As Belinda Chandra was kidnapped from her home at the start of Doctor Who series two, eagle-eyed viewers might have spotted a familiar face from next-door’s garden.
That’s right, it was Anita Dobson – aka Mrs Flood. She have seemed like a concerned, elderly neighbour, but the soon mask dropped when Belinda was escorted onto a rocket ship bound for Missbelindachandra One.
"Take care Belinda, bye-bye!" she said, then turned to the audience, breaking the fourth wall: “You ain’t seen me!”
What’s going on there? Of course, it’s not the first time that Mrs Flood has appeared on our screens. In last year’s Christmas special, The Church on Ruby Road, she was introduced as a neighbour to none other than Millie Gibson’s character Ruby Sunday.
In addition to keeping an eye on the comings and goings of her street, she also seemed very familiar with the Tardis – and during the series finale, was pictured standing on a snowy rooftop holding an umbrella.
“I'm going to bring absolute terror!” she said at the time. Spooky: she’s definitely an upcoming villain. But what’s her deal – and does she have anything to do with the fact that Earth has mysteriously disappeared?
"You will know exactly who she is by the end of this series," Dobson has said about the character this time around. "By the end of it, as it rolls towards the conclusion of the last few episodes, she really flies her colours, so you know exactly what's going on."
This season, it looks like Mrs Flood will be popping up even more: in every episode, apparently, including the season opener and finale.
“She generally is the kind of character that pops in and out, a bit like a little animal,” Dobson added. “As the course of the series goes on, she's around a little bit more.”
She also teased that she almost guessed the real identity of Mrs Flood – before all was revealed by showrunner Russell T Davies. "I was half-and-half, I was teetering a bit," Dobson teased. "You'll have to wait and see!"
“There are very definite answers,” Davies added. “[But] It may raise more questions as well.”
Mrs Flood’s storyline has been in the works for a long time “A couple of years ago, I sat her down at my office and explained where we were heading, and that was a great moment,” recalled Davies.
“Her eyes were popping out of her head, and she was so delighted to be given such a big story. So, she will be mysteriously cropping up throughout time and space, she's no longer just a neighbour watching the Doctor go to and fro. Suddenly she has that ability across planets and history. How on Earth has that happened?”
All bets are off, but here are some of the top theories for Mrs Flood’s true identity:
A member of the Pantheon
The first season of Ncuti Gatwa’s tenure as Doctor teased big villains on the horizon in the form of the Pantheon of Discord. We had Neil Patrick Harris’ Toymaker – who proved to be the demise of David Tennant’s returning Tenth Doctor – as well as Jinkx Monsoon’s villainous Maestro.
It stands to reason that some of their brethren could also be on the way – and the surname ‘Flood’ does sound pretty biblical…
A Time Lord?
She knows what a Tardis is, and she has a habit of popping up all over the place. Could she also be a citizen of the planet Gallifrey? Could she even be (gasp) the Doctor’s own long-lost granddaughter Susan, who stayed behind on Earth all those decades ago?
That would explain her age, but also not her villainous tendencies. Unless Susan has somehow been turned to the dark side…
Another villain entirely
Mrs Flood’s constant fourth-wall breaking does hint at something new and ominous for the Who-niverse – and something that’s not been seen before.
In fact, she seems to be a bit of a meta storyteller in the show, speaking to the audience during the series finale to tell us that “the story of The Church on Ruby Road comes to an end. With a very happy ending for little Ruby Sunday.
"But life goes on, doesn't it? Ruthlessly. And what happens, you might wonder. Oh, what happens to that mysterious traveller in time and space known as the Doctor? I'm sorry to say his story ends in absolute terror. Night night!"
Perhaps we’re going to have the rug pulled out from under our feet entirely? Who’s to say – but we’ll certainly be tuning in to find out.
