Female Doctor Who rumours denied by BBC complaints officer

Apparently there are ‘no plans’ for the Time Lord to change genders in the next regeneration
Re-casting: Peter Capaldi is leaving Doctor Who - but who will replace him?
BBC
Ben Travis20 April 2017

A BBC staff member has reportedly denied that the next Doctor Who actor will be female.

The long-running sci-fi series is currently casting its new lead, with current Time Lord Peter Capaldi set to end his run this year.

News of Capaldi’s departure sparked calls from fans to re-cast the character as a woman for the first time.

But according to a BBC complaints officer, that won’t be happening this time.

Doctor Who on South Bank

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As reported in The Sun, a complaint from a man who argued that his child would be ‘confused’ by a gender-swapped Doctor was greeted with a response from the complaints department denying that would happen.

“We appreciate that you’re a big Doctor Who fan and you have concerns that the programme would change should there be a female doctor," the reply reads.

“Be assured there are currently no plans to have a female Doctor Who.”

However, a BBC spokesperson has since added: “No casting decisions have yet been made on Series 11.”

Rumoured names for the role had included Phoebe Waller-Bridge, currently filming the Star Wars Han Solo spin-off, Olivia Colman, and Tilda Swinton.

Doctor Who: who could be the new companion?

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According to The Mirror, the new Doctor might already have been cast – My Family and Death in Paradise actor Kris Marshall has reportedly been named by an insider as the next Time Lord.

The publication reports that Marshall has “already joined the cast” to film his first scene.

Series 10 of the sci-fi show debuted on Saturday over the Easter weekend, introducing new companion Bill Potts, played by Pearl Mackie.

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