With filming expected within a couple of weeks it was a matter of time before the companion joining the negatively received Jodie Whitaker for Chris Chibnall's first series, 11.
Kris Marshall was the original bookies favourite once it was obvious that he wasn't the Doctor and then from a Mirror exclusive, Bradley Waslh appeared - and that turned out to be true.
The show returns to a three companion format, something that started in the first ever season and was the format for season 1, 2, 4, 8, 9, 18, 19 and 20. Bradley Walsh, one of the oldest ever companions, and the oldest to be a regular is playing the role of Graham whilst Tosin Cole and Mandip Gill are playing the roles of Ryan and Tasmin respectively. Bradley is of course famous for currently hosting Sunday Night at the London Palladium, Cash in the Attic, The Chase and is a regular panelist on Play to the Whistle. His acting credits include Coronation Street and Law and Order UK, showrunned by Chris Chibnall. Tosin and Mandip are best known for their roles in Hollyoakes, with Tosin also having a 1 liner character in the Force Awakens.
Also actress Sharon D Clarke is playing a recurring character.
Hidden away at the bottom of the article is the news that Series 11 will air in Autumn has previously speculated and will be a 10 episode run with every episode being extended to 50 minutes and the opener being 1 hour. This will be therefore the second shortest series in Doctor Who history and the shortest of the modern run.
Right my thoughts. Firstly on the three companions. Three is a number of companions that is not strange to Doctor Who so those saying that its interesting because she is female and therefore it is sexist is nonsense. Series 11 will be the show's 37th season overall and as stated earlier in my article it will be the 9th of 37 to have three. It is unknown if the three will be in it all the way through and if they are all as regular and main as each other. Bradley Walsh is a highly qualified actor and is no stranger to Chibnall like Whitaker. I believe because of his appeal he might be there to ease fans who are not happy with the move to a female Doctor. Due to his high status I can't imagine him staying for more than one series. Also someone will realistically have to go every series so that there is a new face to meet the Doctor, which is necessary for the new audiences to hook along. I don't have too many thoughts on the other two because I don't know much about them. I have positives and negatives for having three companions. Firstly the negatives: Three companions can result in a crowded TARDIS with certain people not having enough to do every week, however three companions were effective in the longer story telling narrative of Season 1 but I'm not sure it will work here in the modern format. The positives - three companions allows for a TARDIS Team and more relationships and friendships to take place. It also means that if they are not connected it means it will be great fun for people like me to speculate who will be the next to leave the TARDIS. Chris Chibnall is obviously a fan of the TARDIS team, just look at Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, so the move to more companions is not surprising. I can't see this lasting more than two seasons. We know that Chibnall is here for the next five series at least so he probably will have two doctors or perhaps one. For my speculation to work lets just say Whitaker stays for three like most of the Doctors have. I am guessing Graham will leave at the end of series 1 or the Christmas Special, Ryan and Yasmin will leave at the end of the second series. Graham's replacement will stay for series 2 and 3 and Ryan and Yasmin will be replaced by one new character. That is my guess, we shall see what happens...
The casting of Sharon D Clarke as recurring character is no surprise, there are always recurring characters in the modern series but to her to be mentioned is surprising. It could mean that she is in most episodes. I presume she will play the role of a mum because that is what most recurring characters are.
Now to the short series, observe...
Longest Series timespan (not including specials)
Season 1 = 17.50 hours (William Hartnell)
Season 2 = 16.25 hours (William Hartnell)
Season 3 = 18.75 hours (William Hartnell)
Season 4 = 17.92 hours (Patrick Troughton)
Season 5 = 16.68 hours (Patrick Troughton)
Season 6 = 17.92 hours (Patrick Troughton)
Season 7 = 10.42 hours (Jon Pertwee)
Season 8 = 10.42 hours (Jon Pertwee)
Season 9 = 10.83 hours (Jon Pertwee)
Season 10 = 10.83 hours (Jon Pertwee)
Season 11= 10.83 hours (Jon Pertwee)
Season 12 = 8.33 hours (Tom Baker)
Season 13 = 10.83 hours (Tom Baker)
Season 14 = 10.83 hours (Tom Baker)
Season 15 = 10.83 hours (Tom Baker)
Season 16 = 10.83 hours (Tom Baker)
Season 17 = 8.33 hours (Tom Baker)
Season 18 = 11.67 hours (Tom Baker)
Season 19 = 10.83 hours (Peter Davison)
Season 20 = 9.17 hours (Peter Davison)
Season 21 = 10.67 hours (Peter Davison)
Season 22 = 9.75 hours (Colin Baker)
Season 23 = 5.92 hours (Colin Baker)
Season 24 = 5.83 hours (Sylvester McCoy)
Season 25 = 5.83 hours (Sylvester McCoy)
Season 26 = 5.83 hours (Sylvester McCoy)
Series 1 = 9.75 hours (Christopher Eccleston)
Series 2 = 9.75 hours (David Tennant)
Series 3 = 9.83 hours (David Tennant)
Series 4 = 10.08 hours (David Tennant)
Series 5 = 10.33 hours (Matt Smith)
Series 6 = 9.92 hours (Matt Smith)
Series 7 = 9.83 hours (Matt Smith)
Series 8 = 9.75 hours (Peter Capaldi)
Series 9 = 9.67 hours (Peter Capaldi)
Series 10 = 9.33 hours (Peter Capaldi)
Series 11 = 8.50 hours (Jodie Whitaker)
K9 and Company = 50 minutes
Torchwood Series 1 = 9.83 hours
Torchwood Series 2 = 9.92 hours
Torchwood Series 3 = 5.00 hours
Torchwood Series 4 = 8.33 hours
SJA Series 1 = 6.00 hours
SJA Series 2 = 6.00 hours
SJA Series 3 = 6.00 hours
SJA Series 4 = 6.00 hours
SJA Series 5 = 3.00 hours
Class Series 1 = 6.08 hours
So you can see how short it is.
Firstly the 10 episodes. By episode count this is definitely the shortest series. I do care about this really because it means Doctor Who is on tele for less weeks than it should be. I wouldn't take this as to show that the BBC don't trust the female Doctor format, because they have already confirmed 5 series so they obviously do have faith in Chibnall, I would put it down to budget cuts though. It was rumoured that we would get a shorter series so it doesn't surprise me that much. The episode extension to 50 minutes does surprise me though. I was expecting an hour for each episode so this was a shock, it does make the cutting seem more drastic. The length of the opener to an hour also doesn't surprise me as first episodes featuring a new doctor are normally longer, an hour actually being shorter than both Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi's debut episodes. The move back to the Autumn is slightly annoying, more time without Doctor Who but I hope it remains there and the gap of 1 1/2 years won't continue, especially if we are actually getting less series a year . I like the Autumn because its dark outside and has a good feeling to it but I don't like it because that time of year is very crowded with other good television and for me because of when I started to like Doctor Who, Spring is the home to Doctor Who.
So there we have it. Lots off exciting news. Interestingly no sign of a Christmas Special being confirmed so are the rumours true and Chibnall is axing them, I hope not...
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