Posted in: BBC, Doctor Who, Preview, TV, YouTube | Tagged: bbc, disney plus, doctor who, Millie Gibson, Ncuti Gatwa

Doctor Who: Jemma Redgrave, UNIT Return; Aneurin Barnard Joins Series

Jemma Redgrave's Kate Lethbridge-Stewart & UNIT will return in the next Doctor Who series, with Aneurin Barnard joining in a mysterious role.

We're shifting gears with our coverage of the BBC & Disney+'s Doctor Who, shifting from the 60th-anniversary specials to spotlight what's to come with incoming Doctor Ncuti Gatwa, new companion Millie Gibson (Ruby Sunday), and new/returning showrunner Russel T. Davies' Series 14 (at least, that's what we're assuming it's going to be numbered). And today's update comes in the form of some casting news, with a familiar face and a "mysterious" new addition. First up, UNIT and Jemma Redgrave's Kate Lethbridge-Stewart will be back on our screens, helping to defend the planet once more. Joining Gatwa, Gibson, and Redgrave is Aneurin Barnard (1899, Peaky Blinders) in the role of Roger ap Gwilliam. Were you expecting details? Spoilers!

Davies shared some thoughts via Doctor Who Magazine #586 (which you can order here) about how his return came about, believing in himself & his ability to do right by the show, what his biggest upgrade is during this run as showrunner, and a quick tease about the second episode of the upcoming new series. Here are some of the highlights:

March 25, 2021: Things Start to Happen: RTD has a Zoom meeting with Piers Wenger, the BBC's Director of Drama, and Charlotte Moore, Chief Content Officer of the BBC. And that's when plans truly began to get underway… just don't expect RTD to divulge what was discussed. "So the Zoom happened, and things were said, and frankly, no one would trust me at work if they thought every word was going to end up on this page! But, more importantly, I cannot tell you what was said because we talked about things you've yet to see," RTD explained. "Plans we are still unfurling. Ideas that have not even begun."

Though He "Had to Think About It," RTD Knew He Was Up for a Return Run: "Seriously, I had to think about it. There were obvious doubts, with everyone lining up to say: can lightning strike twice? (Yes, if you stand in the middle of the storm and hold up a bloody great big lightning rod, oh yes, it can!) But in truth, as I considered this show's future in a brand-new TV environment with a mighty quest ahead, I thought… I'm needed. Yup. There are times in life when you have to put modesty, insecurity, and doubt aside and know what you are capable of."

RTD Supports BBC's Decision to Partner with Disney+: "That was the BBC's idea – that's how hugely they'd been thinking about Doctor Who, all the way back then – and I completely agreed. Without a second's doubt."

RTD's Biggest Upgrade During This Run? "In my first years as showrunner, I never had an office. That's quite barmy, looking back. I'd go to meetings in other people's offices. If they were busy, I'd perch in a corner and wait. I'd linger in corridors. I'd hover in stairwells. Now the perch, linger and hover are no more! I have an office, at last, and here I am, with episode two in front of me (it contains the words Liverpool, legions, and non-diegetic) and a studio that's thrumming and humming and about to start one of the most important shoots in Doctor Who's history."

TEASER CLUE ALERT! In the quote above, RTD drops that he has the second episode of the new series in front of him and that the words "Liverpool," "legions," and "non-diegetic" are connected to it.

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