Doctor Who Vs. Casanova

This account of the life of the legendary 

Venetian adventurer, Giacomo Casanova
 (1725-1798) was scripted by Russell T 

Davies and co-executive produced with 

Julie Gardner.

Veteran Irish actor Peter O'Toole (1932 to
2013) portrayed the older Casanova, whilst
David Tennant's role as the younger man
led Davies to cast him in the lead of the
newly revived Doctor Who series.

BBC Wales' three-part comedy drama (a

co-production with Red and Granada TV)

was the Corporation's second version of

the famed libertine's life story, following

Dennis Potter's acclaimed mini-series,

shown in late 1971.

Originally broadcast on BBC3 in March

2005, then on BBC1 in April, Casanova

featured Matt Lucas, Rupert Penry

Jones, and thirty-seven Doctor Who cast

and crew connections:

• Big Finish actor Nickolas Grace (Chancellor) made a brief TV appearance as Albert Einstein in Death is the Only Answer, and voiced Loozly for Bang-Bang-A-Boom! (2002), Straxus for Human Resources (2007), Sisters of the Flame and The Vengeance of Morbius (both 2008), Viktor Skaarsgard and Balancer for Equilibrium (2015), Goole for The Gallery of Ghouls (2016), Professor Grove for Shadow Planet and World Apart, Chevalier D'Eon for The Sword of the Chevalier (alll 2017), and Kellman for Return of the Cybermen (2021)
• Shaun Parkes (Rocco) was Captain Zachary Cross Flane in The Impossible Planet and The Satan Pit - a role reprised for Torchwood (2021)
• Laura Fraser (Henriette) was Kane in Orphan 55
• [Oluwakemi] Nina Sosanya (Bellino) was Trish Webber in Fear Her, and voiced Captain Anna Maynard for Aquitaine (2016)
• [Celia] Daisy [Morna] Haggard (Coquette) was Sophie in The Lodger, Closing Time and Up All Night
• Raymond [Anthony] Coulthard (Ambassador) voiced Loki, Edgar and Hawks for Cobwebs (2010), Ralph and Acolyte for Suburban Hell, and Robac, Servers and Dalmari for The Destination Wars (2017)
• Annette Badland (Pauline) was Margaret Blaine [Blon Fel Fotch Pasameer-Day Slitheen] in Aliens of London, World War Three, Boom Town and Torchwood: Sync (2019), then voiced Queen Karlina for Equilibrium, Thelma for Suburban Hell (both 2015), Guilana for Asking for a Friend (2017), Judge and Computer for Barrister to the Stars, Mrs. Slinger and Batraxus for Whatever Remains, and Maude Polwart and Mermaid for The Ghost Writers (all 2020)
• Dervla Kirwan (Mother) was Miss Hartigan in The Next Doctor, then reprised Andrea Quill for Class (2018)
• Zac Fox (Young Casanova) was the Photo-shoot PA in Asylum of the Daleks and The Angels Take Manhattan
• Ron Cook (Prisoner) was Mr. Magpie in The Idiot's Lantern
• Ewan Bailey (Doctor) provided Alien Voices for Voyage of the Damned, and voiced Count Licori for The Galileo Trap, Father Locke and Orbs for The Satanic Mill, McCallum and Grayson for The Case of the Missing Gasogene, Sergeant Quick Snr. for The Year of the Bat, Priest for The Mourning After (all 2015), Davy McTavit for The Helm of Awe, Blazzard and Copeland for The Morton Legacy, Dimitri Papkin for The Ship of the Sleepwalkers, Duncan for Aliens Among Us (all 2017), Sir Edward Cameron, Slitheen and Biggs for Death on th Mile, Computer, Evotech Kronin, Wendell, Rattus, Cab, Karsus Prime for Kings of Infinite Space (both 2018), and Hugo Blake for The Sinestran Kill (2019)
• Andrew Havill (Chancellor) was the Chief Steward in Voyage of the Damned, and voiced Aleister Portillon and Squire Claude for The Witch in the Well (2011), and Colonel Wildman for The Enchantress of Numbers (2019)
• Graham Padden (Priest) was Pa in Gridlock
• Clare Higgins (Cook) was Ohila in The Night of the Doctor, The Magician's Apprentice and The Witch's Familiar
• Angus Wright (Man-at-Arms) voiced Magnus Greel for The Butcher of Brisbane (2012), and Alek Zenos for We are the Daleks (2015)
• Mark Heap (Gozzi) voiced The Middleman for The Middle (2017)
• Matthew Holness (Landlord) voiced Eric Drazen for The Lure of the Nomad (2018)
• Glenna Morrison (Nanette) voiced Mary Patterson for Medicinal Purposes (2004)
• Tamzin Griffin (Noblewoman) voiced Negotiator Vresha for Dreamtime (2005)
• Vincent [Warren] Franklin (Nobleman) voiced Lord Stormblood for Scenes from Her Life (2016)
• Rosalie [Mae] Craig (Coquette) voiced Frances Drouet for Purity Unleashed (2023)
• Sheree Folkson was director of In the Forest of the Night too
• co-executive producers Michael Treen and Damien Timmer were the production manager on The Twin Dilemma, and an extra on An Adventure in Space and Time respectively
• film editor Nick Arthurs also edited The Curse of the Fatal Death then Hide
• Liz Griffiths was the set decorator on seven Series 1 stories too
• Steve Smith was also make-up artist on forty-one episodes (from The Christmas Invasion to The Waters of Mars) and Music of the Sphere
• Susan Liggat was also first assistant director on Love & Monsters, Army of Ghosts and Doomsday, then produced another eight instalments, and the pilot episode of The Sarah Jane Adventures
• recordist Nick Foley was ADR mixer on The Snowmen
• VFX compositor Simon Blackledge and Matt Wood both worked on A Town Called Mercy and The Power of Three - Wood was VFX supervisor on The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe too
• Samantha Hall was also post-production supervisor on fifty-one episodes (from New Earth to Flesh and Stone), Time Crash and Music of the Spheres
• Anna Lau was costume supervisor on nine instalments too
• Julie Scott was also production executive on seventy-seven stories (from The Runaway Bride to The Time of the Doctor), Time Crash, Music of the Spheres, Dreamland, City of the Daleks, Blood of the Cybermen, The Sarah Jane Adventures, Torchwood and Doctor Who at the Proms
• stuntman Bill Davey was stunt co-ordinator on The Impossible Planet, The Satan Pit, Love & Monsters and Turn Left
• stuntman Glenn Marks was stunt co-ordinator on Human Nature, The Family of Blood and Blink
• incidental music was provided by Murray Gold
• Glenn Coxon was also floor runner on Love & Monsters, Blink and Torchwood