Chris Chibnall

Question: What was your vision for Season 13?

Chris Chibnall: My vision for the new season was (to create) a massive story -- bigger than we’ve ever told with Jodie’s Doctor. And to start with an episode that feels like a finale and carry on from there and play out the rest of the story. I wanted it to be really epic, to be fun with lots of cliffhangers, to be surprising, and to really do things we hadn’t yet done with the Thirteenth Doctor.

Question: What can people expect from the season?

Chris Chibnall: People can expect a rollercoaster of a ride, very different episodes, six very specific chapters, lots of different places in time and space, lots of returning monsters, some really brilliant guest stars, some brand-new monsters and some of my favourite cliff hangers we’ve done!

Sontaran in Season 13

Question: How do you write new characters/monsters?

Chris Chibnall: I think you’re always thinking, “Who is interesting for the Doctor to come up against? Who is going to reveal new things about the Doctor?” But with villains and monsters generally you’re looking for an interesting visual, an interesting idea, something that will be scary or fun or a mix of both and an underlying character that will be great for an actor to play or great for the Doctor, Dan or Yaz to be going up against.

Question: Who are the Ravagers?

Chris Chibnall: They are a couple of characters who we meet who are creatures of another dimension who have a history with the Doctor –- but I even think with this I am giving too much away!

Question: Why is it important to bring back monsters from the past like Sontarans and Weeping Angels?

Chris Chibnall: First of all, it’s a joy. I think it’s always lovely to connect back into the history of the show as the history is so rich and varied. Bringing back the Sontarans was a story I really wanted to do…I felt like there hadn’t been a big Sontaran story for quite a long time. They have a great mix of threat and humour, they’re very identifiable, and they’re great characters as well –- a brilliant creation by Robert Holmes. They’re great because they have range. They’re dangerous, they’re violent, they’re also funny and that’s a great mix for Doctor Who. With the Weeping Angels, I really wanted Jodie to come up against them and we’d been thinking about a story for her for a long time, testing out ideas. They are genuinely scary and a brilliant creation by Steven Moffatt and they haven’t been in a main Doctor Who story for nine years so they were due to come back as well. There are lots of ideas you can explore around Weeping Angels so we’ve had a lot of fun with them.

Question: Can you tease us about what the Flux is?

Chris Chibnall: The title of the serial is Flux, it’s divided into six chapters, and the Flux is a mysterious event that is going to have an effect on all the characters in the story.

Question: What is the Flux?

Chris Chibnall: So Flux is the title of the new season in fact, this is the first time we’ve titled a season as it’s one epic story. It’s kind of the biggest nemesis that the Doctor has ever faced. It’s a huge destructive force but quite what it is and why it’s become unleashed will become apparent as you watch the serial unfold. It’s quite awe-inspiring and terrifying and the way it’s realised on screen will be I think quite breath-taking for the audience as they realise what the Flux is and what the Flux does.

L-R: Mandip Gill as Yas, John Bishop as Dan Lewis & Jodie Whittaker as The Doctor

Question: Where do we find the Doctor and her “fam” at the start of this season?

Chris Chibnall: This year we’ve got the wonderful Mandip Gill returning as Yaz, but the “fam” as it was ended in the last New Year’s Day special -- Revolution of the Daleks -- where we said goodbye to Graham and Ryan. This year we start the adventures with Yaz and the Doctor, the Doctor is very much on the hunt for something and we encounter our new friend of the Doctor Dan Lewis, who is played by the brilliant John Bishop. I think when you’ve done two seasons of a show and you’re coming back, it’s really great to have familiarity but it’s also really great to mix it up a bit and to bring a new element to the cast and the teams on the TARDIS and to see what that brings out in the other actors. It’s great fun for Chris to create a brand-new character who I know the audience will take to their hearts almost immediately. John is just perfect in it and Dan is a glorious character – warm, funny, an action hero. It’s seamless really. The moment John walked on the TARDIS he clicked with the other two and the team and it was like he had been on it forever.

Question: What kind of monsters do they face?

Chris Chibnall: In terms of monsters we’ve got some returning favourites…so we’re bringing back the terrifying Weeping Angels who have a very sinister role to play, and a very different role to play. it’s quite an interesting development to their story if you like. The much loved and villainous, and basically warmongering Sontarans are back, with a brilliant new iteration. They’re very much the classic monster, the look is classic that has been adapted and reinterpreted for our era. We have two wonderful performers playing our Sontarans, and there’s great menace with them but there’s also incredible humour and Chris gets that fine line between menace and humour just perfect. I think they are going to provide lots and lots of thrills and excitement for this season. We have quite a lot of new characters and new villains!

Jodie Whittaker on set

Question: How did it feel filming your last season, during COVID?

Jodie Whittaker: We started filming late because of COVID so starting was a tentative time because none of us had shot during the pandemic. So knowing it was my last I knew it would be very different because we weren’t able to travel, we couldn’t be tactile in that way we were. But what was immediately reassuring is as soon as you got on set, no matter if the logistics or the face of the show seemed different because of masks and all of that, all of the heart and all the love was still there and it was still great fun. We were able to be safe as we could be and as caring as we could be and not lose the atmosphere on the set. It was such a pleasure to be around people, so I was delighted! It was emotional to start with because you hadn’t seen anyone and everyone has gone through so much to get to the first day, and you want to make sure you’re not the person to make a mistake as the domino effect can be so catastrophic on the set. Also it was the longest time I hadn’t seen Mandip!

Jodie Whittaker as The Doctor

Question: Did you approach anything differently coming to a serialized story?

Jodie Whittaker: I don’t think so. As an actor you’re so used to things changing so the change between serialisation and episode arcs doesn’t change your approach in any way -- I could not quote what happened in what episode as I can see the whole story in its entirety. I just know we all start on a journey, where we go and how it pans out. The thing that’s most different is that it’s been almost twelve months (of filming) and it requires a different type of stamina than I’ve ever had to find before.

Question: Are you excited for how it will be for audiences to see the story portrayed that way?

Jodie Whittaker: Definitely. Obviously for Whovians (the story) has played out in many different ways over the years, and I think it for us it was great to have had the experience of both. It was definitely the right decision for us to start Season 11, my first season, in a way that was a jumping off point for anyone that hadn’t watched it before. And this season certainly doesn’t exclude people that haven’t seen it but it gives reason to go back and rediscover, it also has those brilliant cliffhanger moments and that, as actors and for the characters, it gives lots of different layers you can bring to it. You don’t want to play the end note in the first episode because you know you’ve got this journey to go with a particular beat or particular emotion. Even with the serialisation it’s still very episodic and each episode has its world that is different from the rest. There may be characters you see again but you certainly feel like you are taken through many different worlds and times like you would in our previous seasons.

Jacob Anderson as Vinder

Question: Were there any special moments that stood out for you filming Season 13?

Jodie Whittaker: For us, getting to know John (Bishop) has been wonderful. He came in at one hundred and ten (percent) with his energy and enthusiasm. He’s been so much fun to be around he’s been a massive team player. For us, we were still grieving Brad (Walsh) and Tosin (Cole) and for him to come in and not to fill anybody’s shoes and be his own person…we found a new dynamic which felt brilliant and it felt so comfortable. I think the way you meet Dan and that whole introduction; those are really fun scenes. I think all the early scenes with him and Karvanista has been really fun to shoot. I’ve been lucky to enough to work with new people but I’ve been lucky enough to work with people I’ve worked with before. This is the third time I’ve worked with Jacob (pictured left), I’ve worked with Annabel, we’ve played sisters before, and this was so lovely just to spend time with her. Thaddea Graham, I’ve never worked with Thaddea and she blew me away from the read through – just from Zoom I was like, “That girl is phenomenal.” And that’s the thing, it can be your first interaction with people or it can be and old friend stepping on set but what you always get at the end is that it’s like you’ve all known each other for years. Like I was in Kevin McNally’s company for about ten minutes and I felt like I’d known him for twenty years. We’ve had to put certain safety precautions in place, but it hasn’t in any way dampened that kind of camaraderie. Other highlights are we’ve so many ensemble scenes, we’ve had some brilliant scenes with the likes of Craige Els, Craig Parkinson -- we can feel so many people in a scene and it can feel really epic, it’s been great.

Question: Can you tell us about any stunts you have this season?

Jodie Whittaker: We’ve done a lot of wires this year, particularly for certain scenes in episode one, it was mine and Mandip’s first few days (on set). We started at energy of a hundred and then after two days I was bruised and hurt and realised that this is why there are stunt doubles, as I am pathetic! You do a lot of flips as if you’re falling through space and have to spin yourself backwards in a rotation and make sure you don’t get tangled. It’s all wonderful as you don’t think at the time that you’ll be able to do it. I also do sword fighting in this, or maybe it is best described as avoiding being got by a sword - I really loved that. Stunts wise there is lots of action but rather than jumping through cranes it feels like a lot of falling through space!

Question: Have you gotten used to being spotted everywhere by the fans, three seasons on?

Jodie Whittaker: I’m really lucky, as whenever I have a reaction it’s always really joyous and everyone is really warm and welcoming. The fans are the show - there’s no way a show can last this many years without a loyalty and a fan base and you don’t have the show without them. To have those interactions when you have them is wonderful.

Jodie Whittaker as The Doctor

Question: What journey does the Doctor have this season?

Jodie Whittaker: From where we’ve left her, I think self-discovery is the biggest journey the Doctor goes on this season.

Question: There are lots of exciting monsters this season. Can you tell us about any that stand out for you?

Jodie Whittaker: The thing that’s fun about working with monsters that have been in it before but are new for me is that it makes you feel like you are getting your moment of history…like Sontarans, for me it’s my first (as The Doctor) so that was great.

Question: The prosthetics are amazing! Do you get used to working with actors that you can’t recognize?

Jodie Whittaker: You forget that the make-up is on them after ten minutes as you’re so used to seeing them having a cup of tea and talking to people.