Revealed in the Sunday, January 26 episode of the BBC series, Martin's character is the next incarnation of the titular character and the first black Doctor in the show's history.
- Jan 28, 2020
AceShowbiz - "Doctor Who" has made another bold move. A little over two years after casting its first female Time Lord, the long-running BBC series crossed another milestone by bringing in Jo Martin to play Ruth Clayton, the first black incarnation of the titular character in its 57-year history.
The introduction to Martin's Doctor was done on Sunday, January 26 in the episode titled "Fugitive of the Judoon". Assuring fans that Martin's character is not fake, showrunner Chris Chibnall told The Mirror, "The important thing to say is - she is definitively the Doctor. There's not a sort of parallel universe going on, there's no tricks."
"Jo Martin is the Doctor, that's why we gave her the credit at the end which all new Doctors have the first time you see them. John Hurt got that credit," the TV writer continued explaining as he referred to the time Hurt made his first appearance as War Doctor, another previously-unseen incarnation, for the show's 50th anniversary in 2013.
On how Martin's character fits into the mythology, Chibnall promised, "There will be answers to some of these mysteries this series. But as ever with Doctor Who, answers often reveal new questions. It's all very deliberate." He added, "We're telling an ongoing story and there are plenty of things in Doctor Who that change all the time but I’m very aware of the history and very aware of the continuity."
Sharing how Martin came to be the show's newest Time Lord, Chibnall spilled that the "Fleabag" actress was recommended by director Nida Mazoor, but did not know she was auditioning for the part when she was called to read. "We called her in and she read for it - with secret pages that didn't mention that it was the Doctor," he recounted.
"But she's a massive fan of the show and I think she guessed," the TV writer continued to dish. "I had to ring her up and tell her and she was overwhelmed and thrilled. A lot of her family are fans and she kept that secret brilliantly for so long - nobody knew. We filmed it in the middle of last year."
During the interview, Chibnall additionally described Martin to be "the best person for the job." On the reason why, he explained that the "Holby City" actress has "got a brilliant combination of humour and warmth and wit and softness and steel. She's a really exciting Doctor."
