We've seen a few key announcements in the last couple of weeks as the RTD2 era begins filming. David Tennant and Catherine Tate are returning for the 60th Anniversary special. This was announced, it became clear, because they were going to be filming in Camden and everyone was going to know what was going on.
Looking at pictures from the set raises some interesting questions. The Tennant Doctor is in a new variation of his costume, but seems to have the 13th Doctor's TARDIS. There are rumours that this isn't the 10th Doctor but a 14th Doctor who has regenerated into David Tennant. Again. There are always rumours.
I suspect, unless RTD has decided - for reasons that passeth all understanding - that the 60th Anniversary should focus only on his period of Doctor Who, that there are more casting revelations to come.
It was also announced that Yasmin Finney will be part of that 60th Anniversary story as Rose. Like Tennant's costume the fact that she is called Rose has set cats amongst pigeons. Is she an alt-universe Rose Tyler? There are other theories but I want to avoid spoiling what might be coming for other people here. Yasmin Finney is the second trans actor to appear in Doctor Who, after Bethany Black, and the first to play a companion. If companion is the right word. She is currently in Heartstopper, which is a Netflix TV series based on Alice Osman's comic. I haven't watched Heartstopper* yet but it is a series with a global following and is a casting choice that will, I suspect bring new people to Doctor Who.
Which brings me to perhaps the most important piece of news. We have a new Doctor and his name is Ncuti Gatwa. Gatwa was born in Rwanda and bought up in Scotland. He is the first black actor to play the Doctor.** He too is currently in a popular Netflix series, Sex Education, which is another series I was intending to watch mainly - I must confess - because Gillian Anderson is in it. He seems, from the interviews I've seen, to be a lovely man full of enthusiasm for the part. I saw him as Demetrius in a fantastic production of A Midsummer Night's Dream at The Globe and he was pretty darn good in that so I'm pretty confident he'll be a good Doctor Who.
I've noticed that both these castings take actors from Netflix series that have a younger, global demographic. Both actors have huge followings on social media - Ncuti has c2.7m followers on Instagram and Yasmin has c.1.4m - which again I suspect gives Doctor Who access to a potentially new audience. There were some complaints about this being a deliberate attempt to ignore the "traditional" Doctor Who fan base but I think any Doctor Who showrunner who just wants to make Doctor Who for fans like me - 51 year-old men who think Tom Baker is still the best Doctor Who - then the series will die. It always needs to be changing and it always needs to be finding a new audience.
This also brings me on to another bunch of naysayers. The various bits of casting have annoyed the usual suspects who seem happy to accept a character can entirely change their appearance and personality in an instant but can't cope with the Doctor being a woman or black. I said, back when Jodie was cast, that there is no canon/continuity reason that the Doctor can't be any race or gender. (And at this point we can thank the Lord that Troughton didn't get his way when he suggested playing the Doctor blacked up and wearing a turban. A clear bonkers suggestion that probably would have helped make Doctor Who a programme that died a long time ago. Of embarrassment I suspect.)
Some time ago I wrote a blog - Telling Different Stories - that talked about how casting a women or a person of colour creates questions about the way The Doctor operates and how that might change what kind of stories it tells. One of my - several - disappointments with the Chibnall era is that it almost never really challenged how women are treated. I suspect, having listened to RTD, there will be a different approach. I'm quite excited to see what happens.
The one great thing about RTD is that he sells Doctor Who better than almost anyone. As someone who has worked in sales for decades RTD is a joy to listen to. He manages to convert his own love and enthusiasm for Doctor Who into a kind of enthusiasm vortex that sucks other people in. He also comes across as incredibly positive in general. I recommend listening to any decent interview with him to see that but if I was to pick one then I'd go for his appearance on Desert Island Discs
And we've still got Jodie Whittaker's final episode to come. The story that will be part of the BBC 100th Anniversary celebrations. The Chibnall/Whittaker era has been a divisive one. I'm excluding the NMD misogynists on principle. They have there own issues to deal with. But a lot of people whose opinions I respect have disliked it a lot. I have enjoyed a lot of it but I suspect it might end up being my least favourite era of new Doctor Who. There isn't space here to analyse all these reasons, but there will be a blog coming. Spoilers: it has nothing to do with either Jodie Whittaker or The Timeless Child.
So, this is a little catch-up blog for you all covering the news.
I'm excited for what is coming. I was initially a bit meh about the David Tennant announcement but then after it had settled I found myself genuinely interested to see where RTD is going to take Doctor Who in its 60th Anniversary Year.
Oh, and I'm re-watching all of Doctor Who (and spin-offs) with a view to having everything re-watched by the 60th Anniversary. Keep an eye out for updates etc.
*I've read the comics though and loved it. I was planning to watch the series at some point. Yasmin Finney's casting might speed that up.
**I've seen people state he'll be the first gay man to play the Doctor too but I haven't seen that explicitly confirmed anywhere. The character he plays in Sex Education is gay.
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