Yahoo News Peter Capaldi confirms he's leaving Doctor Who :(
It's officially the end of an era: Peter Capaldi is hanging up his TARDIS key at the end of Doctor Who's next series.
Capaldi made the sad announcement on Jo Whiley's BBC Radio 2 show on Monday night that he will be leaving the BBC One sci-fi institution after its 10th series, which begins on Saturday, April 15.
"One of the greatest privileges of being Doctor Who is to see the world at its best," Capaldi told fans live on the radio.
"From our brilliant crew and creative team working for the best broadcaster on the planet, to the viewers and fans whose endless creativity, generosity and inclusiveness points to a brighter future ahead. I can't thank everyone enough. It's been cosmic."
Keep in mind the tenth series of Doctor Who comprises both this spring's episodes as well as a Christmas special, which will be the swansong for showrunner Steven Moffat.
"For years before I ever imagined being involved in Doctor Who, or had ever met the man, I wanted to work with Peter Capaldi," Moffat said tonight. "I could not have imagined that one day we'd be standing on the TARDIS together.
"Like Peter, I'm facing up to leaving the best job I'll ever have, but knowing I do so in the company of the best, and kindest and cleverest of men, makes the saddest of endings a little sweeter.
"But hey, it's a long way from over. Peter's amazing, fiery, turbulent Doctor is still fighting the good fight, and his greatest adventures are yet to come. Monsters of the universe, be on your guard - Capaldi's not done with you yet!"
Announcing his own decision to leave Doctor Who live on Radio 2 tonight, Capaldi explained simply that he feels "it's time to move on".
"This'll be the end for me," he said. "I feel sad. I love Doctor Who. It's a fantastic programme to work on. It's been a huge pleasure to work with... a family. I can't praise the people I work with more highly.
"I've never worked the same job for three years, and I feel like now is the right time to move on. I'll still be the Doctor for a while."
The sad news of his imminent departure comes only one month after Capaldi expressed hope of being The Doctor for "a long time" while promoting the 2016 Christmas special 'The Return of Doctor Mysterio'.
"I don't want to escape the idea that I'm Doctor Who. It's finite. I won't be Doctor Who forever, so there will be a day when people don't come and say hello," he explained at the time.
BREAKING NEWS!
“It (the new series of Doctor Who) will be my last… I feel it’s time to move on.”
- Peter Capaldi
#DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/4gx9rTShPZ- Doctor Who Official (@bbcdoctorwho) January 30, 2017
Capaldi is saying goodbye at the same time as Doctor Who introduces a brand new companion in Bill (Pearl Mackie), who'll make her debut presumably in the April 15 premiere.
When Digital Spy spoke with the cast last month, showrunner Steven Moffat revealed that series 10 "sort of reboots" the show (which is typical whenever there's a new Doctor or companion).
Capaldi made his first appearance as the renegade Time Lord in the 50th anniversary special 'The Day of the Doctor' in 2013, although we only saw his eyes in that brief cameo.
It was one month later when he officially succeeded Matt Smith as The Doctor and continued the long quest to finally locate Gallifrey, the lost home of the Time Lords.
Long before he'd won the role of The Doctor, Capaldi actually appeared in the BBC One series as Lobus Caecilius in 2008's 'The Fires of Pompeii' and later as the doomed politician John Frobisher in spinoff Torchwood.
The BBC's content director Charlotte Moore bid Capaldi a fond farewell on Monday, saying: "Peter Capaldi will always be a very special Doctor to me; his adventures through time and space started just as I arrived on BBC One.
"He has been a tremendous Doctor who has brought his own unique wisdom and charisma to the role. But, it's not over yet - I know the next series is going to be spectacular. He's a fine actor who I hope we work with again when he leaves the TARDIS."
Capaldi and Moffat's simultaneous departures will precede new showrunner Chris Chibnall taking the reigns of Doctor Who once his own ITV drama Broadchurch wraps up. It's not yet known if new companion Pearl Mackie will be staying on for the 2018 series.
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