text: McCoy became the Seventh Doctor after taking over the lead role in Doctor Who in 1987 from previous incarnation Colin Baker . He remained on the series until it ended in 1989 ( see List of Doctor Who serials ) .
simplified: He is best known for playing the seventh incarnation of the Doctor on Doctor Who from 1987 â `` 1989 , he also briefly played the Doctor in beginning of the 1996 TV movie .