And in the beginning the first Doctor is Born (William "Bill" Hartnell)

William "Bill" Hartnell portrayed the first incarnation of the Doctor. For many, he remains the definitive portrayal of the character. Elements of his portrayal are evident in the performances of all his successors on the television series and beyond.

Hartnell was born in St Pancras, London, England in 1908, the only child of an unmarried mother, and raised primarily by his aunt Bessie (Wood, 208). Hartnell never discovered the identity of his father (whose particulars are left blank on the birth certificate) and, despite efforts made by Hartnell in later years, his absent parent was never traced. Often known as Billy, he was educated at home and at Imperial Service College. After training as a jockey, and boxer, he studied acting at The Sylvia Young Theatre School and entered the theatre in 1924 working under Frank Benson. The first of more than sixty film appearances was Say It With Music in 1932. He was invalided out of the Royal Armoured Corps of the British Army during the Second World War, after suffering a nervous breakdown.

His performance as a tough yet sympathetic character in This Sporting Life was noted by Verity Lambert, a young Producer who was setting up her first television series for the BBC, namely Doctor Who, who then offered him the title role. Although Hartnell was initially uncertain of whether he wanted to take on the part, Lambert and director Waris Hussein convinced him to play the character for which he gained the highest profile and for which he is now most widely remembered. Hartnell came to relish, particularly, the attention and affection from children that playing the character brought him, and he became very fond of the role. By 1966, when Season 4, his final season, aired, the role also earned Hartnell a regular salary of £315 per episode. (In comparison, his co-stars Anneke Wills and Michael Craze earned £68 and £52, respectively, per episode.)

According to some colleagues on Doctor Who, he could be a difficult person to work with, although others, notably actors Peter Purves and William Russell, and producer Verity Lambert, speak glowingly of him after more than forty years. His poor health (arteriosclerosis) as well as poor relations with the new production team on the series following the departure of Lambert mid-way during the first half of Season 3 ultimately led him to leave Doctor Who in 1966 when his contract expired.

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