An old companion is making their way back into the TARDIS. According to Deadline, Bonnie Langford (EastEnders, 42nd Street: The Musical) will be reprising her role as Melanie ‘Mel’ Bush in the latest season of Doctor Who. Mel first appeared on the show in 1986 as a companion to both the Sixth Doctor, played by Colin Baker (Secrets of a Wallaby Boy, Minacious), and the Seventh Doctor, played by Sylvester McCoy (The Hobbit, Necronomicon). Mel also appeared in the last episode of season thirteen where Graham O’Brien, played by Bradley Walsh (Coronation Street, Law & Order: UK), one of Thirteen’s companions, has a reunion for all past and present companions of the Doctor.
As to what Langford’s role will entitle now, according to Deadline, showrunner Russell T. Davies (It’s a Sin, Torchwood) has said, “Open those TARDIS doors wide, because Bonnie’s back! What an honour, delight and hoot to welcome back the character of Melanie, after too long away, and this isn’t just a cameo, Bonnie is right in the thick of the action, battling monsters and chaos and cliffhangers, right at the Doctor’s side, just like the old days.”
Langford isn’t the first Classic Who companion to make a triumphant return to Doctor Who. The late Elisabeth Sladen (Coronation Street, Take My Wife…) reprised her role as Sarah Jane Smith one of the companions of the Fourth Doctor, played by Tom Baker (Star Wars: Rebels, Little Britain). Slade appeared in an episode with David Tennant (Good Omens, Broadchurch) as the Tenth Doctor and later got her spinoff series The Sarah Jane Adventures. Sladen made a final appearance in season four’s season finale, where all of the Tenth Doctor’s companions came together to save Earth from the Daleks.
The BBC recently released first-look images for Doctor Who protagonists Ncuti Gatwa (Sex Education, The Last Letter from Your Lover) as the Fifteenth Doctor and Millie Gibson (Coronation Street, Jamie Johnson) as his companion Ruby Sunday. RuPaul’s Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon (Happiest Season, AJ and the Queen), Jonathan Groff (Frozen, Hamilton), and Indira Varma (Game of Thrones, Obi-Wan Kenobi) as The Duchess will also be joining the cast for the upcoming season.
The new season is already being filmed with Davies at the helm again. Davies is working as the showrunner for the fourteenth season of the British classic Doctor Who. The new season is being co-produced with Bad Wolf. With the return of Davies, the Whoniverse spin-offs are also back. According to Deadline, a spinoff is currently in the works with actress Jemma Redgrave (Holby City, Grantchester) returning as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart. This spinoff will follow a storyline involving UNIT, a military research organization, that has been present in previous seasons.
A 60th anniversary special will air in November 2023 and will reintroduce David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor, who was last seen when The Thirteenth Doctor, played by Jodie Whittaker (Broadchurch, Journeyman), regenerated in the last episode of season thirteen. Catherine Tate (Hard Cell, The Nan Movie) is also said to be returning to her role as Donna Noble in the 60th special. Gatwa is set to make his first appearance as the Fifteenth Doctor during the anniversary special. Other cast members set to appear in the special include Yasmin Finney (Heartstopper) as Rose Temple-Noble and Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother, A Series of Unfortunate Events).
It has been announced that Doctor Who has found a new streaming home with Disney+ and the BBC announcing a new partnership. New Doctor Who episodes will stream on Disney+ worldwide while remaining on the BBC channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Doctor Who is a sci-fi show about an alien called The Doctor that travels through time and space in the TARDIS. The Doctor spends quite a bit of time saving the Earth from alien attacks and Earth is where they usually meet their companions. The show has been airing since 1963 with William Hartnell (Carry On Sergeant, Escape) playing the Doctor back then. Since that first episode, fifteen different actors have interpreted the Doctor, with Gatwa being the latest to star in this iconic role.
New episodes of Doctor Who will premiere during the show’s 60th anniversary in November 2023. Older seasons of Doctor Who starring Christopher Eccleston (Thor: The Dark World, The A Word), Tennant, Matt Smith (House of the Dragon, Morbius), Peter Capaldi (Suicide Squad, The Thick of It), and Whittaker are available to stream on Max and Prime Video. All episodes of Classic Who are available on Prime Video and Apple TV+.