The Inevitable and The Inescapable: Televisionary Talks to David Tennant About "Doctor Who" Legacy, Sartorial Choices, and "End of Time"

There are a handful of iconic roles that exist in entertainment and ranking high upon that list is the Doctor.

For many people, the time-traveling alien nomad has been best embodied by Scottish actor David Tennant, who will depart the series after three final Doctor Who specials, airing this fall and winter on BBC One and BBC America.

I had the chance to catch up with Tennant over drinks last night at BBC America's cocktail party at the Television Critics Association's Summer Press Tour. As a huge fan of Doctor Who and of Tennant's performance as the Tenth Doctor, I was curious about the legacy he'll leave behind after he departs the series, the cast of characters assembled for the two-part "End of Time" special (directed by Euros Lyn), and the Tenth Doctor's trademark combination of Chuck Taylor Converse and pin-striped suits.

So what did Tennant have to say on those topics? Let's find out in this exclusive interview with the Doctor himself, David Tennant.

Televisionary: What do you think is the legacy that you're leaving behind for the Doctor Who franchise?

David Tennant: That's not an easy question! And probably not for me to answer. I think it's really hard to be objective about it when you're in the midst of it. Also I'm far too British and self-deprecating to know.

I'm very proud that we're handing it over in such rude health because every year it's been a battle to stay out there and make sure we make the show good. And actually we seem to have managed to increase the viewing figures and the attention that we get year on year. I'm proud of that. I am very glad that that is our legacy.

Also, because I know how much it meant to me as a kid and how formative those memories were, the idea that there might be some seven- or eight-year-old kid having just a little bit of the experience that I had when I was a kid watching that show, that's enough legacy for me. That's all I hope for.

Televisionary: From watching the trailer for Doctor Who: The End of Time, we saw Catherine Tate's Donna Noble, John Simm's The Master, Alexandra Moen's Lucy Saxon, and Bernard Cribbins' Wilt returning. What was it like having these fantastic actors return for your final bow on the series?

David Tennant: Well, they are all great people to work with. But actually it's all story-led. Funnily enough, it could have easily been a greatest hits package, I suppose, to finish off our time. But I suppose Russell [Davies] would never have been so cheap, I guess. (Laughs)

But what you get is that there's a reason why Bernard Cribbins is in the center of the story. It's absolutely central to what happens. And there's a reason that John Simm is there because that absolutely tells you more about who the Doctor is.

As ever with Russell's scripts, he finds a way of bringing brilliant characters and brilliant actors together but it's all serving the story. It's serving the tale of the Doctor... There's an epic-ness to this because he knows he's dying and because, slightly cheekily, the audience knows he's dying. We're all kind of on the same boat and we're all telling the same story.

There's an inevitability which is inescapable. The Doctor is kind of on this runaway train and then, just when you think you know where it's going, Russell completely changes all the goalposts. And maybe he'll walk away...

Televisionary: In speaking with Russell earlier, he said that the use of the Chuck Taylors and the suits for the Doctor's wardrobe was your idea. What was it about that particular sartorial combination that you wanted to use to embody the Tenth Doctor?

David Tennant: I wanted shoes that would be comfortable to run in. (Laughs) I liked the idea of a suit but I was worried that that could be too authoritarian. So then how to you take the edge off a suit? So I thought, well, if you wear it with soft shoes, it just makes it softer and gentler. And then if you just scrunch the suit up a bit and the tie's not really done up--like I'm wearing my tie now--you sort of feel like he's kind of wearing a suit but he's not wearing it like a man in an office would wear a suit.

So they were all thoughts like that and of course Louise Page, our costume designer, had a huge amount of input and brought ideas that I just would never have seen. So between us, we kind of struggled towards that. And I always wanted a long coat and I was determined to have a long coat, whatever else we found, I wanted a long coat to go over the top of it. So a sort of random collection of notions and ideas kind of assembled into the outfit.

Doctor Who returns this fall with special "Waters of Mars" on BBC America and BBC One.