Nicholas Briggs Demonstrates How To Be A ‘Doctor Who’ Dalek
by Erik Amaya
As a Christmas treat, we present this video of actor and writer Nicholas Briggs demonstrating both how easy and how hard it is to be a Dalek voice on Doctor Who. In terms of ease, all one really needs is a microphone, a distortion device called a ring modulator, and some speakers. Adjusting the ring modulator will give your amplified voice the right Dalek quality. But to reach the perfection of Briggs’ performance requires the years of study the actor put in by being a Doctor Who fan from its early days in the 1960s. As seen in the video, he does a great job approximating former Dalek voice actors like Peter Hawkins, Roy Skelton, and Micheal Wisher while also creating his own wonderful takes on The Doctor’s greatest foes.
In 2005, Doctor Who became a British Christmas tradition by airing “The Christmas Invasion” — the first episode to feature David Tennant in the title role. Subsequent years saw his Doctor, and eventual Doctors Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi, facing all sorts of holiday themed troubles. Briggs occasionally appeared as the Dalek voice as some of them. Sadly, the most recent years of the program have seen Thirtheenth Doctor Jodie Whittaker facing trouble on New Year’s Day as showrunner Chris Chibnall agreed with previous producer Steven Moffat‘s belief that all the good Christmas stories have been used up.
Well, all but one, but we currently doubt the show would do something that wonderful.
In the meantime, Doctor Who will return next week for its New Year’s Day special, “Revolution of the Daleks.” Briggs will, of course, be along for the ride with guest stars John Barrowman, Chris Noth, Harriet Walter and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett. Regular companions Tosin Cole, Mandip Gill, and Bradley Walsh will also be in toe, but the story will see Cole and Walsh saying goodbye to The Doctor.
A new season of Doctor Who will follow either in late 2021 or early 2022.
