Entertainment
Doctor Who Flux: John Bishop on why he initially turned down role in series 13
The actor nearly didn’t star in the series at all (Picture: Getty)
There’s a new face for Doctor Who fans to look out for in the upcoming 13th series Flux, with John Bishop set to star alongside Jodie Whittaker’s Time Lord – but things were almost so different.
The comedian and actor has revealed that he was initially forced to turn down the role after being approached by showrunner Chris Chibnall.
John is playing the Doctor’s new companion Dan in upcoming episodes, but the role was only possible after the pandemic caused him to cancel his plans to head on tour.
Speaking to Metro.co.uk and other gathered press about the role, the 54-year-old said: ‘We had a conversation about a character that Chris had thought of, and he thought I might be suitable for it.
‘But as it happened, I was going on tour so I couldn’t do it. And so I reluctantly said that I couldn’t do it. The tour was already on sale and was happening. So I turned it down.’
Lockdown, though, forced a change of plans and he was eventually able to commit to filming in Cardiff.
The new series is closer than ever (Picture: BBC Studios/James Pardon)
‘Then luckily for me, there was a global pandemic – there’s always an upside to something – and that meant that the tour was suspended so I could do it,’ he explained.
It wasn’t all as straightforward as that though, with John having to prove himself before landing the part.
‘The process down wasn’t, you know, “you’ve got the job.” I then had to do an audition on Zoom. I had my phone pinned up against the wall with some Blu Tack. Then when I got through that I had to come down to Cardiff and do a chemistry audition with Jodie [Whittaker],’ he said.
‘So my application for the job was on the TARDIS. And I thought, “If I get it, it’s a bonus, because I’ve been on it anyway.”
‘It’s like somebody saying, “we’re gonna give it a trial but you can have the trial at Wembley.”’
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Discussing upcoming episodes, he added: ‘It’s an honour to be associated with anything that [showrunner Chris] is doing, but to get an opportunity like this… this lasts beyond anything that you might do in your career. This is the one thing that people will come back to. It’s nice to have anything that’s like that.’
As fans will know only too well, Jodie’s time as The Doctor will be coming to an end next year, as it was announced that she will be leaving the show the next series and four more specials set for autumn 2022.
There’s series 13 to get through first, with an air date for Doctor Who: Flux – which will feature one continuous story line – set for October 31.
John will take to the TARDIS in the new episodes (Picture: BBC Studios/James Pardon)
John was unveiled as part of the cast of Doctor Who following the New Year’s Day special Revolution of the Daleks.
During a previous appearance on The Graham Norton Show, John revealed that he had accidentally shared too much about his character.
He explained there was no hiding the fact that his character was from Liverpool and spoke with a Liverpudlian accent.
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‘I went, “Well where do you think he comes from? Have a guess!” I’m not Tom Cruise, I can act as long as the character happens to look and sound a lot like me,’ he said.
‘So, I just mentioned that the character was from Liverpool which then, somewhere on a Doctor Who website, someone picked it up – “There’s a new character and he’s from Liverpool, the story’s based in Liverpool”.’
Doctor Who: Flux arrives on BBC One on October 31.
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