The 'Chase' host allegedly has been cast as the new time-traveling companion to Jodie Whittaker's 13th Time Lord in the upcoming season 11 of the British series.
- Aug 23, 2017
AceShowbiz - The 13th Doctor, Jodie Whittaker, may have found her new time-traveling companion for the upcoming season 11 of "Doctor Who". New report suggests that the BBC series has cast Bradley Walsh as the new companion to the series' first female Time Lord.
Although the casting is still top secret, "The Chase" and "Cash Trapped" host allegedly tells his friends that he is thrilled for the role. "Bradley is super excited to be joining the cast of 'Doctor Who' in such a key role," says a source to Mirror.
"It means that his schedule over the coming months will be jam-packed-so he won't be able to continue with the full range of programmes he currently makes for ITV," the source continues. "But, crucially, it won't affect his role as presenter of 'The Chase'. He loves that show with a passion and so does the audience, so he's delighted to have found a way to make it all work."
Should the rumors be true, the former professional footballer will replace Pearl Mackie. Pearl played Bill Potts, a companion to Peter Capaldi's 12th Doctor.
The report further suggests that Bradley's casting is made by new showrunner Chris Chibnall. It is said that Chris wants to break the trend of consistently casting young women for the role. Ever since the long-running British series debuted in 2005, it always has a young actress to play Time Lord's companion, including Billie Piper, Karen Gillan and Jenna-Louise Coleman.
Back in July, "Doctor Who" announced that Jodie would be the 13th incarnation of the Time Lord, making her the first female Doctor in the show's history. "I'm beyond excited to begin this epic journey with Chris and with every Whovian on this planet," the "Broadchurch" actress said. "It's more than an honor to play the Doctor. It means remembering everyone I used to be, while stepping forward to embrace everything the Doctor stands for: hope. I can't wait."
However, the groundbreaking decision to cast a female Doctor sparked criticism among fans. Some threatened to quit the fandom after knowing that the next Doctor would be a female, though the gender-flipping of character has been done before to both Masters and the companions. BBC later responded to the backlash, saying, "It has been established in the show that Time Lords can switch gender," as well as pointing out that the Doctor was "an alien from the planet Gallifrey."
"She aced it in her audition both technically and with the powerful female life force she brings to the role. She is destined to be an utterly iconic Doctor," the network spoke of Jodie. "We hope viewers will enjoy what we have in store for the continuation of the story."
