Makeover for Doctor Who

The new Dr Who has consigned the character's famous scarf to a TV black hole.

In his first interview about the revived BBC1 science fiction drama, Christopher Eccleston hinted that he would have a new look, maybe even a love interest, and said the new series should "address social issues".

Fans are likely to be divided over the radical changes to the show, but producers are determined to bring the character up to date. In the past, Dr Who did not have a love life.

The actor said his new female assistant will have a "strong emotional story".

Previous sidekicks played by actresses including Bonnie Langford spent most of the screen time screaming before being saved by the Doctor.

Eccleston, 40, will become the ninth TV Dr Who when the series is broadcast next year. It was axed in 1989 by Michael Grade - the new BBC chairman - after 26 years on air. The time traveller was famous for his eccentric outfits - particularly the long multicoloured scarf and hat worn by Tom Baker, who played the role in the Seventies and Eighties.

But today Eccleston said: "We are not going to wear scarves and hats. It is still to be decided what the Doctor is going to wear, but he's not going to be quite as eccentric and foppish as he has been in some of his incarnations." Eccleston said he was a fan of the show as a child. The first Doctor he can remember was Patrick Troughton, the second actor to play the role, between 1966 and 1969.

He added: "He should have a slightly dark side. But it would also be nice to bring out something in me which I've not done a great deal of - the lighter stuff.

"It has been written in the first episode that, most of all, he is a man who enjoys himself. He's a man of fantastic enthusiasm."

BBC bosses have not yet finalised an actress to play Rose Tyler, Dr Who's assistant. But Eccleston said she would be an "intelligent" character and could even provide a love interest for the Doctor. He said: "I would hope so, he's got two hearts."