Ncuti Gatwa says it's David Tennant's fault he's trouserless in first Doctor Who scenes
"Thank you so much for that, David Tennant, thanks so much!"
Ncuti Gatwa made quite an impression on his first Doctor Who appearance last weekend as he helped David Tennant's fourteenth Doctor see off the threat of The Toymaker (Neil Patrick Harris) – and he did it all while not wearing any trousers.
Gatwa's entrance came after the first 'bi-generation' in the show's 60-year history, with the Time Lord splitting in two rather than having a new Doctor replace the old one as has traditionally been the case, something which showrunner Russell T Davies has teased will have major repercussions for the entire Whoniverse.
One quirk of the bi-generation was that while the Doctor himself doubled, the same was not true of his outfit, meaning that the Fourteenth and Fifteenth iterations of the characters had to share one set of clothes, with Gatwa going trouserless as a result.
And, speaking during a recent interview on The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 2, Gatwa joked that Tennant was to blame for his lack of clothes.
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"The Doctor splits in two and we both got half of the costume David was wearing," he explained. "Now, David obviously started his filming for that scene first, so he got to pick what pieces of clothes he was left with. So by the time I came in to choose, I only had a pair of pants and socks to go with."
He added: "So thank you so much for that, David Tennant, thanks so much."
Although the results of The Giggle mean that there are now two Doctors, Gatwa's version will be the focus going forward, with Davies revealing that there are no plans for Tennant to return at present.
Read more:
- Doctor Who boss says there are "no plans" for David Tennant to return
- Doctor Who boss confirms Ncuti Gatwa still has "the old TARDIS"
His first full episode will be Christmas special The House on Ruby Road, which will introduce Millie Gibson as his new companion Ruby Sunday and was described in "a fantastical reinvention" in our four-star spoiler-free review.
Meanwhile, Gatwa's costume seems likely to continue to be the focus of much interest in the future, with it already having been confirmed that, unlike previous Doctors, he will be wearing a new outfit every episode rather than having a fixed costume.
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Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
