Tom EllisSince David Tennant confirmed that he'll be hanging up his sonic screwdriver in 2010, we've been heavily debating who should get the key to the Tardis next.

But a completely unexpected name has been thrown into the mix.

Remember Tom Ellis?

He played Albert Square physician Dr Oliver Cousins for just five months in 2006, and briefly appeared in the series three Doctor Who finale, Last Of The Time Lords in 2007 as Dr Tom Milligan.

According to reports, new show boss Steven Moffat has already asked Tom about his availablilty to play the Time Lord for the 2010 series.

A BBC source told The Mirror: "Tom is the frontrunner for the job and is very interested."

"Now he has to impress Steven and show he's willing and able to play a different kind of doctor."

We're used to the Doctor Who bods keeping us guessing, and Tom would be an interesting choice for the role - but does he have enough gravitas for the part?

According to the grapevine, other names in the frame include Robert Carlyle, David Morrissey and Russell Tovey.