Day 478: The Invasion of Time Part 5

The Castellan's a fun character in this story. In The Deadly Assassin, the role of Castellan was given to Spandrell, as played by Geroge Pravda, and provided a good sense of justice to the piece, being able to let go of any prejudice if the evidence suggested another outcome. The new Castellan is Kelner, who is remarkably different. He's a man who instantly seeks authority and sucks up to it, at first following the Doctor and his every move, then following the Vardans and their every move and now the Sontarans and their every move. It's fun to watch this character try and remain in some degree of good stead, no matter who his ruler is, thanks in no small part to Milton Johns, the man who portrays him.

Now Milton Johns is an excellent actor. We've encountered him twice before on the blog, once in The Enemy of the World, and another time in The Android Invasion. He plays good villains, consistently making characters that you just constantly detest. Now, when I first watched The Invasion of Time, four or five years ago, I didn't really know about Milton Johns the actor, only seeing the Castellan as an intriguing character. But then I watched the behind the scenes documentary and my jaw instantly dropped. I rushed to the DVD cabinet, pulled out a disc and quickly put on an old TV show I used to watch. I paused the credits, in some degree of shock. Milton Johns, it turned out, also appeared in a recurring role in the series The Basil Brush Show. His role was much the same as his Doctor Who roles, being the villainous landlord, a slimy creature that is instantly detested by all who watch him. To me as a child, I enjoyed watching the character, and I was overjoyed when I realised that he appeared in Doctor Who. So hats off to Milton Johns, one of my favourite supporting artists in the history of Doctor Who.