Guess what, Philip Hammond – even a woman can play the lead on Doctor Who!
Jodie Whittaker as The Doctor in this stunning sketch by Rachael Stott.
The BBC’s announcement that Jodie Whittaker – who happens to be female – is to portray The Doctor in the next series of Doctor Who could not have come at a worse time for embattled Tory chancellor Philip Hammond.
A female Doctor Who.
That should just about finish Phillip Hammond's weekend nicely.. #doctor13
— Wolfie. 💙🧡💚 (@Tpopularfront) July 16, 2017
All this the day after he was outed for saying in a Cabinet meeting that train driving is so easy, “even a woman” can do it.
This was never – EVER – going to happen: Theresa May as a female Doctor. No, thanks – we’d all rather just eat an apple a day instead [Image: Patrick Blower].
This Writer’s opinion on Mr Hammond’s faux pas (whether he said it or not – he denies it) is already on the record.
As for the new Doctor…
This lifelong fan of the show has no problem with it at all. Doctor Who at its best has always been about how brains beat brute force, and that’s not about to change because a woman is at the helm. In fact, it might bring the show’s ethos into sharp focus.
And let’s face it – a female doctor is no surprise. We’ve only been primed for it since 1980 when, announcing Tom Baker’s retirement, then-producer John Nathan-Turner said he wished the new Doctor the best of luck “whoever he or she is”.
It was a joke at the time – Peter Davison got the job.
So, all things considered, the arrival of Ms Whittaker in the job is long overdue – while also being totally timely.
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Also primed by the Master turning into Miss you, showing timelords’ regenerations can change gender.
Watched since episode one! Loved the William Hartnell ‘I’m the original’ lookalike at the end of the last episode… ?
David Bradley. He played William Hartnell in the dramatised version of the early days of Doctor Who, entitled An Adventure in Time and Space.
I see the auto-whatsit replaced ‘Missy’ for me above…
I bet she’d make a very good train driver as well. Regardless of what Hammond says it is a skilled and highly responsible job.
Not sure what appears to be a PC knee jerk decision will actually work, but we shall see, she does have the assistance that the doctor she is replacing wasn’t the most popular though.
Dear Mr Hammond,
I know you don’t know much about the NHS, but they do have women doctors now.
F Nightingail