Who Are You?

Posted on 11 October, 2018

‘She’s working class, she’s northern, what can go wrong?’ Christopher Eccleston

And she’s taken on arguably the most anticipated role in TV. Forget who will be the next James Bond. Ignore any casting for The Bachelor or The Bachelorette (please, really ignore it, for the sake of your soul). This is it.

In case you have selective deafness to all things Who, there has been a very big fuss since it was announced that a woman, namely Jodie Whittaker, would step into the Tardis. The most well-known alien on planet earth has regenerated into a woman. And the universe did not end, no one even picketed the BBC. It almost feels as if it is both logical and acceptable …

Whittaker is probably best known onscreen as the grieving mum in Broadchurch so I was captivated by her wonderful smile, something never seen in that series, and thrilled to hear her wild Yorkshire accent when the new series of Doctor Who debuted here on Monday night. She comes from a village known for the work they did shattering rock during the Victorian era for the railways. Locals call themselves ‘Shats’ and according to one interview, she loves that the taxi driver always has the same question when she gets home: art thou a shat lass?

David Tennant, a friend of Whittaker’s says she will be brilliant and Peter Capaldi concurs. So there’s a lot of love for her already. But more importantly – how was the episode? The first post-Moffat story? To quote the 10^th Doctor – brilliant!

There are twisting threads but nothing like the Gordian knots of the Moffat era. The suspense builds nicely, especially on the soundtrack, with its not-quite-music eerie sounds. The other players, some of whom will become her travelling companions for the season, were well realised and, like her, deliciously northern. And they all have important parts to play.

It is actually some time into the show before the Doctor, who has lost her Tardis, crashes to earth through a train carriage in Sheffield. So not a gentle start then – but one to make you sit up and take notice.

The episode has sadness, loss, thrills and heroism – and not all of it from the Doctor. She is not yet herself (still ‘rebooting’) – and gives off moments of other doctors as she races through the night (particularly Tennant, for me). Whittaker is hilarious, with little male touches like lighting a blowtorch, being unimpressed and lighting an enormous, twin-burner one instead, with a huge grin.

I could clearly see Capaldi too, in comments like ‘these legs used to be longer’ and the adoring look she gives a spoon. Although I think they let her have a smaller version of his signature black boots or she’d never have been able to run. Sorry, went full Whovian for a moment and one of the promises made by the new showrunner, Chris Chibnall, is that you will not need to be a diehard to enjoy this season.

So if you have never watched it, or if you rage-strayed with the whole Moffat thing – come into the fold! Come for the promise of 10 stand-alone episodes, for the new companions, for the Doctor and mostly to find out what happens next.

Doctor Who airs on ABC on Monday nights.

Feature image: facebook.com/DoctorWho