Dr. Who’s newest Doctor, Peter Capaldi, admitted that he actually learned to act from watching the series as a kid, and got advice from the most recent men to fill the Time lord role.

Capaldi is the 12th man to have the honor of being a part of a franchise that dates back 50 years. Being 56-years-old himself and from the UK – Who was a part of his childhood for a long time and ironically enough is the reason he took to acting.

“To be honest because I was such a big fan of the show when I was growing up. I think specifically the first four Doctors found their way into my DNA. I think even if I hadn’t won the part if Doctor Who there still would be a little bit of them in the kind of actor that I am. Instead of going to RADA and bring taught how to act properly I was taught at the school of Doctor Who.”

For those unfamiliar with the cult classic, the first four Doctors are William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, John Pertwee and Tom Baker. Americans are more familiar with the last two, David Tennant and Matt Smith. Although their senior, Capaldi admitted that he looked to that pair for advice as well after he landed the role.

“I spoke to David and Matt quite a lot about the role. The fantastic thing is they’ve both been at the heart of this huge show,” adding, “The series can be quite tough to make, it’s a fabulous job, but you are confronted by a host of new things. We went to the read through and there was something like 250 people there and I’m trying to figure out who they all were and what they all did.”

Capaldi made his debut as Doctor number 12 this weekend and fans on Twitter did not seem that impressed. One wrote that she fell asleep during it, another said it felt like a breakup with their favorite show. Usually those Who fans are rabid and eat up whatever it put before them. Now they are being a bit picky. Maybe they need time to get used to the new guy and the second episode will garner more positive viewer reviews.