Doctor Who: Chris Chibnall wants to bring Amy Pond, Rory and some classic companions back to the series
And the series showrunner reveals why it was time to bring John Barrowman’s Captain Jack Harkness back to the series
The return of John Barrowman’s Captain Jack Harkness to Doctor Who was a massive moment for the BBC sci-fi series – and in a new interview, series boss Chris Chibnall has revealed that he has his eye on bringing a few other series favourites back for a homecoming.
“To be honest, the canon of Doctor Who is filled with amazing characters,” Chibnall said.
“I’d love to see Ace back, I’d love to see Tegan back, I’d love to see Amy and Rory… the list goes on.”
Hopefully the agents of Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill, Sophie Aldred and Janet Fielding are listening – though sadly, Chibnall noted, some of his absolute favourite characters wouldn’t be able to return after their actors had passed away.
“I would really love to bring back Sarah-Jane,” he admitted. “People working on the show now worked with Lis Sladen and everybody still remembers her so fondly and talks about her a lot. I would love to see her with the 13th Doctor.
“I would love to have brought back Harry Sullivan too, played by the wonderful Ian Marter from Tom Baker’s first season. I would have loved to see Sarah and Harry nowadays to check in with them.
“It’s a credit to those actors,” he added. “They are indelible in my life and memories and those of many others. It’s so sad that they’re not with us anymore.”
For now, fans will just have to make do with the long-awaited return of Captain Jack – and according to Chibnall, bringing John Barrowman back into the fold was an easy fit.
“I felt that what John Barrowman’s Captain Jack brings is an incredible energy, he brings an incredible sense of fun,” Chibnall explained.
“If you’re thinking who you can bring back who can just burst onto the screen and claim the narrative in just three or four scenes, he’s your guy. And I’ve missed him from Doctor Who, he hasn’t been in the show for a decade so I felt it was time to check in with Jack.
“We can only hope that he meets the 13th Doctor one day…” he concluded.
From the sounds of it, if Chibnall had his way the next series of Doctor Who would be a character reunion on a truly grand scale. Here’s hoping at least some of these old faces can make their own comeback one day.
Doctor Who continues on BBC One at 7:10pm on Sundays
Authors
Huw Fullerton is a Commissioning Editor for Radio Times magazine, covering Entertainment, Comedy and Specialist Drama.
