---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Being Doctor Who, I used to look at the…"
description: "\"Being Doctor Who, I used to look at the clock and know at half past four we were going to stop rehearsing - and that was a sad moment for me because I ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/177/tom-baker-11691_beautiful_being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-c_2289014.png"
---

#  Being Doctor Who, I used to look at the clock and know at…

![“Being Doctor Who, I used to look at the clock and know at half past four we were going to stop rehearsing - and that was a sad moment for me because I wanted to stay in this beautiful, unreal world.” quote by Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/177/tom-baker-11691_beautiful_being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-c_2289014.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/177/tom-baker-11691_beautiful_being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-c_2289014.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/177/tom-baker-11691_beautiful_being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-c_2289014.png)

> “Being Doctor Who, I used to look at the clock and know at half past four we were going to stop rehearsing - and that was a sad moment for me because I wanted to stay in this beautiful, unreal world.”

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The speaker feels melancholy when the fictional, imaginative world ends, longing to remain in its wonder.

**In simple terms:** Sadness at leaving a fantasy world.

Key Takeaway

Cherish moments of imagination.

Themes

nostalgia creativity transience

Mood

melancholic reflective

Type

literary personal emotive

When to use this quote

- Acting
- writing
- creative hobbies
- daydreaming

Key Concepts

Imagination escapism artistic longing

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you balance imagination with duty?
- What rituals help you transition from fantasy to reality?

A Different Perspective

The reality of responsibilities can’t be avoided indefinitely.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Clock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) [Doctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) [Doctor who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor-who/) [Doctors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctors/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moment/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Real world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-world/) [Sad moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad-moment/) [Sad moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad-moments/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Unreal world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unreal-world/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/)

## Related quotes

> [Whenever the lion fish in the fish tank in the captain's ready room died it was always a sad moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-stewart/whenever-the-lion-fish-in-the-fish-tank-in-the-captain-s-ready-room/)

[Patrick Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-stewart/)

> [Its a sad moment, really, when parents first become a bit frightened of their children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ama-ata-aidoo/its-a-sad-moment-really-when-parents-first-become-a-bit-frightened-of/)

[Ama Ata Aidoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ama-ata-aidoo/)

> [“It was a sad moment. There are sad moments in life, and this was one of them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/it-was-a-sad-moment-there-are-sad-moments-in-life-and-this-was-one-of/)

[Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/)

> [Stop rehearsing life's failures. Use your beautiful imagination to visualize success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-richardson/stop-rehearsing-life-s-failures-use-your-beautiful-imagination-to/)

[Cheryl Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-richardson/)

> [Baby where you been, it's half past ten. Oh, look you're late again. Busy day, got a lot on your mind? You should hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-bell-bundy/baby-where-you-been-it-s-half-past-ten-oh-look-you-re-late-again-busy/)

[Laura Bell Bundy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-bell-bundy/)

> [My hour for tea is half-past five, and my buttered toast waits for nobody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilkie-collins/my-hour-for-tea-is-half-past-five-and-my-buttered-toast-waits-for/)

[Wilkie Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilkie-collins/)

> [“It was half past six and the hands were quietly moving forwards.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/it-was-half-past-six-and-the-hands-were-quietly-moving-forwards/)

[Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/)

> [“Phileas Fogg, having shut the door of his house at half-past eleven, and having put his right foot before his left five hundred and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-verne/phileas-fogg-having-shut-the-door-of-his-house-at-half-past-eleven/)

[Jules Verne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-verne/)

> [“I cannot recall an instance of anything very dreadful happening at half-past one”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/i-cannot-recall-an-instance-of-anything-very-dreadful-happening-at/)

[Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/)

> [Woke up last night half past four, fifty women knocking on my door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-perkins/woke-up-last-night-half-past-four-fifty-women-knocking-on-my-door/)

[Carl Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-perkins/)

> [Hey, little dolly with the blue jeans on, I want to ramrod with you, honey, 'til half past dawn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/hey-little-dolly-with-the-blue-jeans-on-i-want-to-ramrod-with-you/)

[Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/)

> [I bet on a horse at ten-to-one. It didn't come in until half-past five.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henny-youngman/i-bet-on-a-horse-at-ten-to-one-it-didn-t-come-in-until-half-past-five/)

[Henny Youngman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henny-youngman/)

> [Why should I wake when I'm half past dead?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emilie-autumn/why-should-i-wake-when-i-m-half-past-dead/)

[Emilie Autumn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emilie-autumn/)

> [“No, Roger had not seen the funny side. But there had been a moment when, after looking at his watch, he had thought: I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lanchester/no-roger-had-not-seen-the-funny-side-but-there-had-been-a-moment-when/)

[John Lanchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lanchester/)

> [Come back and wake me up…half past May! (the Toad)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-lobel/come-back-and-wake-me-up-half-past-may-the-toad/)

[Arnold Lobel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-lobel/)

## More by Tom Baker

> [Instead of the 1997 film directed, written, by James Cameron with Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane creating a love story and a large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/instead-of-the-1997-film-directed-written-by-james-cameron-with/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [Not only don't I know who I am, but I'm very suspicious of people who do know who they are. I am sometimes ten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/not-only-don-t-i-know-who-i-am-but-i-m-very-suspicious-of-people-who/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [Lis Sladen was very important to me, you know. When I joined the little world of 'Doctor Who', Lis was already a star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/lis-sladen-was-very-important-to-me-you-know-when-i-joined-the-little/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [The Old Testament is my favourite science fantasy reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/the-old-testament-is-my-favourite-science-fantasy-reading/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [Politicians are just Daily Mail journalists writ large, aren't they? They're always telling us what's going to happen, and we know they don't know!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/politicians-are-just-daily-mail-journalists-writ-large-aren-t-they/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [A great tribute, is expressing the great love for a Grandmother we share with our children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/a-great-tribute-is-expressing-the-great-love-for-a-grandmother-we/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [Life is like the rungs on a ladder. The reason they are placed so close together is that we can learn to take baby…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/life-is-like-the-rungs-on-a-ladder-the-reason-they-are-placed-so/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [We are pre-disposed for fantasy, there is a natural impulse for human beings to want to get off their heads or out of their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/we-are-pre-disposed-for-fantasy-there-is-a-natural-impulse-for-human/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [I used to always be putting my hat on children being photographed and then getting home and discovering I was riddled with lice. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/i-used-to-always-be-putting-my-hat-on-children-being-photographed-and/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [Well, I think people don't recognise my face because I'm so much older now, but it is astonishing that people can recognise a voice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/well-i-think-people-don-t-recognise-my-face-because-i-m-so-much-older/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [Some Christmas tree ornaments do more than glitter and glow, they represent a gift of love given a long time ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/some-christmas-tree-ornaments-do-more-than-glitter-and-glow-they/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [When judging others it's the intangibles that we often miss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/when-judging-others-it-s-the-intangibles-that-we-often-miss/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [I'm really not an actor of any kind. I've always seen myself as an entertainer, someone who makes people laugh. That's all I've ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/i-m-really-not-an-actor-of-any-kind-i-ve-always-seen-myself-as-an/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [It's the end--but the moment has been prepared for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/it-s-the-end-but-the-moment-has-been-prepared-for/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

> [It never occurred to me that I’d be typecast, although I was. And I never thought of the role as a commercial product, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/it-never-occurred-to-me-that-i-d-be-typecast-although-i-was-and-i/)

[Tom Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

[Explore all 58 Tom Baker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/)

## More Beautiful quotes

> [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/)

[Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/)

> [Being beautiful comes naturally!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-beautiful-comes-naturally/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/)

[Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/)

> [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/)

[Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/)

> [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/)

[Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/)

> [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/)

[Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/)

> [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/)

Tumblr

> [You will never know just how beautiful you are to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-know-just-how-beautiful-you-are-to-me/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/)

[Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/)

> [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/)

[Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/)

> [Growing up in Iceland, it was very beautiful, very safe, but quite isolated. There was something about jazz music that had a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/growing-up-in-iceland-it-was-very-beautiful-very-safe-but-quite/)

[Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/)

> [How could you feel worthless when God has honoured you by creating you and choosing you to be with Him, in this life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/how-could-you-feel-worthless-when-god-has-honoured-you-by-creating/)

[Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/)

> [Sometimes it's about less is more. It's about the seed. Thinking about this gigantic tree that you think is so beautiful but it started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-durst/sometimes-it-s-about-less-is-more-it-s-about-the-seed-thinking-about/)

[Fred Durst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-durst/)

> [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/)

[Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/)

[Browse all 17,976 Beautiful quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Being Doctor Who, I used to look at the clock and know at half past four we were going to stop rehearsing - and that was a sad moment for me because I wanted to stay in this beautiful, unreal world.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Tom Baker"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-clock-and-know-at-half-past/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Beautiful"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-clock-and-know-at-half-past/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/177/tom-baker-11691_beautiful_being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-c_2289014.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/177/tom-baker-11691_beautiful_being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-c_2289014.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/177/tom-baker-11691_beautiful_being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-c_2289014.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Being Doctor Who, I used to look at the clock and know at half past four we were going to stop rehearsing…” — Tom Baker",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Tom Baker",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-baker/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Being Doctor Who, I used to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-clock-and-know-at-half-past/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-baker/being-doctor-who-i-used-to-look-at-the-clock-and-know-at-half-past/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
