(Back in ) Time Lord! Day Dr Who made his acting debut
Revealed, how Scots theatre company gave Ncuti Gatwa f irst shot at stardom
HE is about to take on the biggest role of his career as TV’s Doctor Who.
But long before his coming adventures travelling through time and space as the 14th Time Lord, Ncuti Gatwa got his break treading the boards at Dundee Repertory Theatre.
Now the 29-year-old has spoken of the ‘true honour’ of taking on a role that is ‘an institution’ and ‘so iconic’.
Gatwa’s stage appearances in Dundee included parts in The BFG, Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None and a wounded Polydorus in Greek tragedy Hecuba as part of a Dundee Rep graduate trainee scheme. He also appeared in David Greig’s three-part saga Victoria.
Dundee Rep’s artistic director, Andrew Panton, said: ‘Ncuti always had a spark. You can never predict what is going to happen in someone’s career but what you can see is a hunger in emerging actors and Ncuti had that hunger.
‘What’s particularly exciting about Doctor Who is that every actor who plays the role makes it their own and makes it completely different, so Ncuti is the perfect actor to do that. Whatever he does with that role is going to be hugely exciting.’
Gatwa went on to find fame as gay teenager Eric in the hit Netflix TV show Sex Education and will pick up the sonic screwdriver in the BBC’s longrunning sci-fi series next year.
Thirteen actors have piloted the TARDIS since the time-travelling alien known as Doctor Who was first played on TV by William Hartnell in 1963. Gatwa takes over from Jodie Whittaker, who was the first female Doctor.
He also becomes the youngest actor and the first black actor to take on the role.Mr Panton added: ‘Discussions around Doctor Who’s ethnicity and gender are completely redundant. It’s nonsense to be discussing those things. Doctor Who is for everyone and everyone needs a chance to see themselves as Doctor Who.’
Gatwa said: ‘It’s a true honour. This role means a lot to so many people, including myself. I feel very grateful to have the baton handed over and I’m going to try to do my best.’
Born in Kigali, Rwanda, in 1992, Gatwa’s parents, Tharcisse and Josephine, fled with him to Scotland during a 1994 genocide in their homeland.
He was raised in Dunfermline and Edinburgh, before moving to Glasgow to study acting at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. After his time at Dundee Rep, he landed a brief TV appearance in the Scottish sitcom Bob Servant in 2014, alongside Succession star Brian Cox and Jonathan Watson.
He said he doesn’t have a favourite Doctor Who, but added: ‘They are all amazing, you can’t pick. I’m a fan of
Doctor Who and I don’t know who isn’t a fan. I’m very excited to join the family. I want to battle aliens for a really long time. I can’t wait to do that. There will be pressure but I think I’ll handle it.’
Yet, Gatwa came close to missing out on the coveted role. Showrunner Russell T Davies said: ‘It was our very last audition. We thought that we had someone and then he came in and stole it. It was a blazing audition.
‘Genuinely, I’ve watched Sex Education and loved his work but I didn’t know what we were going to get until he was in the room. I am properly thrilled.’
The BBC will hope to capture a younger audience for Doctor Who as Gatwa has 2.5 million Instagram followers.
BBC entertainment correspondent Lizo Mzimba said: ‘It is interesting that they have gone for someone relatively young but who also has a huge following with young people thanks to Sex Education.
‘He has been nominated for Baftas three times for Sex Education, so it’s not just a demographic decision. It is hiring an actor who has got a huge amount of talent.’
Mr Panton said: ‘We are incredibly proud of Ncuti as we are of all the alumni from the Dundee Rep graduate actors scheme, but it is definitely Ncuti’s moment. David Tennant also appeared on the Rep stage early in his career, so it is our second Doctor.
‘He is fun and inquisitive and really skilled. I’m not sure anyone can predict that someone will be a star but he definitely had that spark.’
Former Doctor Peter Capaldi: ‘What a great story – a little boy whose family escaped from the genocide in Rwanda and, at age two, finds refuge in Scotland where he grows up to become Doctor Who. That’s a story to be proud of. I know Ncuti will make an amazing Doctor.’