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Doctor Who might not have seen the last of Christopher Eccleston...
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00:00Doctor Who is one of those shows that actors can never fully shake.
00:04You can appear as a cannon fodder supporting character in a single episode, and for the
00:09rest of your career that will be the most iconic thing you've ever done.
00:14You'll be attending fan conventions and signing autographs for decades, and it will
00:19be the thing you get asked about the most on social media and in interviews.
00:23Now sure, the vast majority of Doctor Who actors would probably return if asked to,
00:29but there are times when said actors, from main stars to companions to one-off supporting
00:35characters, have publicly discussed that idea, openly declaring their wish to step back into
00:41the TARDIS for another jaunt around the universe.
00:45So with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with Who Culture, and here are 10 actors who want
00:50to return to Doctor Who.
00:52Number 10, Michelle Gomez.
00:54Michelle Gomez last played the wickedly funny villainess Missy in 2017's Series 10 finale,
01:02where she was seemingly killed off by her prior, rather angry incarnation.
01:06However, in typical master fashion, Missy survived this apparent demise and soon went on to torment
01:12the 13th Doctor.
01:14Gomez's infectious energy made her an instant hit with fans, and she clearly had a blast
01:19in the role, so it's no surprise that she's eager to return at some point in the future.
01:24In 2019, the actress told Radio Times that she was completely open to stepping back into
01:30Missy's shoes, expressing particular interest in squaring off against Jodie Whittaker's
01:3513th Doctor, stating,
01:37With Whittaker set to regenerate at the end of 2022, a Missy 13 showdown doesn't seem to
01:53be on the cards.
01:54But hey, who knows?
01:56Maybe Chris Chibnall has managed to squeeze that confrontation into November's centenary
02:00special.
02:01Number 9.
02:02Billy Piper
02:03After leaving the show in 2008's emotional series 4 finale, followed by a brief cameo
02:09in 2010's The End of Time Part 2, 50th anniversary special The Day of the Doctor saw Billy Piper
02:15return to Doctor Who, swapping the down-to-earth charm of Rose Tyler for the steely power of
02:20the Time Lord superweapon, The Moment.
02:23As for another return to the show?
02:25Well, there was a time where she seemed completely disinterested in the idea, telling The Guardian
02:31that she wouldn't go back.
02:32But in recent years, she does seem to have warmed to the idea, explaining in a 2021 video
02:37that if the circumstances and story were right, then she would be more than willing to step
02:42back into the TARDIS, adding that she's now been away from the show long enough to start
02:47to miss it.
02:48Rose is one of the most popular companions to come from the modern series.
02:53And seeing as it was Russell T Davies who created her, it would seem somewhat poetic for
02:58him to include her in his second era as showrunner.
03:01Number 8.
03:02Alex Kingston
03:03The story of River Song was wrapped up beautifully in the 2015 Christmas special.
03:09But there are so many reasons why it would make sense for River to come back.
03:14Chief among these is her wibbly-wobbly timeline, which makes it easy to say that her next adventure
03:19takes place anywhere between Let's Kill Hitler and the husbands of River Song, with little
03:24explanation necessary.
03:26Combining this with the fact that she's one of the most fun companions in the show and
03:30a perennial fan favourite, and it's no surprise that Alex Kingston is gunning for River to
03:35reappear, declaring that,
03:37I love the character and I think that there are wonderful potential opportunities down the
03:41road in a 2019 interview.
03:44With such an open-ended timeline, it wouldn't be a shock to see River pop up for another one-off
03:49adventure.
03:50She is the Doctor's wife, after all.
03:52Number 7.
03:53Carol Ann Ford
03:54As companion Susan Foreman, Carol Ann Ford's last Doctor Who appearance was in 1983's
04:00The Five Doctors.
04:02We don't talk about dimensions in time.
04:03So it's been a fair old while since we saw her in the role.
04:07Despite this, Ford clearly doesn't feel like she's lost that spark, or that she's rusty.
04:12In a 2020 interview with SFX magazine, the actress was asked if she wanted to return to
04:17the show, perhaps for an adventure with Jodie Whittaker's 13th Doctor, to which she responded
04:23in the affirmative.
04:24Ford also told a hilarious story about the time she visited Peter Capaldi on the Doctor Who
04:29set.
04:30According to her, Mr Attack Eyebrows danced around the TARDIS singing, I want you to come
04:35back, I want you to come back, which prompted her to think, my god, I'd love to work with
04:39him.
04:40A photograph of Susan famously appeared on the 12th Doctor's desk in the Series 10 opener.
04:46So if we take this to mean that the Doctor is still thinking about her, then there is
04:49an inbuilt story reason to bring Susan back.
04:54That and the fact that the first Doctor literally promised Susan that he would visit her again,
04:58a promise he has yet to fulfil.
05:00Number 6.
05:01David Tennant
05:02Since regenerating into Matt Smith in early 2010, David Tennant's 10th Doctor has been
05:07in so many comics, video games and audio dramas, and a starring role in the 50th special, that
05:14it never really felt like he truly left.
05:16Given his willingness to come back for all those expanded media projects over the years,
05:21it isn't a surprise that he's also keen to return in an on-screen capacity.
05:25Stating in a 2019 interview that he'd love to see a 60th anniversary special that united
05:32him with Whittaker, Capaldi, Smith and Eccleston's Doctors.
05:35In a more recent 2021 interview, he added,
05:38Anything is possible.
05:40Never say never to anything.
05:42Given the 10th Doctor's popularity being as high as it is, and Tennant's old pal Russell
05:48T Davies returning to spearhead Doctor Who in 2023, it almost seems inevitable that we will
05:54see Tennant don the converse and browncoat again within the next few years.
05:59Number 5.
06:00Georgia Tennant
06:01Whenever the subject of abandoned Doctor Who plot threads is raised, one that almost always
06:07gets mentioned is the fate of Jenny, the Doctor's daughter.
06:11Though Russell T Davies and Stephen Moffat have jokingly revealed that she flew into a moon
06:16and died, we don't know what she's been up to since her last on-screen appearance 14 years ago.
06:22Actress Georgia Tennant, David's wife, was never asked to return to the show, but to this day
06:27she continues to hold out hope that the call might arrive.
06:30In a recent chat with Metro, Tennant stated that she would obviously return to the show if asked,
06:35adding that she even has her own storyline in mind.
06:38I like the idea that she's sort of gone off and had a couple of kids and she's let herself go a bit,
06:43and she's enjoying her life and then someone comes back and goes,
06:46No, come on, you've got to go back to work.
06:48Considering that the Doctor believes Jenny to be dead, there's quite a lot of dramatic potential
06:53for reuniting these characters on-screen.
06:56And if the 14th Doctor is a woman, it would be interesting to see Jenny's reaction to her father's new look.
07:02Number 4, Paul McGann
07:04As Doctors go, Paul McGann's 8th is in a unique position.
07:08Having not been granted a full series of television, audiences don't know his Doctor as well as they know the rest of them.
07:15So it almost feels like a no-brainer to bring him back.
07:18McGann himself also shares this stance, telling Doctor Who magazine in 2016 that he feels like his on-screen tenure isn't yet over,
07:26and that there's a bit of potential in an 8th Doctor return.
07:30He then jokingly added, I'm younger than Capaldi, before explaining that if he were to return, then the story reasons would have to be compelling.
07:37The positive response to The Night of the Doctor proves that there's still a hunger for McGann's take on the Time Lord,
07:44and it just feels right for him to get his due.
07:47Number 3, Matt Smith
07:49Matt Smith has made the jump to Hollywood since leaving Doctor Who in 2013, with starring roles in Terminator Genisys,
07:57Netflix's historical epic The Crown, Edgar Wright's Last Night in Soho, and this year's Morbius.
08:03Like Karen Gillan, it almost feels like he's getting too big to step back down into the relatively low-budget world of Doctor Who.
08:10But despite all his success, he still wouldn't mind donning the tweed jacket and bowtie at some point in the future.
08:18In fact, in 2017, he didn't just tell MTV that he wants to come back, he openly declared that he will be back one day.
08:27Yeah, why not? I'd come back, if the timing was right.
08:30Look, I'll be back one day when I'm old and grey, which isn't far off.
08:34Much like The Tenth Doctor, Eleven's popularity makes him one of the top candidates for a return.
08:40And with Smith still being so young, he could get away with playing the role for many decades to come.
08:46Number 2, Christopher Eccleston
08:48For well over a decade, the narrative surrounding a potential return to Doctor Who for Christopher Eccleston
08:54has been that he will never do it in a million years,
08:56primarily due to the poor experience he had during his short tenure on the series in the mid-2000s.
09:02And while it's certainly true that he has problems with the way the show was run during his brief tenure,
09:08the actor does seem to have softened on Doctor Who in recent years,
09:12and has even opened himself up to a potential on-screen return.
09:15Many fans thought they'd never see Eccleston return to play The Ninth Doctor in any capacity,
09:20and yet, in 2020, it was announced that he'd be reprising the role for a series of big Finnish audio dramas,
09:27a clear sign that he wasn't totally averse to dipping his feet in Hooniverse waters.
09:32More recently, he's gone one step further, indicating that he'd be down for a proper on-screen return,
09:38just not in a multi-Doctor special.
09:40Stating,
09:41The Ninth Doctor in particular is a one-man band, definitely.
09:45So he doesn't work with other Doctors.
09:47If you want me back, you get me on my own.
09:49With Eccleston's rocky history with the show,
09:51it does feel unlikely that we'll see him picking up that sonic screwdriver once again.
09:56But the chances of it happening have increased slightly in recent years.
10:011.
10:02Catherine Tate
10:03In early 2021, it was reported that Catherine Tate had been spotted in Liverpool
10:08at the exact same time that Doctor Who were filming Series 13 in that city.
10:14And while it was later revealed that she very much wasn't in Liverpool,
10:18this flimsy rumour caused quite the stir in Doctor Who fan circles.
10:22So you can imagine how hyped people would be if Donna Noble did actually return to the show.
10:27Fortunately then, Catherine Tate is very much open to the idea, telling the one show,
10:32No one's been in touch, but I'm on the same number, I'd just like to say.
10:35So if you've got the money, I've got the time.
10:38Donna is another character closely associated with returning showrunner Russell T Davies,
10:43and so on the surface at least, that does increase the chances of him wheeling her out for another spin.
10:48You simply cannot contain the best temp in Chiswick.
10:51And that concludes our list.
10:53If you can think of any other actors who would be willing to return to Doctor Who,
10:56then do let us know in the comments below.
10:58And while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe and tap that notification bell.
11:02Also, head over to Twitter and follow us there,
11:04and I can be found across various social medias just by searching Ellie Littlechild.
11:09I've been Ellie with Who Culture, and in the words of Riversong herself, goodbye, sweeties.
11:26And I'll see you all next time.
11:27I'm sorry.
11:28I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
11:29I've been so sorry.
11:30I've been so sorry.
11:31So, the first time, it's been a conversation.
11:32I can't believe you.
11:33So many people who do not fare to you,
11:34there are some people that are not.
11:35I'm sorry.
11:36You don't have a feeling.
11:37I'm sorry.
11:38You're a feeling.
11:39That's what I do.
11:40I'm sorry.
11:41I'm sorry, you just was really good.
11:43So, head over to my desk.
11:45I'm sorry.
11:46I'm sorry.
11:47I've been so sorry.
11:48I'm sorry.
11:49I'm sorry.
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