The “fam” will be torn apart in the incoming Doctor Who festive special, as two of the show’s main cast members are leaving. Every episode of the past two seasons has featured Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor alongside her best pals Yaz Khan (Mandip Gill), Ryan Sinclair (Tosin Cole) and Graham O’Brien (Bradley Walsh), but things are about to change as Cole and Walsh are exiting the TARDIS in the New Year’s Day episode, “Revolution of the Daleks.”
This has been long rumored, but was only just officially confirmed last week. And now, the stars have opened up about their “emotional” exit from the sci-fi series and teased what we can expect from the special.
“It is very, very dramatic. It is very sad. It is quite sad and poignant is the word,” Walsh said. “You can expect a lot of poignancy from the episode.”
Reflecting on his time on Doctor Who, Walsh added:
“I have absolutely loved it, loved it. Wales has become like a second home to me and being included in something so iconic and ground-breaking with the advent of having a female Doctor, that whole thing where [showrunner Chris] Chibnall sold that to me, it didn’t disappoint and I loved working with those guys. I love working with Chris Chibnall, that man is a genius but to also be working with Mandip and Tosin and of course Jodie is just extraordinary.”
As for Cole, he said it was an “honour” to have been part of something as widely beloved as the show is around the planet.
Tosin Cole added: “It’s been an honour to work on such a cultural institution with fans across the world. The people like me on the screen come and go, but it’s the people behind the scenes and the fans that will always be there keeping the Doctor Who world alive and exciting. [I’m] looking forward to having a rest though!”
EP Chris Chibnall, meanwhile, hinted that there will be tears to come from this episode, though he hopes fans see it as a fitting sendoff to the pair – no matter what happens.
“It’s very emotional, I think we’ve all been in tears watching it and it’s a really important part of the special where you get lots of thrills, lots of spills, lots of Daleks and lots of emotion. Without spoiling anything it’s hard but we don’t shy away from what it means for this family to have its final moment together. It was emotional off-screen and it’s emotional on-screen. I hope it feels like a good send off to those two characters – no matter what happens to them.”
While Walsh and Cole are off, Gill will remain on board the TARDIS as Yaz by the end of the special. She’s already filming season 13 alongside Whittaker right now, with the duo set to be the sole two leads of the show going forward. This next run has a reduced episode count of 7 as opposed to 10 as well, due to the limitations on production during the pandemic.
In addition to featuring the farewells of two main characters, the special will likewise bring back one of the most iconic companions of all time – John Barrowman’s Captain Jack Harkness, who’ll be a major player in the outing. Also watch out for Chris Noth’s returning villain Jack Robertson and, last but not least, the dreaded Daleks themselves.
Don’t miss Doctor Who: “Revolution of the Daleks” this January 1st.