Doctor Who veteran Sophie Aldred, who portrayed Ace alongside Sylvester McCoy between 1987-89, has shared her enthusiasm for the new era of Doctor Who and thinks Ncuti Gatwa will be “a brilliant Doctor” as he arrives this Christmas.
In an interview with The Radio Times, Aldred explained that she and her husband had devoted considerable time to watching the entirety of Sex Education, which stars Gatwa, Asa Butterfield, Emma Mackey, and Gillian Anderson.
“He’s gonna be such a brilliant Doctor. He’s just got everything, he’s just amazing. And also, when it was announced that he was going to be the new Doctor, my son, who’s gay and a drag queen, came running downstairs and said, ‘Mum, I’m going to start watching Doctor Who now,’ because he’s not watched it, he’s not been that fussed.”
She praised Russell T Davies, who returns as showrunner, for his “brilliant” casting choices ahead of his second tenure on the series. “So, I think we’re just gonna have a whole new generation and a whole new fanbase for Doctor Who, which is very, very exciting. So, yeah, I’m thrilled to see how it’s gonna go.”
Aldred, who recently reprised her role as Ace alongside Jodie Whittaker and Bonnie Langford in Doctor Who, revealed her thoughts on the latter returning to the series.
“I’ve been texting her saying, ‘I’m so jealous. I’m so jealous.’ And then I saw the picture of her on this Vesper, which I never got to ride. I thought, ‘Hang on a minute, that’s just not fair!’”
“It’s very, very exciting,” Aldred added. “I think it’s going to blow our ideas of what’s possible with Doctor Who out of the water. I mean, let’s face it, Russell’s got a pretty good track record of that, hasn’t he?”
All twelve series of the revived Doctor Who era can be streamed via the BBC iPlayer, with classic serials on Britbox.
