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Tag: Millie Gibson

  • The BBC’s ‘Doctor Who’ Secrecy Stopped It From Defending Millie Gibson From Tabloid Reports

    Millie Gibson has spoken out about being unable to respond to a series of reports made by British tabloids about her time on Doctor Who—out of concerns from the BBC that doing so could potentially jeopardize revealing then-upcoming storylines from the show.

    Speaking to the I Paper, Gibson touched on a series of reports from British newspapers in 2023 that claimed that she had been dismissed from the series before she had even debuted as the Doctor’s then-latest companion, Ruby Sunday, alleging that the then-19-year-old star behaved like a “diva” on set.

    Gibson’s first full season of Doctor Who wouldn’t premiere until spring 2024, at the climax of which Ruby chose to leave the TARDIS behind to spend time with her family, but she would continue to be a part of the Doctor’s life back on Earth by joining up with UNIT. By that point, however, set pictures and early reporting had confirmed that Andor star Varada Sethu had joined the series as its next companion, Belinda Chandra, and it wouldn’t be officially revealed by the BBC until April 2024, a month before Gibson’s debut season began, that she would continue to appear in the following season in 2025, in an irregular capacity alongside Ncuti Gatwa and Sethu.

    All that time, however, the BBC never formally acknowledged or denied the reports, leaving fans confused and Gibson at the mercy of public opinion even before she’d yet to really step foot out of the TARDIS. “I couldn’t be like, ‘It’s a lie!’ [because] they’d be like, ‘Well, that’s spoilers,’” Gibson told the I Paper. “It was quite hard to stand up for myself without ruining the show. I was like, ‘Oh, this is horrific because it just looks like it’s true.’”

    “Oh, it was awful. What was frustrating was the amount of people that were like, ‘Oh, sorry, this has happened mate,’” Gibson continued, “and I was like, ‘Yeah, it’s not [happened], but thank you.’”

    Without the BBC publicly defending her, Gibson turned to her co-star in Gatwa for advice on how to deal with the scrutiny. “He’s had his time with that,” Gibson added, “and it’s just about just being able to try and shut it out.”

    Is a Doctor Who spoiler worth keeping if it means an actress as young as Gibson is left defenseless from incorrect reporting? Perhaps the formal announcement of her part in season two, alongside Sethu’s arrival, was seen by the BBC as a response to the allegations. But it’s not like the BBC doesn’t respond to reports it considers factually incorrect, and all this still created more confusion that could have possibly been worth it without some kind of pushback to the rumors, which could’ve easily been done while still preserving Ruby’s wider arc on the show.

    But then again, the BBC does seem to love creating confusion over Doctor Who for little reason as of late.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    James Whitbrook

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  • Doctor Who’s Anniversary Anthology Is Returning for a Mystery New Episode

    Doctor Who’s Anniversary Anthology Is Returning for a Mystery New Episode

    Last year, one of the best aspects of celebrating Doctor Who’s 60th anniversary—aside from the pretty great specials themselves—was Tales of the TARDIS, the special anthology-format retelling of classic Doctor Who episodes with newly recorded interstitials from classic Doctors and companions. Now, the series is coming back: with a twist and a pretty big clue as to what to expect from Doctor Who’s current season.

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    The BBC has confirmed (via the Radio Times) that Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson will appear as the 15th Doctor and Ruby Sunday in a special Tales of the TARDIS episode set to broadcast in the UK on both BBC Four and the iPlayer streaming service on Thursday, June 20—the day before the final episode of the current season of Doctor Who, titled “The Empire of Death,” will air. No further details about the broadcast have been announced beyond Gatwa and Gibson’s appearance in newly created material.

    However, there is a lot to speculate about thanks to the announcement. So far, Tales of the TARDIS has been used to broadcast cut-down versions of classic Doctor Who serials, winnowing multi-episode stories into a more digestible omnibus format through the interstitial material. And considering this time the interstitials will feature the 15th Doctor and Ruby rather than a classic Doctor and companion, why else would this new Tales episode exist if their story in the current season of Doctor Who didn’t have links to a classic storyline from years past?

    There’s been a persistent rumor running up to this season that the classic Who villain Sutekh—the dog-like member of the alien race known as the Osirans that, in Doctor Who, would inspire the gods of Ancient Egyptian mythology—would return as a major antagonist. Sutekh has only previously appeared in one Doctor Who story, the 1975 4th Doctor and Sarah-Jane Smith story “Pyramids of Mars,” but has been fleshed out several times since in audio dramas by Big Finish. If Sutekh was indeed somehow going to play a role in the final episode, a Tales of the TARDIS dedicated to “Pyramids of Mars” that essentially acts as the Doctor filling in Ruby on his history with the insidious Osiran would make sense, especially to give audiences who’ve jumped aboard with the new era of the show some extra background info, too.

    But that could apply to any classic villain or character that could appear in the new season—after all, in “The Devil’s Chord” the Doctor already mentioned his past life living in London as the First Doctor, with his granddaughter Susan, to Ruby. Does that mean a long-rumored Carole Ann Ford return is on the cards? Not necessarily.

    Whatever it all means, we won’t have long to find out: Tales of the TARDIS returns on June 20.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel and Star Wars releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about House of the Dragon and Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.

    James Whitbrook

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  • Doctor Who Makes It Official: Andor’s Varada Sethu Is the New Companion

    Doctor Who Makes It Official: Andor’s Varada Sethu Is the New Companion

    Millie Gibson, Ncuti Gatwa, and Varada Sethu at a Doctor Who table read.
    Photo: James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC Studios

    We already had an inkling that Andor’s Varada Sethu would be joining Doctor Who in the second season for Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor—and now it’s official, with the group photo to prove it. Though an earlier report said that Millie Gibson’s Ruby Sunday would be bowing out after Gatwa’s first season, which drops May 10 on Disney+, now that’s not quite so cut-and-dry.

    A press release announcing Sethu’s casting says that she’s “set to take a trip through time and space as the Doctor’s new companion, alongside current companion Ruby Sunday, in season two of Doctor Who.” Season two is currently in production (it’s due in 2025), and the release was accompanied by photos of Gatwa, Gibson, and Sethu at a table read. So, maybe Gibson will be around longer than we thought?

    Star Wars fans know Sethu from her role on another Disney+ series—Cinta Kaz on Andor—but it sounds like she’s just as excited to leap into another sci-fi realm. “I feel like the luckiest person in the world,” she said in the release. “It is such an honor to be a part of the Whoniverse, and I’m so grateful to the whole Doctor Who family— because that is what they are—for welcoming me with open arms and making me feel so at home. I couldn’t ask for a better team than Ncuti and Millie to be on this adventure with. This is SO much fun!”

    Turns out Varada has some history with Doctor Who showrunner, executive producer, and writer Russell T Davies: they worked together on a BBC production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. “It’s a joy to welcome her on board the TARDIS,” he said in the statement. “Right now in the studio, shooting for 2025, we’ve got Ncuti, Millie and Varada fighting side by side—we need all three, because the stakes are higher than ever!”

    Ncuti Gatwa made his debut as the Fifteenth Doctor in Christmas special “The Church on Ruby Road;” his first season kicks off with two episodes May 10 on Disney+.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Cheryl Eddy

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