Posted in: BBC, Doctor Who, Preview, Trailer, TV | Tagged: bbc, catherine tate, david tennant, disney plus, doctor who, yasmin finney

Doctor Who Star Yasmin Finney on "Rose" Responsibilities, Pressures

Doctor Who star Yasmin Finney on being cast for the 60th-anniversary special event and if there's pressure that comes with being named "Rose."

Over the past week or so, we've had a chance to check in with Catherine Tate (Donna Noble), David Tennant (Fourteenth Doctor), and Showrunner Russell T. Davies regarding what's in store for the upcoming three-episode 60th-anniversary Doctor Who special event. But for this go-around, we're getting a chance to hear from the newest addition to the "WHO-niverse," Yasmin Finney. And as we're sure you already know, Finney has been tapped for the role of a character named "Rose." To say that news has launched months upon months of speculation regarding all of the ways that Finney could be connected to Billie Piper's beloved & influential companion, Rose Tyler. In an interview with Elle, Finney addressed how she felt playing a character who shares a name with one of the most important characters introduced in the "New WHO" era and if there was a sense of responsibility that came with it

"I mean, it's obviously got a lot of history, hasn't it? To play a character with such history, even just the name, you've got that pressure instantly that I didn't have with Elle [in Heartstopper]," Finney explained, noting the difference between the characters in the respective BBC and Netflix series. "It was a complete mind-blowing experience when I got cast. I can't really relive it because I was so in the moment. At first, [the show] had a code name, and then I found out what the show was, and I was like, 'Oh my God, I've just been cast in 'Doctor Who." It's a trans character as well, and it's such a blessing as well to be able to play such a monumental character like Rose," she added.

Joining Tennant and Tate are Neil Patrick Harris in a big bad role (possibly The Toymaker/The Celestial Toymaker?) & Yasmin Finney as the interestingly-named Rose (Hmmm…). Also, Jacqueline King & Karl Collins are returning as Sylvia Noble & Shaun Temple, respectively, Ruth Madeley is set to appear as Shirley Anne Bingham, and Bernard Cribbins is set to posthumously appear, reprising his role as Wilfred Mott. In addition, fans of the comics can expect to see Beep the Meep and the Wrarth Warriors play a major part, and – as if all of that wasn't enough – Ncuti Gatwa is expected to debut as the Fifteenth Doctor. With all three episodes written by Davies, we learned the episode titles during this weekend's Eurovision 2023 broadcast: Special One: "The Star Beast" (directed by Rachel Talalay), Special Two: "Wild Blue Yonder" (directed by Tom Kingsley), and Special Three': "The Giggle" (directed by Chanya Button). Here's a look at the announcement video that was released to confirm the episode titles:

Button, Kingsley & Talalay on Doctor Who 60th Anniversary Episodes

Directors Button, Kingsley & Talalay shared their reactions to first reading Davies's scripts with Doctor Who Magazine. "Each special has a really different flavour. It feels like Russell [T. Davies] flexing his muscles and showing all the different things 'Doctor Who' can do," Kingsley shared – a sentiment shared by all three directors. Here's a look at some of the highlights:

Kingsley Discusses "Absolute Nightmare" Episode, Teases "Aliens" & "The Thing" Comparison: "I opened mine and just tore through it. Even as a reading experience, it was so exciting. But I kind of got to the end of it and thought, 'Well, I pity whoever has to direct that cos it's an absolute nightmare!' I was planning to email my agent the next day and say, "It's amazing, but… no way." But when I woke up the next morning, I was still thinking about it, and I started to figure out: 'Well, how could you actually do this?' Because a lot of my episode is quite weird. Even at the readthrough, Rachel, your episode went down so well, and I was really jealous of you getting to direct it. Because there are so many complicated stage directions in mine, the reaction in the room was a bit like, 'Um, sorry, what?' Which made me think it was going to be a disaster. But of course, when you come to film it, it's actually really cool. It's got a lot of similarities with two of my favourite films, 'Aliens' and 'The Thing.' It's a little bit of the DNA of those mixed in with 'Doctor Who.'"

Talalay Read All Three & Outlines Some Key Differences Between Them: "I read all three, and my first reaction was, 'Wow!' The first one is classic family 'Who.' It's bringing back that world that Russell left [in 2010] with David and Catherine. And then after that, it becomes much more expansive, with Russell really throwing his massive imagination at it while also being thoughtful about setting up the next series.

Talalay's Episode Allowed Director a Chance to Embrace "The Stuff That Scares You": "My episode features lots of people in lots of scenes. There's soldiers, there's battles, and I thought, 'I haven't always succeeded in doing the action stuff, with loads of extras, that well in the past. This is really scary for me.' So I was determined to do that part really, really well. It's all about embracing the stuff that scares you."

Button's Episode "Was Just the Most Expansive Thing" That the Director Has Ever Read: "It was just the most expansive thing I've ever read. Every page I turned, it was a different world and a different idea and a different sort of bonkers and inspiring adventure. It was just the ultimate luxury to read it and go, 'This is a writer at the very peak of his abilities, completely unbound and confident in what he's putting on the page.' Which, as a director, is really empowering. It's challenging, in the most positive way possible, for someone to go: 'Here's a big idea; let's see how you do it.'"

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