Doctor Who fans do not have long to wait to fill the Time Lord-shaped hole in their lives.
The BBC has released a trailer for the new series, set to hit our screens soon - and fans are excited.
“There are forces beyond our universe” is the message being played to fans as Ncuti Gatwa returns to our screens as the leading star.
Details of the upcoming plot have been kept predictably under wraps, but who could we be seeing in the new series?
Following Ruby Sunday’s (Millie Gibson) departure at the end of season one and an adventure with Joy (Nicola Coughlan) over Christmas 2024, the Doctor will find new travelling buddies. Here is everything we know about the highly anticipated show.
Ncuti Gatwa plays the Doctor
Rwandan-Scottish actor Ncuti Gatwa, 31, is back for 2025 as the Time Lord.
Previously best known for playing Eric Effiong on the high school Netflix hit Sex Education, he has also had roles in the HBO miniseries Masters of the Air and Greta Gerwig’s Barbie.
His Doctor has already been delighting fans: “Gatwa’s take on the character is brimming with joy,” said the Standard. “Gatwa and Gibson are both live wires, with charisma to burn; a welcome jolt of energy for a show that’s 60 years young.”
Gatwa’s doctor wears a tank top and a kilt to a club night, and seems more gender-fluid than any previous iteration of the character: “That’s what the show does,” said Gatwa, who is queer, to Rolling Stone. “It evolves and it regenerates. I feel like it’s about time, and I am here.”
Speaking to The Guardian he added: “Doctor Who has such a huge connection to LGBT people... We choose our families. And the Doctor is a lonely wanderer, looking for their next adventure … I know many a gay man I could describe that way.”
Belinda Chandra, played by Varada Sethu
Varada Sethu is a familiar face to Doctor Who fans and last appeared as Mundy Flynn in Season 1’s Boom.
She has been confirmed as a companion to the Time Lord, but whether she joins in as a double act or a trio - alongside Ruby Sunday - remains to be seen.
In the clips we have seen, Belinda doesn’t seem to have chosen to take a trip in the TARDIS - asking the Doctor to “get me home”. And, as is often the case, the Doctor doesn’t appear to be in control, telling her that it may be “the long way round”.
And that seems to be the case with Belinda spotted in the trailer visiting numerous worlds.
Rose Ayling-Ellis MBE
Rose Ayling-Ellis was confirmed to be a guest star for this newest series.
The former EastEnders and Strictly contestant was confirmed by the BBC, but we don’t know what her role will be yet.
Speaking about the casting announcement, showrunner Russell T Davies said: "She's the lead in one episode, which is stunning.
"It's - I think - our scariest episode. Absolutely terrifying, and she's magnificent."
Ayling-Ellis, added: “I loved Doctor Who when I was growing up, so being cast in the show was a dream come true. My inner child is ecstatic with excitement! Working with Russell and filming alongside the talented cast and crew has been an incredible experience. Ncuti is a wonderful Doctor, and I can’t wait for audiences to see what we have created together.”
Millie Gibson plays Ruby Sunday
The Manchester-born actress is best known for playing teenager Kelly Neelan in Coronation Street – and Doctor Who was her first TV role since stepping away from the soap.
She plays Ruby Sunday, a young woman brought up by foster mother Carla Sunday (Michelle Greenidge).
The last season ended with Ruby exiting the TARDIS after reuniting with her long-lost mother. 2024's Christmas special, Joy to the World, finds the Fifteenth Doctor operating alone, solemnly preoccupied with thoughts of Ruby throughout the episode.
Millie Gibson did then make a brief cameo in, looking wistfully out of a window before receiving a phone call from her mother, leaving fans wondering if she could make a comeback.
Michelle Greenidge plays Carla Sunday
Carla Sunday is Ruby’s foster mother. A professional foster parent, she has fostered as many as 33 children over the years.
"Carla's bond with Ruby is very special, and there isn't anything Carla wouldn't do for Ruby. Their love for each other is very strong,” said Greenidge to RadioTimes.
The Bradford-born actress featured as Grace in I May Destroy You (2020), Valerie in Ricky Gervais’ After Life (2019-2022), and as Rosa Babatunde in Channel 4’s It’s A Sin (2021).
If Ruby is back, will Carla Sunday make another appearance?
Anita Dobson plays Mrs Flood
Another EastEnders legend, Dobson, now 75, starred as Angie Watts in the soap in the Eighties, before going on to feature in British series such as The Bill, Casualty, Holby City, Casualty, and Call the Midwife. She’s had a stellar career on stage, starring in everything from Pygmalion (1980) at the Salisbury Playhouse to Madame Morrible in Wicked (2016-2017) and has been married to Queen’s Brian May since 2000.
And in the new series, she is back again. This timem it appears she has ditched the snowy outfit for a pair of opera glasses and appears in a group of people going about her business.
We last saw her warning the audience that the Doctor’s story ends “in absolute terror”, so she could have a bigger part to play this time around.
Jemma Redgrave plays Kate Stewart
Jemma Redgrave has been confirmed as coming back to the series for 2025.
She has previously starred in a number of high-profile films such as Howards End (1992), Mansfield Park (2007) and Love & Friendship (2016), and in series such as Bramwell (1995-1998), Holy City (2016-2022) and Silent Witness (2020-2023). A member of the celebrated acting family, which includes Michael Redgrave, Vanessa Redgrave, Joely Richardson and the late Natasha Richardson, she has played Kate Stewart in a number of episodes of Doctor Who since 2012.
Stewart is the head of Scientific Research organisation UNIT, which explains her multiple run-ins with the Doctor. The character is the daughter of Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart (William Courtney), a recurring character in the series between 1965 and 1989. He also appeared in The Sarah Jane Adventures in 2008.
Archie Panjabi - an unknown villain
It has been reported that Archie Panjabi has been cast as a villain for the upcoming series.
The Emmy Award winner who has starred in Under the Bridge, Snowpiercer, and The Good Wife will reportedly play the villain but details regarding her character remain under wraps.
When will the show air?
No specific date has been released for the new series just yet, but it is expected around May time, similar to the time the new series of Doctor Who had been released in previous years.
