 1940 - 25 January 2017 ) played the War Doctor for the 50th anniversary of " Doctor Who " . He later returned to the role in a line of audio stories for Big Finish Productions . Career . As the Doctor . Hurt ' s was not a conventional incarnation of the Doctor ; although Hurt portrayed the ninth in chronological order , he is officially known as the War Doctor . He is also the only official incarnation of the Doctor whose tenure was entirely within another actor ' s tenure , his entire stay in the role being within Matt Smith ' s run as the lead . Despite this , by portraying the role in " The Name of the Doctor " , " The Night of the Doctor " , and " The Day of the Doctor " , Hurt appeared in more television stories than Eighth Doctor actor , Paul McGann . McGann still has more screen time than Hurt , however . McGann ' s total screen time is 65 minutes , 27 seconds , while Hurt ' s is only 38 minutes , 31 seconds ( deleted scenes nonwithstanding ) . At 73 years old on his debut appearance as the Doctor , Hurt is the oldest actor to have assumed the role , his nearest rival being Richard Hurndall who was 72 when he played the First Doctor in " The Five Doctors " in 1983 . Hurt was also the first actor to play the role since the revival to be born before the original series started , and the first since Tom Baker to be older than Carole Ann Ford , who played the Doctor ' s on - screen granddaughter , Susan . In 2015 , he resumed the role of the War Doctor , this time in a much more expansive venue of adventures that featured him as the chief protagonist , though as a markedly more anti - heroic version of the Doctor , in a range of Big Finish Productions audio stories . Outside " Doctor Who " . He is known for various iconic roles such as Winston Smith in the film adaptation of " Nineteen Eighty - Four " , and his award winning performance of Quentin Crisp in the TV series " The Naked Civil Servant " . Hurt also appeared in " I , Claudius " alongside Derek Jacobi , and more recently in three of the " Harry Potter " movies as , " V For Vendetta " , " Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy " , " Hellboy " , and provided the voice of the dragon in the BBC Cymru series " Merlin " . Hurt also appeared in the Ridley Scott film " Alien " , portraying the character of Kane who is central to the infamous " chest - bursting " scene , regarded as one of the most famous scenes in science fiction cinema . As such it has been referenced and parodied several times , which he did himself in " Spaceballs " . Steven Moffat ' s earlier series " Coupling " is another such example . Long before he was the War Doctor , Hurt played another time traveller in " Frankenstein Unbound " . Honours . In 2012 , Hurt was presented with the BAFTA Film award for " Outstanding British Contribution To Cinema " . He is the only person to have been nominated for an Oscar for acting prior to playing the Doctor ; Peter Capaldi won one but for directing . He was knighted for his services to drama in the , becoming the first knighted actor to have played the Doctor . He is currently the only " official " Doctor with any honours ; although Peter Cushing received a OBE before him . Several " parody Doctors " have also been honoured , namely Clive Dunn , Lenny Henry , Rowan Atkinson and Joanna Lumley . Personal life . In June 2015 Hurt announced that he had been diagnosed with early - stage pancreatic cancer , but he continued to work while undergoing treatment and was optimistic about a satisfactory outcome . Months later , he announced a full recovery , but ultimately lost his life to the cancer on 25 January 2017 . Legacy . Issue 510 of " Doctor Who Magazine " paid special tribute to the late " Doctor Who " actor . This " John Hurt tribute issue " included interviews with David Tennant , Steven Moffat , and various people he worked with at Big Finish : Nicholas Briggs , Jason Haigh - Ellery and David Richardson . Executive producer Steven Moffat is quoted in this issue as having said :