Just what the doctor ordered...

Star’s portrait on display in National Galleries

A PORTRAIT of new Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa has been put on display in the National Galleries of Scotland.

The photograph, taken by Robert Wilson, joins a number of former Doctors, including fellow Scots Peter Capaldi and David Tennant. It is currently on display at the National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh, and free to view.

Viewers were treated to their first glimpse of Gatwa as Doctor Who at Christmas and his first full season in the role is expected to begin airing in May.

Prior to starring as the Doctor, Gatwa was known for his portrayal of Eric Effiong in the Netflix series Sex Education, and in the recordbreaking film Barbie.

Anne Lyden, director-general of the National Galleries, said: “It is exciting to see this dynamic portrait of the hugely talented actor and style icon Ncuti Gatwa enter the national collection.

“Gatwa joins the ranks of previous Doctors already in our collection, and we look forward to welcoming fans of the new Doctor Who when they visit this stunning photograph by Robert Wilson on our portrait gallery walls.”

Born in Rwanda, Gatwa arrived in Scotland at just two years old in 1994 with his family as a refugee fleeing genocide.

He grew up in Edinburgh and Dunfermline and graduated from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in 2013.

Photographer Wilson said: “Ncuti was an absolute joy to photograph.

“We were shooting several of the nominated candidates for the Bafta awards that day, which happened to be the second to last day before the country went into lockdown due to Covid.

“Within 15 minutes I had shot 224 beautiful frames, any one of which could probably have been used for the feature.

“He is a true professional, and I think we managed to capture his warm personality brought to the shoot that day.”