‘Doctor Who’ season 8: Peter Capaldi talks joy of playing 12th Doctor in first lengthy interview

While Peter Capaldi has made some assorted comments here and there, in addition to his appearance on a BBC special earlier this year, the man has really not spent just a ton of time yet doing press about his role as the 12th Doctor in “Doctor Who.” Instead, he’s been preparing in a way that any student of his craft would: By going back and watching old episodes, and trying to figure out if there is anything that he can take from some of these in an effort to be a much better actor and character down the road.

Speaking now to the official Doctor Who Magazine, Capaldi makes it pretty clear that above all else, he is a fan of the series, and that is what made him so enthused in the first place to take on this coveted gig:

“I was five when the show started. I don’t remember Doctor Who not being part of my life, and it became a part of growing up, along with The Beatles, National Health spectacles, and fog. And it runs deep. It’s in my DNA.”

Capaldi also then explained that in some ways, the part of this whole experience so far that has made him the most uncomfortable was actually the big way in which he was revealed on the special:

“Admittedly, it was somewhat outside of my comfort zone to be revealed in that way, but that’s the way it fell. I was nervous about the ‘Tonight, Matthew, I’m going to be Doctor Who’ element. It seemed a million miles away from the actual job. However, in the end, I kind of enjoyed it. A little showbiz never hurt anyone. And Zoe Ball was great.”

Peter has already begun work on the new season, though you’re going to have to wait at least a good eight months for it to come on the air. The earliest, after all, that we see the show coming back on TV is late August.