Doctor Who icon Jo Martin has responded to fans calling for her to be the next permanent Doctor.
The beloved sci-fi has had quite the upheaval in recent weeks, with the BBC announcing that the Christmas special has been cancelled, the show is being put out to competitive tender, and Russell T Davies stepping back as showrunner.
In the mean time, Martin, who played the Fugitive Doctor, is set to star in multi-platform adventure Doctor Who: Circuit Breaker, which will play out from June to September.
Martin made her debut as the Fugitive Doctor in season 12, and has returned various times since then, including a surprise appearance in the season 15 episode The Story & The Engine.
But when asked about whether she’d be up for taking on the mantle of the full-time Doctor on-screen, the answer was a resounding yes.
“Of course I’d be up for it. Of course! It’s a gift of a character, and there’s so much more to explore with her, and I’m not bored of her yet,” she exclusively told Radio Times (speaking to us before the BBC’s announcement was released).
“So, until that day happens, I will happily jump into her Doctor Martins, and now my hat, and do what I got to do. If they need me, I’m there!”
Martin added: “This is the job that just keeps on giving. Anything can happen in this timey-wimey, mad world of ours, so we’ll see. But I do love the fact that my Doctor is one that comes and goes, I really like the freedom of that also. But who knows what the future holds? None of us do.”
Martin made her debut as the Fugitive Doctor in season 12, and has returned various times since then, including a surprise appearance in the season 15 episode The Story & The Engine.
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Circuit Breaker will see the Fugitive Doctor team up with returning character Petronella Osgood (Ingrid Oliver) to face various monsters, including the Silence and the Daleks, and ultimately try to save reality.
Teasing what’s to come, Martin explained: “There are so many layers to her, and we’re just finding these layers, which has been a real gift and a real joy. She’s not one-dimensional, which is what she kind of veers on in her TV appearances, really – you don’t see all the other things that make her tick.”
Martin added: “I think that in all my TV appearances, she’s very decisive, she knows what [she’s doing], it’s a very hard line, and no nonsense. And I think with Big Finish and with Circuit Breaker, we’ve got room to breathe and room for more nuance and room for making her a far more multi-dimensional character.”
Doctor Who: Circuit Breaker begins on 25 June on the UNIT website. Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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