Billie of All Trades: Billie Piper
Events
When I was looking at pictures of Billie Piper from the second day of Fan X, I was somewhat baffled. She looked like she stepped out of the pages of Tiger Beat circa 1993. With a blue flannel shirt, overalls, fingerless gloves, spats and her hair in a messy top knot bun, she is the epitome of not-giving-a-damn and I love it. During her panel on day three, she delivered again, this time in a half up top knot bun, leather jacket, and the return of the spats and fingerless gloves. She’s tiny and adorable, and a total nail biter. She answered audience’s questions the only way a cute and coy actress knows how: by being so damn charming the entire audience could barely handle it. Kerry Jackson, the moderator, brought up that she initially started as a pop star, and is now doing stage performances. That is great and all, but the fans lining up had so many questions about Doctor Who.
Her favorite new companion? Probably Karen Gillan or John Barrowman. I see that she shares my idea that Captain Jack Harkness and maybe even Rory are the show’s best companions. The ultimate “Eccleston or Tennant?” question arose, to which she responded, “You guys love this question,” and admitted she had more of a laugh working with Tennant. She elaborated on her audition process, saying she was pretending to feel ill and was high on sugar so she had nothing to lose. I’d say it worked out for her.
I also learned she’s a mother in the beginning stages of introducing her child to Doctor Who. He is trying to grasp the idea that Matt Smith, who hangs out at their house often, is also the Doctor. “How do you balance being an actor and being a mom?” asked an audience member.
“Badly,” she admitted. But somehow, Billie Piper finds a way to make it all work and be a successful fan favorite.
