Wednesday, February 23, 2011
6:45 AM
This is a sad day indeed.
Veteran screen actor Nicholas Courtney -- perhaps best known for his role as Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart in the long-running series Doctor Who -- has passed away. He was 81.
I won't lie: I haven't been an avid follower of Mr. Courtney's career. I knew him primarily by his association with my Favorite Show Ever. The people that know me know how much Doctor Who means to me. I saw scattered fragments of William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton during the lead up to my status as a card-carrying fanboy, but Jon Pertwee's era is what really snagged me, and the Brigadier was my favorite character on the show.
I never met Mr. Courtney -- I hoped to do so at Gallifrey One someday -- but by all accounts, he was the very image of a lovely human being. You almost always hear that kind of thing after someone dies, but I don't get the feeling that anyone is retroactively bigging him up when they talk about him. He was a genuinely well-loved man. His warmth and humor really comes across in his writing and during interviews, particularly in later years.
I was already extremely sad upon hearing the news (via a tweet by Mark Gatiss), but then I went to read the article about it on Gallifrey Base. What really got me was the photo gallery. This picture in particular. While I looked at the photo, I began to think about my grandfather -- there's quite a resemblance there. It's not so much physical as it is emotional. He's got a very grandfatherly vibe about him. I'd be surprised if other people didn't feel similar pangs of nostalgia for long-passed grandparents.
So yeah. Now I miss my grandfather. And there's a little piece of me that regrets that I'll never have the chance to meet Mr. Courtney in person.
My thoughts go out to his wife, children, and friends. No doubt this is a really tough time for them.
I think I'm off to bed early this morning.
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