Oldham-trained Millie Gibson to reprise role in Doctor Who

The 19-year-old made her debut appearance as the Doctor's new sidekick, Ruby Sunday, in the Christmas Day special The Church on Ruby Road.

Gibson will appear in the upcoming season of Doctor Who, the first starring Ncuti Gatwa in the iconic role, which is set to air in May.

Rumours circled in January that Gibson, who trained at Oldham Theatre Workshop, would be leaving the show after just one season and would be replaced by Varada Sethu, best known for her roles in Star Wars spin-off show Andor and the Strike Back series.

Gatwa and Gibson will hit the screens next month (Image: BBC via PA)

However, the BBC has now confirmed that Gibson will be appearing in the following season alongside Sethu.

Sethu, 31, said: “I feel like the luckiest person in the world.

“It is such an honour to be a part of the Whoniverse, and I’m so grateful to the whole Doctor Who family, because that is what they are, for welcoming me with open arms and making me feel so at home.

“I couldn’t ask for a better team than Ncuti and Millie to be on this adventure with, this is so much fun.”

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Gatwa, 31, arrived over December last year when the 14th Doctor David Tennant split in half to reveal the Sex Education star.

The season following the one out in May, which is set to be released next year, is currently in production and the BBC released photos of Gibson, Gatwa and Sethu doing a table read.

Varada Sethu, Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson have been doing a table read as part of production (Image: BBC via PA)

Showrunner, executive producer and writer Russell T Davies said: “Right now in the studio, shooting for 2025, we’ve got Ncuti, Millie and Varada fighting side by side – we need all three, because the stakes are higher than ever.”

The long-running sci-fi show will have a double bill with the episode Space Babies, which follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday as they meet Golda Rosheuvel’s character Jocelyn during their first adventure inside the Tardis together.

This will be followed by The Devil’s Chord, featuring drag queen Jinkx Monsoon, which follows the Doctor and Ruby as they travel back to the 1960s to meet The Beatles.

The first two episodes of Doctor Who will land on BBC iPlayer at midnight on Saturday, May 11 before airing on BBC One later in the day, with episodes airing on BBC iPlayer and BBC One each week following.