Nicola Coughlan is starring in one of the biggest slots in the Christmas TV calendar: the Doctor Who Christmas special. Don’t miss out on her entrance into the Whouniverse, which is made all the more compelling seeing as she has admitted to not being massively familiar with Doctor Who prior to filming.
“Then I watched the first two episodes ever made with my brother, who first introduced me to sci-fi through Star Wars, which was our big thing,” she told The Big Issue. “It gave me a sense that this was proper TV history. So what a privilege to be part of it, and to be part of people’s Christmases.”
The Derry Girls and Bridgerton star is set to play a character called Joy, who will accompany Ncuti Gatwa as the fifteenth Doctor on his latest adventure.
When Nicola’s casting was first announced, she said: “I’m excited to join the Whoniverse under the leadership of the inimitable Russell T Davies. I’ve been a fan of Ncuti Gatwa for some time and getting to share the screen with him as the Doctor has been an absolute joy.”
We don’t know a lot about her character yet, only her name and that she meets the Doctor during a time travel-related drama that starts for her in a hotel room. Intriguing.
BBC/James Pardon
In a Christmas 2024 preview video from the BBC, she said in an audio message: “I am thrilled to be joining Doctor Who for the Christmas special this year, and I am so excited for you to meet my character, Joy.”
In the video, we also see Ncuti’s Doctor appear in random points through Earth’s history – offering a ham and cheese toastie and pumpkin spice latte to confused strangers. Eventually, he meets Nicola Coughlan’s Joy in a London hotel in 2024.
