Steven Moffat used to dress up as a superhero called Red Rat
Thankfully he was a child at the time.
- Radio Times Staff
Published: Friday, 7 October 2016 at 9:44 pm
He may be known as the man who writes about the biggest superhero in sci-fi, but Steven Moffat revealed his own secret alter-ego during New York Comic Con — Red Rat.
Ad
Wait, what?
The unexpected anecdote was announced as the Doctor Who panel discussed new plot revelations surrounding the 2016 Doctor Who Christmas Special, which features a mysterious masked vigilante played by Justin Chatwin. But as it turned out, this wasn't the first time Moffat had dabbled with creating superheroes.
“It is a little known part of my history, but I was a superhero for most of an afternoon once,” he told the audience, recalling his childhood years.
“I became so obsessed with superheroes, and Clark Kent in particular. I realised I was mild mannered, shy and useless, therefore my alter-ego must be awesome, going on the Clark Kent principle. So I became Red Rat.”
If this wasn’t enough, Moffat then went on to reveal that he even made a costume for Red Rat, and by the sounds of things, risked being sued by DC Comics in the process.
“I had a sort of rat mask, and a cowboy hat, and I turned my Batman cape the other way round, because I didn’t want it to be wrongly branded at that early stage,” Steven explained. “And at the age of six, I walked around Paisley looking for crime.”
Despite the iconic costume design, Red Rat’s crime-fighting days were sadly short lived.
“I never really had much of a plan. As I realised as I walked around, what I would do if I encountered crime? And I started to realise that criminals confronted by me might think I was just a strangely dressed small boy and might not fall aside in terror at my appearance. So I thought, ‘I think I’m going to give this up.’”
A tragic end. But with Steven Moffat’s tenure at Doctor Who nearly at an end, maybe Red Rat could live again in a new TV series?
Ad
No. We’re joking. This is a joke. Please no.
Authors
Radio Times Staff
Ad
Ad
Get the Christmas double issue
Too much to watch at Christmas? Let Radio Times do the choosing to find something the whole family will enjoy.
Loading...
Ad
Loading...