Incoming Time Lord Jodie Whittaker will receive the same pay as predecessor Peter Capaldi, the BBC has confirmed.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, BBC Director-General Tony Hall said there would be “parity” between the two Who leads as the Corporation’s wage report revealed a gender gap problem.
This means the former Broadchurch actor would earn at least between £200,000 and £249,999, the salary that Capaldi was paid for the show. However, it’s likely Capaldi also had a share of Doctor Who’s undisclosed commercial earnings under the BBC Worldwide banner. Although probable, it’s unclear whether Whittaker will be served this same slice of overseas broadcast and merchandising takings.
However, Hall did spell out he was happy with the casting: “I do think it is time for [the] Thirteenth Time Lord to be a woman,” he said. “I watched my first Doctor Who in the Sixties, hiding behind the sofa. As a devoted Whovian, I’m incredibly excited."
The speculation on Whittaker's pay comes after the BBC released details of who at the Corporation was earning above £150,000. The figures revealed several cases of inequality: almost two-thirds of its on-screen stars earning more than £150,000 a year are male – 62 men to 34 women. And while the highest paid male star is Chris Evans, pulling in between £2.2m and £2.25m, the top earning woman is Claudia Winkleman with less than a quarter of that, between £450,000 and £500,000.
But it looks like in the case of Doctor Who, at least, equal pay may have materialised.
Doctor Who will return this Christmas on BBC1
