Jodie Whittaker: 5 Things to Know About First Female ‘Doctor Who’
Former “Broadchurch” star takes over for Peter Capaldi as the 13th Time Lord
Jeremy Fuster | July 16, 2017 @ 9:54 AM
Last Updated: July 16, 2017 @ 9:56 AM
BBC
The time has finally come. This Christmas, for the first time in the 54-year history of “Doctor Who,” the Doctor will regenerate as a woman.
That woman is Jodie Whittaker, whose casting was revealed on BBC on Sunday following the Wimbledon men’s final.
In recent years, whenever an actor playing The Doctor announced he was leaving the show, a vocal group of “Who” fans have called on BBC to cast a woman to fill in the role.
When Peter Capaldi announced his departure earlier this year, Whittaker was one of the names thrown around by fans as a possible dream replacement. So who is she exactly?
In the 2006 drama “Venus,” she played Jessie, an aspiring model who poses nude for Maurice, an elderly artist played by the legendary Peter O’Toole. When Maurice reveals his attraction to her and calls her his “Venus,” Jessie is at a loss at whether to indulge him or push him away.
2.She’s best known for crime drama “Broadchurch”
Whittaker is best known for her performance in the on the British crime drama “Broadchurch,” which ran for three seasons and aired its final episode this past April.
Whittaker played Beth Latimer, the mother of an 11-year-old boy whose murder sets the events of the series into motion. The show followed Beth’s struggle to cope with her son’s death, which leads to her splitting with her husband.
3. “Broadchurch” is a real bridge to “Doctor Who”
“Broadchurch” gave Whittaker connections to both the past and future of “Doctor Who,” as she was joined in the cast by David Tennant, who played the lead detective investigating the Latimer murder in the series and previously played the Tenth Doctor on “Doctor Who” from 2006-10.
The show was also created by Chris Chibnall, who previously wrote episodes for “Doctor Who” and created “Torchwood,” an adult spinoff for the series. Whittaker’s reign as the Thirteenth Doctor will also mark a passing of the torch in the “Who” writer’s room, as Chibnall will replace the departing Steven Moffat as head writer for the series.
4. “Attack the Block” already gained her a cult fan base
Whittaker is no stranger to cult sci-fi hits. She starred in Joe Cornish’s 2011 sleeper phenomenon “Attack the Block,” playing a nurse trainee whose mugging by teenage hoodlums (led by future “Star Wars” hero John Boyega) is interrupted by an invasion of space aliens.
5. We have to wait till Christmas to see her at Time Lord
Whittaker will step into the TARDIS for her first season in 2018, and will make her first appearance as the Doctor at the end of this year’s “Doctor Who” Christmas special. Titled, “The Doctors,” the special will see the Twelfth Doctor, played by Peter Capaldi, take his final adventure before regenerating into a woman for the first time.
Joining Capaldi on the journey will be the First Doctor, who was played by William Hartnell back in the 1960s and will be played by “Game of Thrones”/”Harry Potter” alum David Bradley (who played Hartnell in a TV biopic about the origins of “Doctor Who” called “An Adventure In Space and Time”).
'Doctor Who': All 13 Regenerations Ranked, From William Hartnell to Peter Capaldi (Videos)
On the 2017 "Doctor Who" Christmas Special, Peter Capaldi set down his sonic screwdriver so Jodie Whittaker could become the 13th Time Lord in the beloved sci-fi series. Here are our picks of the best and worst farewells The Doctor has given.
13. David Tennant as the 10th Doctor in "The End of Time" •
Matt Smith's tenure as the Doctor got off to a rocky start thanks to David Tennant ending his run as one of the most popular Doctors ever by infamously wailing "I don't want to go!" Tennant's last "Who" tale consisted of the Doctor treating regeneration like permanent death, only to giddily hop around once he transformed into the Eleventh Doctor. Combine that with a new show runner that overhauled the show, and you have a very dissonant jump from one era of "Doctor Who" to the next.
12. Colin Baker as the Sixth Doctor in "Time and the Rani" •
Unlike the other Doctors, Colin Baker unceremoniously left "Who" in between seasons, forcing an impromptu regeneration in 1987 that required Sylvester McCoy to wear a wig imitating Baker's curly locks for the regeneration scene.
11. Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor in the "Doctor Who" TV Movie •
The maligned attempt by Fox to resurrect "Doctor Who" in the '90s featured McCoy dying a gruesome death in an emergency room -- complete with grisly sound effects -- before regenerating into Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor.
10. Patrick Troughton as the Second Doctor in "The War Games" •
In return for helping save some enslaved human soldiers, the Doctor turns himself in to his fellow Time Lords to be tried for stealing his time-traveling TARDIS. As punishment, the Doctor is forced to regenerate in a rather silly sequence where he blubbers about the possible new bodies he might be forced to inhabit.
9. Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor in "Logopolis" •
The most iconic Doctor ever ended his run after falling from a crane during a battle with his archnemesis, The Master. Though the effects showing the Doctor's transformation into his boyish fifth incarnation look weird by today's standards, this episode did give Baker some beautiful last words: "It is the end...but the moment has been prepared for."
8. William Hartnell as the First Doctor in "The Tenth Planet" •
This regeneration may be a simple white flash that switches the face of Hartnell with that of Patrick Troughton, but make no mistake: this is an important moment in "Doctor Who" history, as it establishes the concept of regeneration that allowed "Doctor Who" to last for 50-plus years.
7. John Hurt as the War Doctor in "The Day of the Doctor" •
The late, great John Hurt left a short but unforgettable mark on "Doctor Who" history in the series' 50th anniversary special, playing a Doctor who did such unspeakable things that later incarnations considered him unworthy of his name. But Hurt's Doctor found redemption before peacefully letting go of his form...but not before joking about his next incarnation's massive ears.
6. Jon Pertwee as the Third Doctor in "Planet of the Spiders" •
Pertwee's Doctor was known for offering compassion and sage advice to his companions. That generous spirit carried through to the end, as he used his final words to console a tearful Sarah Jane Smith.
5. Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor in "The Night of the Doctor" •
After Fox declined to revive "Doctor Who" when McGann's TV movie flopped in the U.S., the Eighth Doctor's adventures were mostly confined to radio serials. But in 2013, McGann returned for a mini-episode prologue to the 50th anniversary special, and his performance and regeneration were so excellent that Whovians called for BBC to put McGann in a spinoff.
4. Christopher Eccleston as the Ninth Doctor in "The Parting of the Ways" •
After a new generation of viewers embraced the show's return in 2005, Christopher Eccleston had to teach them to accept a new Time Lord. Eccleston nailed it, explaining regeneration simply while bringing an end to the Ninth Doctor's journey of self-forgiveness.
3. Peter Capaldi as the 12th Doctor in "Twice Upon a Time" •
If you thought Peter Capaldi's exit would be overshadowed by fans' excitement to see the entrance of not just the 13th Time Lord, but the very first female Doctor in "Twice Upon a Time," you were dead wrong. Though we were thrilled to see Jodie Whittaker's first appearance at the end of the 2017 Christmas Special, it was Capaldi's emotional speech at the close of an episode that featured David Bradley as the First Doctor that truly stole the show.
2. Peter Davison as the Fifth Doctor in "The Caves of Androzani"
For many hardcore Whovians, 1984's "The Caves of Androzani" is the greatest "Who" episode ever made. After The Doctor's curiosity lands him on a planet full of back-stabbers and scoundrels, he barely manages to escape with his companion, Peri. Both are poisoned, but he gives the antidote to Peri, leading to a dramatic regeneration where the Fifth Doctor sees visions of all his friends... and a taunting Master.
1. Matt Smith as the 11th Doctor in "The Time of the Doctor"
We had a hard time deciding whether to put this or "Androzani" in the top spot, but Smith's farewell speech was the clincher. With Murray Gold's beautiful score in the background, The 11th Doctor connects regeneration to the human experience while saying goodbye to both Clara and the fans, all before Amy Pond returns to give her Raggedy Man one last goodbye.
1 of 14
Where does Capaldi’s farewell rank among these classic “Doctor Who” finales?
On the 2017 "Doctor Who" Christmas Special, Peter Capaldi set down his sonic screwdriver so Jodie Whittaker could become the 13th Time Lord in the beloved sci-fi series. Here are our picks of the best and worst farewells The Doctor has given.
