Alex Kingston would like her character, River Song, to meet the Fifteenth Doctor, aka Ncuti Gatwa’s current incarnation of the Time Lord.

At a panel at the MegaCon in Orlando, she was asked which Doctor she’d like to meet, and she singled out Gatwa’s, calling him a “twinkly badass too”, something which he’d earlier described River as. But is her return likely? She went on:

“It was such a wonderful journey and the journey may still continue. Who knows? I mean, can you imagine just flying the TARDIS and going to all those incredible different dimensions in time and space? I mean, it’s been an amazing journey and I fly the TARDIS better than he does…”

River first appeared in Steven Moffat’s Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead, opposite David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor, a tale which ultimately saw her sacrifice herself for not only the Doctor but also their future together (not to mention the 4,022 people saved by the Library computer). She next made life interesting for the Doctor in The Time of Angels/ Flesh and Stone, with Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor, the incarnation she appeared with the most. Finally, she was last seen in The Husbands of River Song, a Twelfth Doctor (Peter Capaldi) adventure on the night before she was due to go to the Library.

But on audio, i.e. for Big Finish, she’s met numerous other Doctors, as well as other companions and enemies like the Autons, the Master, the Krotons, and the Sontarans.

So could we see River again on TV? It’s certainly possible. Nonetheless, it is perhaps unlikely.

Would you like to see more of Melody Pond, aka the Doctor’s wife, aka River Song? Or has her story now been fully told?

Richard Franklin, who played UNIT’s Captain Mike Yates in Doctor Who, has passed away, aged 87.

The actor passed away in his sleep after fighting a long-term illness on Christmas Day morning 2023. Yes, it has taken longer than it should have done to report his passing, but obituaries are funny things, especially for those people we really care about. Acknowledging someone important isn’t part of our physical world anymore is, of course, gutting, but more than that, with obituaries, you have the task of making something worthy of someone special. How do you sum up a life in a few paragraphs? How do you close a chapter with a simple news item?

Because the thing about Mike Yates, and about Richard Franklin, is that he was fantastic.

Yates was such a well-rounded, interesting, compelling, and watchable character that he feels like he’s been in more serials than he actually has been. He debuted in Terror of the Autons — often, it’s often said, introduced to the show as a potential love interest for new companion, Jo Grant (Katy Manning); a love that never came to be, though there was always a flirtation and magnetism echoing between them. Yates was in a number of much-loved stories including The Claws of Axos, The Dæmons, and The Green Death, in which he hides a pain behind his eyes as he’s forced to say goodbye to Jo as she gets engaged to someone else.

After that, Yates’ journey twists into something unseen on Doctor Who before: he becomes the betrayer, someone whose ideals are manipulated so much that he apparently turns against UNIT. In Invasion of the Dinosaurs, however, he still remains true to his friends, including the Brigadier (Nicholas Courtney), Benton (John Levene), and the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee), trying to make sure they wouldn’t get hurt.

Sadly, his betrayal means he’s dismissed from UNIT, so the next time we see him, he’s trying to find himself at a retreat in Planet of the Spiders. He’s still fighting the good fight — he’s just no longer a captain. He calls in UNIT, seemingly not bothered by their animosity towards him: all that matters to Mike is that good triumphs. In some ways, then, Mike was the only member of UNIT, at least in the Third Doctor era, who was truly allowed to grow, to become more than solely the soldier.

The last time we see Franklin in Doctor Who properly was The Five Doctors, playing a phantom in the Tower of Rassilon — not the real Mike, but it was good to see our old captain again nonetheless.

But Franklin wasn’t finished with Doctor Who, of course; he even appeared in audio adventures, including Big Finish’s The Third Doctor Adventures and UNIT: Assembled. He even met the Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) in Paul Magrs’ The Nest Cottage Chronicles, i.e. Hornets’ Nest, Demon Quest, and Serpent Crest.

He loved playing Mike so much that he even wrote a novel about Yates: The Killing Stone, which sadly was never published, it having presumably been written for Target’s defunct The Companions of Doctor Who range. He even wrote, directed, and appeared in Recall UNIT at the Edinburgh Fringe in 1984. He was, it’s clear to see, a very talented man and we were lucky to have him as part of our Doctor Who universe.

Richard’s acting break came in the soap, Crossroads, in 1969, playing Joe Townsend, which followed his training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), where he won the Jenny Laird prize, awarded for “achievement in a thankless role” (and named after the actress who’d star as Neska in Planet of the Spiders). Franklin joined the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1963 and spent a short period in the Birmingham Repertory Theatre.

He’d go on to play Denis Rigg in another soap, Emmerdale, with more TV and film roles including in Blake’s 7, Dixon of Dock Green, The First Days of Spring, Twilight of the Gods, and the Star Wars movie, Rogue One.

Franklin was also deeply religious, converting from Protestantism to Roman Catholicism later in life, as well as being politically minded — indeed, he stood as a parliamentary candidate during several general elections, founded the Silent Majority Party, and wrote Forest Wisdom: Radical Reform of Democracy and the Welfare State.

I met him a number of years ago at a Doctor Who convention. I was a little anxious about this meeting — I always loved Mike Yates, so meeting the actor behind the character was somewhat intimidating — but I shouldn’t have been: despite the place being crowded, the queue stretching out behind me, he was warm and friendly, shaking my hand and giving me time; he seemed a bit amazed that he should be such a draw for fans.

But perhaps that was the magic of Mike Yates and of Richard Franklin. He had that warmth, that twinkle in his eye, and I’m not sure he ever appreciated just how good he really was.

Goodbye, Captain. We shall miss you.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of Richard’s family and friends.

Doctor Who Magazine‘s 600th issue is available in shops now!

This celebratory issue includes a 16-page supplement, an exclusive art card, a specially commissioned diorama featuring figures from the recent series, and a four-hour long Sixth Doctor audio drama for every reader.

But what’s inside? All of this:

• Millie Gibson checks in with DWM following the debut of companion Ruby Sunday in The Church on Ruby Road.
• UNIT regulars Jemma Redgrave (Kate Lethbridge-Stewart), Alexander Devrient (Colonel Ibrahim), and Ruth Madeley (Shirley Anne Bingham) face questions from the TARDIS Tin.
• Production designer Phil Sims takes us on a guided tour of UNIT’s central London HQ!
• We talk to DWM writers about their experiences interviewing the stars of Doctor Who for early issues of the magazine.
• International Who! A special report on how the series has become a hit in Spain!
• Meet Christina Rotondo – the singer who gave voice to Janis Goblin!
• We pay tribute to Richard Franklin who died on Christmas Day – and examine the impact he had as UNIT officer Captain Mike Yates.
• We talk to production runner Thani Subkhi about his vital work on the upcoming series.
• Letter from the Showrunner – Russell T Davies gives us an update on the progress being made on the next two series!
• Time-Space Visualiser – discover the secret recipe for sky-high ratings!
• The Fact of Fiction – we examine the opening episodes of 1973’s Planet of the Daleks.
• The adventures of the Fifteenth Doctor and Ruby Sunday continue in the comic strip!
• Gallifrey Guardian – all the latest official news.
• Reviews – covering books, audio dramas and games.
• Other Worlds – the essential guide to new stories in Doctor Who’s expanded universe.
• Win The Daleks in Colour, Blu-ray box sets, books, and audio dramas!

Doctor Who Magazine #600 is out now, priced £10.99 (in the UK). A digital edition is also available from pocketmags.com, priced £9.99.

Peter Capaldi appeared on the Where There’s A Will, There’s A Wake podcast recently and reflected on the popularity of the Doctor Who episode, Heaven Sent, which as the Twelfth Doctor he played almost entirely as a one-hander.

The Steven Moffat-penned and Rachel Talalay-directed episode is considered one of the show’s masterpieces by many fans, and features the Doctor navigating a castle (and his grief) as he is very slowly pursued by the Veil, a near-silent creature hidden mostly from sight by its veil and played by Jami Reid-Quarrell.

To fill 54 minutes with a single actor delivering most of the script and occupying almost all of the screen time required a very special performance from Capaldi, creative directing from Talalay, and of course a script from Moffat where enough happened to maintain audience interest while also being structured in such a way where the focus was always on the emotion – particularly grief – rather than the action.

“It was very unusual. It was beautifully directed by Rachel Talalay, who’s a lovely American lady.

“You’ve got to talk about monsters and it’s a sort of circus – kids love it and everybody’s got to be entertained but actually underneath it all, there’s a sense of melancholy and death.

“That particular episode’s just all about death and I think that’s fascinating that that episode became the all-time favourite.”

Heaven Sent was even an immediate hit with audiences whose own lives meant they would have nothing to resonate with in a grief-led story, such as younger viewers. Capaldi went on:

“[Young Doctor Who fans are] smart in the sense they understand instinctively that there’s darkness and there are things around and the monsters are manifestations of that.”

“But also the fact that the central character in Doctor Who will die – even though they come back as somebody else, the one that you love has gone, and that’s a very compelling and powerful thing to have at the centre of a show.”

Capaldi, who is now 65 years old and was 57 when Heaven Sent was broadcast, is still very busy as an actor and has reasserted that he won’t be returning to the role of the Doctor on television. He very specifically cited that medium in response to Tenth Doctor actor David Tennant playing the Fourteenth Doctor in the 60th anniversary specials, so didn’t address the possibility of following Tennant into working with Big Finish for Doctor Who audio productions.

Millie Gibson, who plays Fifteenth Doctor companion, Ruby Sunday, has said that the episode of Doctor Who Series 14 set in the 1960s is her favourite of the season.

She enthuses:

“The sixties episode will blow people away. I think that’s my favourite, personally. It’s a really cool episode with cool costumes. Any of the era episodes are always pretty iconic, aren’t they?

“It’s good because it’s usually only the companions that get new costumes but that season, the Doctor changes his outfit as well. I’m always blown away by the make-up team and the costume team, they’re so good.”

Indeed, we’ve seen the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Ruby sporting very Sixties attire, and both are looking fantastic. The Doctor has swapped outfits for the time period occasionally in the past — the Fourth Doctor fashioned himself after Sherlock Holmes for The Talons of Weng Chiang, the Eleventh went all Victorian for The Snowmen, and the First Doctor prepared for The Reign of Terror with an extravagant look.

This “sixties episode” is due to be screened as the second in Series 14, directed by Ben Chessell, called The Devil’s Chord and featuring a massive battle at Abbey Road. Oh, plus the Beatles, naturally.

Millie also confirms that she’s in Series 15, enthusing about “Ruby’s season two look”; she’s expected to appear in at least three episodes of the 2025 run, before a new companion joins the TARDIS.

But for now, we’re just excited to see what adventures are in store for Ruby and the Doctor!

Being thrust into the limelight is a daunting thing for anyone, let alone when starring in one of the best known franchises in the world, so it’s interesting to hear Matt Smith, who played the Eleventh Doctor in Doctor Who, reflect on how he deals with such fame.

The 41-year-old actor, currently starring at the Duke of York’s theatre, London, for An Enemy of the People (from 6th February to 6th April), says his friendships keep him grounded:

“Yeah, my two best friends, Alex and Nick. We lived in the same street as children. They’ve been very important to me in my life. Especially when you get a job like Doctor Who, which thrusts you overnight into a completely different atmosphere. It’s quite discombobulating. Suddenly, people recognise you.”

Indeed, it sounds as if he thinks fame isn’t really for him, but it’s a useful way of doing what you want to do. He goes on:

“I’m a firm believer in trying to commit to keeping things as everyday as possible. I had a nice talk with the cab driver on the way here. ‘What are you up to?’ he asked. I was listening to Talk Radio. I said: ’What do you mean? I’m off to work.’ And he said: ‘I know that, but what are you doing?’ I was, like: ’Oh, sorry mate, of course…’”

Matt played the Eleventh Doctor between 2010 and 2013, Doctor Who‘s 50th anniversary year, with a cameo in Peter Capaldi’s first full episode, Deep Breath, too.

And since then, his career has included some hits — like The Crown and House of the Dragon — alongside a few misses. Nonetheless, Smith is consistently great, and it’s wonderful to hear he’s still grounded and committed to the arts.

The next series of Doctor Who, starring Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson, was initially planned to start screening on BBC1 and Disney+ in January 2024, before being delayed.

In the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine, showrunner Russell T Davies says that he’d wished Series 14 had followed the Christmas Day special, The Church on Ruby Road:

“There’s still a lot of work to do. Tons and tons. In an ideal world, we might have followed The Church on Ruby Road with a full series of Ncuti and Millie in January, and believe me, we tried. Way back in 2022, we juggled schedules and budgets and capacity, but… nope. We’d have ended up spending money on the rush, rather than on the programme itself.”

So what’s caused the delay? Davies reveals it’s actually all the FX work:

“It’s the FX, really; people keep telling me how fast and easy FX are, and I hear the distant sobs of our FX teams. This stuff takes ages! Look at that gorgeous UNIT Tower. The Not-things. The Meep! It’s months and months of hard work, and well worth the wait.”

So if that had all gone to plan, we’d have been enjoying brand new adventures for the Fifteenth Doctor and Ruby Sunday by now! But, on the other hand, with the schedule as it is, we’ve got all that to look forward to, and the wait until the next Christmas special afterwards won’t seem quite as brutal…

Nonetheless, it would’ve been cool to get more of the Doctor to kick-start the year.

Either way, we’ve got nine episodes of Doctor Who to get excited about, with Series 14 debuting instead this spring. Ah, we can’t complain really. It’s going to be worth it…

Mandip Gill, who played Yasmin Khan, companion to the Thirteenth Doctor (Jodie Whittaker), has seemingly — albeit accidentally — confirmed that Varada Sethu has been cast as the new companion in Doctor Who Series 15.

Though Sethu’s casting as an as-yet-unnamed companion to the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) remains pure rumour right now, Gill was asked at the Radio Times Covers Party 2024 about Varada. Mandip said:

“I actually have messaged Varada, just a general ‘enjoy it’ because it goes so fast and it was what I wanted to hear… There’s no actual advice, but I’m sure she’s going to be absolutely amazing. But yeah, really enjoy it because time does fly when you’re having fun.”

Sethu has been seen filming with Gatwa on location, dressed in 1950s garb, so the smart money is on her being the next companion after Ruby Sunday, Millie Gibson apparently leaving the show after Series 14 (due to air later this year) and the first few episodes of Series 15, at least reportedly.

The BBC hasn’t responded to any such speculation. Mandip might’ve just messages Sethu based on those rumours, which originated in the tabloid newspaper, The Mirror, or perhaps she’s heard more than we have from behind-the-scenes sources. Either way, it seems likely that she’s bang on the money. Indeed, the Radio Times is reporting on it as fact!

Gill, of course, played Yaz throughout the Thirteenth Doctor era, debuting in The Woman Who Fell to Earth and leaving at the conclusion of The Power of the Doctor.

If the rumours are correct, Varada will debut in 2025 opposite the Fifteenth Doctor, with Ruby seemingly bowing out after three episodes of Series 15.

Now that we’re in February, thoughts are naturally turning to Doctor Who Series 14, which is set to air later this year — and one producer has promised “a rollercoaster ride”

Joel Collins has been an executive producer on Doctor Who since Russell T Davies returned as showrunner, and has been interviewed by SFX magazine. The publication asked about the Series 14 finale, and Collins enthused:

“It’s an amazing ending. Every episode of season one is like a rollercoaster ride… [The series has been] amazing to make. I mean, amazing for us all to go on individual journeys through the episodes, and they culminate in something fantastic. And it’s gonna be really fun for the audience.

“The audience needs to keep a keen eye out for amazing fun Easter eggs and things that are going to layer through the season.”

And with The Church on Ruby Road having screened on Christmas Day, introducing Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor to his new companion, Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson), we’ve already seen some threads that will surely be pulled upon through the next season of the show — namely the question of Ruby’s parents and of Mrs Flood (Anita Dobson), who went through a curious change in the festive special and ended the story by acknowledging the TARDIS (and the audience, breaking the fourth wall).

We’ve heard a lot about the Series 14 finale, with Davies teasing big things too; so far, however, we don’t know loads about the story, except that Bonnie Langford will be in it as Mel Bush. Presumably, this means UNIT will also be in the serial.

Doctor Who Series 14 airs later this year, with the finale screening at the start of the summer.

Since its announcement, fans have been eagerly awaiting the reveal of the release date for Doctor Who: The Collection Season 15, a Blu-ray set comprised of Fourth Doctor stories — and though it’s not been confirmed by the BBC yet, we now have a date the collection should be on shelves across the land.

Doctor Who: The Collection Season 15 will be released on 18th March 2024.

So we don’t have long to wait at all!

The set features adventures for Tom Baker’s incarnation of the Doctor, alongside Louise Jameson as Leela, and introduced John Leeson as K9.

Season 15 isn’t exactly a fan favourite, but does include some very popular stories, notably Horror of Fang Rock and Image of the Fendahl; they’re accompanied by K9’s intro, The Invisible Enemy (a guilty pleasure of mine), the myth-inspired Underworld, Robert Holmes’ The Sunmakers, and Leela’s exit in The Invasion of Time.

The release date comes via Amazon, though expected delivery dates for the set are typically a week later according to online reports.

We should note that instalments of Doctor Who: The Collection have often been delayed, so this might not be the final release date, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed. Zavvi has an expected due date of December 2024, so we think that’s a filler date until a final one is actually revealed.

The set also includes loads of bonus features:

• UPDATED SPECIAL EFFECTS: Exclusive to Blu-ray, on Horror Of Fang Rock.
• BEHIND THE SOFA: New episodes with Louise Jameson (Leela), Colin Baker (The Sixth Doctor), Sarah Sutton (Nyssa), Janet Fielding (Tegan), Matthew Waterhouse (Adric), Katy Manning (Jo Grant), Betsan Roberts (wife of director Pennant Roberts), and comedian and presenter, Toby Hadoke.
• BLU-RAY TRAILER: A brand-new scripted trailer to announce the Season 15 boxset of Doctor Who.
• DARKNESS AND LIGHT: A look at the life and career of producer Graham Williams.
• IN CONVERSATION: Interviewer Matthew Sweet chats to Louise Jameson.
• INSIDE THE LIGHTHOUSE: Making Horror Of Fang Rock.
• TOM TALKS: Tom Baker muses on life, the universe, and everything.
• AUDIO COMMENTARIES: Exclusive new Audio Commentaries from Tom Baker.
• 5.1 SURROUND SOUND MIX: On Horror Of Fang Rock.
• RARE CONVENTION FOOTAGE
• TOM BAKER BLACKPOOL EXHIBITION LINKS
• RARE ARCHIVE TREATS
• HD PHOTO GALLERIES
• INFO TEXT
• PDF ARCHIVE

Doctor Who: The Collection — Season 15 is available to pre-order now.