The New Year’s Day Doctor Who Special is over, and we had a lovely surprise at the end. A short clip teasing about who is the Doctor’s next companion. It is the one and only John Bishop!!
Doctor Who has had fine success with comedians onboard. Who can forget Catherine Tate as Donna Noble and her grandfather, Bernard Cribbins. John Bishop has also shown his talents as an actor as well.
John joins Yaz (Mandip Gill) and the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) as Dan. Little else is known about his character other than the short clip shown after the 2021 Doctor Who Special, which indicates that Dan is some sort of tradesman.
If I could tell my younger self that one day I would be asked to step on board the TARDIS, I would never have believed it.
Bishop went on to declare that the part was a dream come true. “It’s an absolute dream come true to be joining Doctor Who and I couldn’t wish for better company than Jodie and Mandip.”
Chris Chibnall, Showrunner, is also thrilled with his choice of the new companion. “It’s time for the next chapter of Doctor Who, and it starts with a man called Dan. Oh, we’ve had to keep this one secret for a long, long time. Our conversations started with John even before the pandemic hit. The character of Dan was built for him, and it’s a joy to have him aboard the TARDIS.”
Matt Strevens, Executive Producer, BBC Studios, says: “It’s been a total joy having John join the cast and we’ve been having a lot of fun on set already. We can’t wait for you to meet Dan when the show returns later this year.”
Piers Wenger, Controller, BBC Drama, says: “We are beyond thrilled to have John Bishop joining Doctor Who. Alongside Jodie Whittaker and Mandip Gill, John is a wonderful addition to the show, and we have no doubt that series 13 is going to be another thrilling set of adventures for the Doctor.”
John has already begun filming and will make his first appearance when the 13th series starts on BBC One later in 2021. No word other than Doctor Who will return sometime in 2021.
