Current Doctor Who, Jodie Whittaker, To Leave The Series At The End Of The Year

While America slept, here in the UK we have already learnt of the news that current Doctor Who actor, Jodie Whittaker, is said to be leaving the series after the next series, due to air in 2021.

Although, I might add, this was according to daily UK tabloid The Mirror, who reports Whittaker is keen to take on other roles as an actor with one insider quoted as saying:

It’s all very hush-hush but it is known on set that Jodie is leaving and they are gearing up for a regeneration. Her departure is top secret but at some point over the coming months the arrival of the 14th Doctor will need to be filmed. It’s very exciting.

The third series featuring Whittaker as the Doctor will air later this year on the BBC with a possible regeneration coming in any planned Christmas Special, I would imagine. After all, it was in the Peter Capaldi-helmed special of 2017 that we first got a glimpse of Doctor Who’s first ever female Doctor, so it would make sense that for such a big changing of the guard the BBC may want to introduce a new Doctor round about then.

The same article points out that Doctor Who show runner, Chris Chibnall,- who also cast Whittaker in her ground-breaking role as the Doctor – will not be leaving. Although, he wouldn’t be the first of the new show runners to shepherd in more than one new Doctor. After all, original new-era Doctor Who head honcho, Russell T Davies, worked with both Christopher Eccleston and then David Tennant. Once again, history repeats itself.

Sadly, due to Covid-19, the new series of Doctor Who – destined for an Autumnal release – means we’ll once again be getting a shorter seres with only 8 episodes being reported as compromising Whittaker’s last run. But, with some stellar performances and memorable additions to the Doctor Who mythos, she’s certainly leave a legacy behind that’s more than just being the first female owner of the TARDIS. Plus, like Eccleston before her, Whittaker was able to keep her Northern accent, which was almost as big a deal for me as the new Doctor being female. Sadly, I don’t think that was ever given enough credit because of the bigger gender issues at play. Shame, as it’s definitely worth noting when Northerners here in the UK are often portrayed in the Southern-based media as stereotypically lower class, uneducated and worse. Here was a positive representation for us and that should not be forgotten.

I look forward to what the next season of Doctor Who brings now. And, who may be the new 15th Doctor? If, that is, The Mirror has got it right. After all, it is still a quite news cycle at the moment and it wouldn’t be the first time a UL tabloid printed conjecture as proof.