The actor behind the ribbon monsters in Doctor Who has a long history of Whoniverse roles
Ian Gelder, who provided the dialogue for the ‘Remnants’, has also appeared in Game of Thrones…
Jodie Whittaker’s second Doctor Who episode introduced some seriously creepy new monsters called the Remnants, with the ribbon-like baddies terrorising the Doctor and her friends towards the end of the episode.
During their attack, the Remnants posed some interesting questions to the Doctor – just who IS the Timeless Child, anyway? – but some viewers may have been more intrigued by who was behind the spooky voice they used to ask them.
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Happily for you, we have the answer – Game of Thrones star Ian Gelder, who plays Kevan Lannister in the HBO fantasy series and has also starred in Mr Selfridge, Ripper Street, Robin Hood and Silent Witness among his many roles. Now, he can add a voice credit for Doctor Who to the list.
But perhaps most intriguingly to Doctor Who fans, this isn’t the first time Gelder has popped up in the Whoniverse. He previously starred as cowardly MI5 tech expert Mr Dekker in spin-off Torchwood, specifically the critically acclaimed 2009 five-part Torchwood: Children of Earth miniseries that saw an alien race demand human children as tribute.
Famously, that episode of Torchwood also starred a future Doctor Who star – Twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi, who played civil servant John Frobisher – so really, the connections just keep on coming.
Oh, and lest we forget, Gelder has also popped up in a Big Finish Doctor Who audio play, voicing Dracula and Long John Silver in 2010 Sixth Doctor story Legend of the Cybermen – so really, it was only a matter of time until he lent his vocal stylings to the main series.
In the end, the Remnants only had a short tenure in Doctor Who, but who knows? Based on his current rate, we can probably expect Gelder in another Doctor Who-related property in another nine years or so.
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This article was originally published on 14 October 2018
