Ncuti Gatwa Is the New Doctor Who!

Christian Cawley
Ncuti Gatwa is 14th Doctor Who

Yesterday you probably hadn’t heard of Ncuti Gatwa. Today, he’s the new Doctor Who.

The actor is probably best known for his role in the Netflix show Sex Education, but all that is about to change with his casting as the Fourteenth Doctor. In this week’s podcast, Christian Cawley and James McLean recap and discuss the casting, with some reaction from the Kasterborous Facebook page.

““There aren’t quite the words to describe how I’m feeling. A mix of deeply honoured, beyond excited and of course a little bit scared. This role and show means so much to so many around the world, including myself, and each one of my incredibly talented predecessors has handled that unique responsibility and privilege with the utmost care. I will endeavour my upmost to do the same.”

Russell T Davies, meanwhile, is his usual PR fluffiness: “The future is here and it’s Ncuti! Sometimes talent walks through the door and it’s so bright and bold and brilliant, I just stand back in awe and thank my lucky stars. Ncuti dazzled us, seized hold of the Doctor and owned those TARDIS keys in seconds. It’s an honour to work with him, and a hoot, I can’t wait to get started. I’m sure you’re dying to know more, but we’re rationing ourselves for now, with the wonderful Jodie’s epic finale yet to come. But I promise you, 2023 will be spectacular!”

There is some feeling that Gatwa’s unveiling is a last-minute decision, following speculation that it was to occur during the FA Cup Final next Saturday. Intead, the news was announced following Gatwa’s Instagram post and RTD’s subsequent response.

And later in the day, it’s the BAFTAs, which of course (!) means that RTD and Ncuti are on the red carpet…

A far cry from the expected “big name” that seemed commensurate with the remarkable steps taken to relaunch the show in 2023, Gatwa is nevertheless an accomplished actor at just 29 – the same age as Peter Davison when he was cast in Doctor Who way back in 1982. This makes Gatwa one of the youngest actors to play the Time Lord, again, something unexpected thanks to a rumourmill that churned out everyone from Hugh Grant to David Tennant to T’Nia Miller.

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