<P> The Master is a recurring character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its associated spin - off works . The character is a renegade alien Time Lord and the archenemy of the title character the Doctor . </P> <P> The Master has been played by multiple actors since the character's introduction in 1971 . Within the show, this is varyingly explained as the Master taking possession of other characters' bodies, or as a consequence of regeneration, a biological attribute allowing Time Lords to survive fatal injuries . </P> <P> The role was originated by Roger Delgado in 1971, who portrayed the Master until his death in 1973 . From 1976 until the show's cancellation in 1989, the Master was portrayed by a succession of actors: Peter Pratt, Geoffrey Beevers and Anthony Ainley . Eric Roberts then took on the role for the 1996 Doctor Who TV movie . Since the show's revival in 2005, the Master has been portrayed by Derek Jacobi, John Simm and Michelle Gomez . </P> <P> Beevers and Jacobi reprised the role for the Big Finish audio dramas, while Alex Macqueen and James Dreyfus portrayed incarnations unique to Big Finish . </P>

Who played the original master in dr who