Early this morning, Doctor Who star Matt Smith revealed via Twitter that he’s to run a mile through Cardiff with the Olympic Torch this Saturday.

He tweeted, “To carry the Torch is an honour, one I thought I’d never get. I’m very excited!”

Matt’s taking time out from filming the latest series of Doctor Who to run with the torch, and of course, the forthcoming seventh series is to be the last featuring Amy Pond and Rory Williams, who are played by Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill respectively.

And apropos of departures from the show, fans will surely recall that Christopher Eccleston played the role of the Time Lord for just one series, and though he’s never fully explained why he left, he intimated it was to do with backstage disagreements…

However, in a recent interview with The Telegraph, Christopher revealed a little more – thought not much! – detail about the reasons for his hasty exit.

He said, “I know what went on and the people who were involved know what went on – that’s good enough for me,

“My conscience is completely clear. I’ve lived my life, particularly my working life, on the basis that I have to be able to look at myself in the mirror about the way I behave.

“It wasn’t a bold move, it was an entirely natural one. I’m hugely grateful to the children who to this day come up and talk to me about the show.”

And of the possibility that he might return to filming for the show’s 50th anniversary, Christopher told chat show host Graham Norton, “I never bathe in the same river twice.”

Oo how profound.