Bill returns and the Doctors unite in new Doctor Who Christmas special pictures

Her return – announced during Doctor Who's panel at San Diego Comic-Con – will also see her meet David Bradley’s take on the First Doctor (originally played by William Hartnell) as he joins forces with his later self, with rumour abounding that other former companions including Jenna Coleman’s Clara Oswald may also be saying their farewells to Peter Capaldi’s Time Lord in the festive special.

Also announced at the panel was a new character played by Mark Gatiss, known as The Captain. Interestingly, his promo picture puts him next to the Capaldi and Bradley, inferring that he will play a major part in their story. Check out their (rather big) picture below.

Speaking of the character, Gatiss revealed earlier to Empire that The Captain had a, "resonant echo in the whole Doctor Who story," and that it was, "a privilege, an honour and a thrill" to play him.

This appearance will mark the fourth character that Gatiss has played in the sci-fi series, having previously appeared as a mutated scientist called Professor Lazarus in 2007 episode The Lazarus Experiment, voiced a World War II pilot nicknamed ‘Danny Boy’ in 2010/2011 episodes Victory of the Daleks and A Good Man Goes to War, and a mysterious figure called Gantok in The Wedding of River Song.

Gatiss has also written ten episodes for the series since it returned to 2005 as well as creating 2013 “making-of” drama An Adventure in Space and Time, where he actually cast Bradley as First Doctor actor William Hartnell prior to his appearance as the Doctor himself in the main series this year.

Doctor Who returns to BBC1 this Christmas