Sunday, May 12, 2013

Catherine Tate,Happy 45'th Birthday!!

              One of the keys to the success of a Doctor Who assistant/
companion is how complimentary their humanity is to the doctors extra terrestrial eccentricity.  From Ian and Barbara in 1963 up through medical student Martha Jones in 2007,the doctor "only took the best" in his own words-the best of everyday human beings with certain intangible not so everyday qualities such as near endless bravery and a strong sense of morality and fair play. One character was a former temp from Cheswick,who by chance appeared in the TARDIS in a wedding dress and in one bewildering moment helped the first extra terrestrial she ever met..save the planet from the second extra terrestrial she ever met. Even though she turned down the doctors initial offer to join her, she took him up on that upon their second encounter. Her name was Donna Noble. And she was played by Catherine Tate.

           It seems that Tate always fancied herself involved in the acting profession. After years of pursuing professional schooling in both drama and comedy she landed many television and theater roles before getting her own sketch comedy show on the BBC in 2004-The Catherine Tate Show. It was a phenomenal success. It was there a couple years later that she acted with David Tennant-in a memorable sketch in which Tate portrays and irritating student pestering Tennants head master character about his physical resemblance to a...certain time lord Whovians have all come to know and love. In 2007 she first appeared on the Doctor Who holiday episode The Runaway Bride. Her one off appearance was so successful that she came back for a full series with the tenth doctor on the BBC in 2008.

           At first glance Donna Noble might've appeared to be a person who was a bit too unfocused and shallow for the doctor's interest. But he noticed something about her character. As portrayed by Tate, Donna was ambitious to see the universe and all of time around it-with a wide eyed thrill for discovery and adventure matching the doctors. Her emotionalism and enormous heart also kept the doctor in check at times when he faced moral dilemmas even he wasn't able to solve himself. Because of Tate's renowned talents as a comedienne, her sassy and sometimes bawdy humor also found its way into the show: the ideal compliment to David Tennant's goofy wittiness. Personally I congratulate Tate on her fine performance as one of my personal favorite companions of present day Doctor Who and wish her and her family the happiest of birthdays for her this year.

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