Braces high
JODIE WHITTAKER OPENS THE DOORS ON DOCTOR WHO’S 11TH SERIES…
Contrary to rumour, precedents for Doctor Who’s latest change didn’t all arrive this century. Recent cases include the Master/Missy and a Time Lord General, but remember: this is a show about time travel. In 1976, the fourth Doctor reacted nonchalantly to an alien’s male-to-female regeneration, as if he’d… seen it before. Further travels reveal the third Doc speaking to a pal in his subconscious voices, one of which sure sounds like a woman’s voice.
In casting Jodie Whittaker as the TV show’s first female Doctor, did oldschool Whovian and new showrunner Chris Chibnall (Broadchurch) hear that voice? Either way, as Whittaker explains with deeply Doctorly warmth and fervour, the 13th Doctor will honour the show’s driving push-pull of old/new ingredients. “Obviously, I’m the first woman,” she says. “But that doesn’t go against the rules of the show, or the world that it’s created by regenerating the character.”
The way she describes her, Whittaker’s enthused portrayal won’t seem unfamiliar to fans of new-series Doctors Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi. “It’s brilliant,” she says of
making the show, immediately owning the word “brilliant” just like Eccleston owned “fantastic”. “You run about, jump off stuff. You’re forever flinging yourself around. The Doctor I wanted to play is fizzing with energy.”
Yet to paraphrase Matt Smith’s Doc, she doesn’t waste that energy running away from anything, especially the past. Instead, she’ll honour Doctor Who’s pioneering past by running towards the new. As Whittaker describes Series 11, “It’s got all the things we love about the show. The Doctor is a pacifist, she’s got a sense of justice, she carries hope for humanity. But it has fresh elements…”
Fresh elements are ample off screen. While Chibnall’s previous Who scripts include (tricera) top romp ‘Dinosaurs On A Spaceship’, he’s joined by new-to-Who composer Segun Akinola and five new-to-Who writers (Malorie Blackman, Ed Hime, Pete McTighe, Vinay Patel, Joy Wilkinson).
CREW VISION
On screen, a crew of contrasts is offered by TARDIS co-travellers Tosin Cole, Mandip Gill and Bradley Walsh. As Whittaker explains, “Tosin, who plays Ryan, he’s the cheeky one. Sometimes he goes feetfirst without thinking but he’s got a brilliant, vibrant energy. Graham, played by Brad, can be the most cautious. And Mandip, who plays Yas[min], she’s passionate, excited and ready for adventure.”
Although rumours of a Rosa Parks-themed episode (and all other storylines) are under spoiler guard as TF writes, Whittaker describes Series 11’s revitalising representational range
as a way to keep the show “current, relevant” and armed “with the power of hindsight” for visits to history. Inclusivity is Chibnall’s intent. And even with character arcs involved, those blue doors will be flung open to old, new and casual viewers alike, says Whittaker.
“You don’t need an encyclopaedic knowledge of the show to have this series as a starting-off point.
If you fall in love with it, like we have, you’ve got an amazing back catalogue to explore. Also, because you’ve got 10 individual stories [in Series 11], you could start on episode one or four. You tune in, you all sit round the television, and there’s a beginning, a middle and an end to each adventure. If you miss an episode, you’re not done for.”
FUTURE PROOF
Although Whittaker calls herself a “new Whovian” rather than a long-standing fan, she harks back to an apposite viewing experience. “As a kid, the roles I wanted to play weren’t played by people who looked like me. But I didn’t stop looking up to those characters because they were played by boys. There’s a slight myth that Doctor Who is now a show where girls look up to girls – but it’s like, no. You look up to your heroes, regardless of who’s playing them.”
Similarly, Whittaker (working with cossie designer Ray Holman) had “a lot of say” in making her Doc’s duds comfy enough for anyone – “Not just a certain sex.” One of her influences just screams Doctor Who: “I found a black-and-white picture of a woman in boots, cropped trousers, t-shirt and braces. There was nothing feminine about it, nothing masculine, nothing 21st Century. It felt timeless.”
But those boots are not only made for walking. Even before the Whittakera starts, her casting has hoofed open doors of possibility for Who’s future. As she says, “It’ll be impossible to predict the next Doctor. The pool of actors is so rich, and now any hat can be in there. It’s always different – you can’t compare Chris to David to Peter to Matt. But there has been a” – she laughs – “certain similarity.”
“It devastates me to think there will be a handover at some point, as is inevitable; I’ll be hanging on kicking and screaming. But it’s exciting that someone completely different to me will get to play this role. Because now, who knows who it will be next?” Kevin Harley
DOCTOR WHO SERIES 11 STARTS ON 7 OCTOBER ON BBC ONE.
‘THE DOCTOR I WANTED TO PLAY IS FIZZING WITH ENERGY’ JODIE WHITTAKER