Doctor Who showrunner Chris Chibnall has shared major details of the upcoming feature-length special of the series with eager fans, as Jodie Whittaker prepares to bow out of the role.
The Power of the Doctor has promised ‘action and adventure’ in space and time to mark Jodie’s last adventure as the Time Lord.
The episode will not only see the return of a number of fan favourite companions, but pits the Doctor against her deadliest enemies: the Daleks, the Cybermen and her arch-nemesis the Master.
The official episode synopsis states: “The Doctor faces multiple threats…and a battle to the death.”
Showrunner Chris has promised ‘a massive all action thrill ride from start to finish’, with laughter, tears and jeopardy as the thirteenth doctor leaves to usher in her regeneration into Ncuti Gatwa.
Among the returnees are Sophie Aldred and Janet Fielding – who have not been involved in the hit BBC series for decades.
The nature of the centenary special prompted Chris to seek out stars from the show’s past to do something fresh during Jodie’s stint as Doctor Who.
“Those characters and those actors came to mind as I think they’re representative of certain times in the show’s history and they are both incredibly strong and vibrant characters.
“There are so many to choose from and in a way you want to do all of them but actually, I had to just pick two! And what both of them said separately was ‘Oh I think, Tegan would get on well with Ace’ and then ‘Oh I think Ace would get on really well with Tegan’.”
Also among the returning characters is Sacha Dhawan, whose reappearance in the Doctor Who fold Chris said was ‘a long term plan’.
The episode is set to be a turn up for the Doctor Who villains, with the big three of the Daleks, the Cybermen and the Master making ‘separate plans and multiple threats’ for the Doctor.
Chris explained: “The Doctor is really having to contain separate attacks on multiple fronts and it’s incredibly overwhelming.
“She’s running from pillar to post to try and sort all of these things out. And again, it was something I had in my mind for a long time, that it would be lovely to do the axis of evil, the triumvirate of evil in Jodie’s final episode.”
Chris went on to praise Jodie’s impact during her time as the Doctor, saying she ‘changed the game’.
He said: “I think she’s enriched the character of the Doctor, as all actors who play the Doctor do, but it’s an incredibly bold and brave performance.
“And she took responsibility for the Doctor being a woman, she took it on her shoulders and represented and that was not a given, that was her strength and decision and power.
“I think she has been utterly magnificent, she exceeded all of our expectations. She’s given a whole generation of young girls and women a chance to feel that they are the Doctor also and that was always the purpose from the start of this era, was to really widen that net.”
The Power of the Doctor airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday October 23 at 7.30pm
