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Thomas Stewart Baker was born on January 20, 1934 the son of a Jewish factory worker, in the Scotland Road area in Liverpool, England.  His early childhood was shaped by World War II on the war torn streets of Liverpool, where school was scarce and bombings frequent. 

Tom's youth was strongly influenced by his mother's religious upbringing, attending Mass almost daily, and serving as an alter boy attending many funerals.  This linked to his desire to escape Liverpool led Tom, at the age of fifteen, to join a monastery 'the Brothers of Ploermel' in Jersey as a novicate. 

For almost six years, Tom led a monastic life with the Order Of Ploermel before deciding that this was not the life for him.  After renouncing his vows, he had to do his National Service (the draft) in the Army Medical Corps. 

Persuaded to join a Unit show, Tom discovered his love of acting.  Upon the completion of his two years of National Service he took a  temporary job as a merchant seaman for seven months while waiting for the term to begin in a London drama school. 

After concluding his studies, Tom had a series of small roles in several repertory productions before a role with the National Theatre working alongside Sir Laurence Olivier.  Olivier was responsible for Tom getting his first big movie part, Rasputin in the 1971 movie Nicholas and Alexandra. 

Several other film roles and stage productions followed including Macbeth at the Shaw Theatre in London and the part of an evil magician, Prince Koura in the 1974 movie The Golden Voyage of Sinbad. 

After this role Tom was temporally unemployed as an actor and took a fill-in job, working as a laborer at a building site when the current Doctor Who producer, Barry Letts, offered Tom the part of the fourth Doctor.  Tom played the Doctor from 1974 - 1981, making him the longest running and most recognized Doctor. 

During this time the series started to be shown in America and so Tom is the person that many Americans associate with the Doctor Who character.   During this time Tom married his second wife, Lalla Ward, who played his companion in the series, Romana . 

His first wife was Anne Wheatcroft, whom he married in 1960, and with whom he had two sons, Daniel and Piers. 

In April 1986 Tom married his third wife Sue Jerrard.

Since leaving the role of the Doctor Tom has appeared as Oscar Wilde in Peter Coe's play Feasting with Panthers, and made several notable TV series appearances including the parts of Sherlock Holmes in The Hound of The Baskervilles. -1982, the Priest in The Lives And Loves Of A She Devil -1990, Manfred Fisher in Selling Hitler -1991, and as Professor Geoffrey Hoyt in Medics -1992.

1996 saw Tom Baker completeing another season of the ITV hospital series "Medics", and is currently writing his autobiography with the assistance of writer Adrian Rigelsford.