Michelle Gomez could become the first ever female to play the Time Lord in ‘Doctor Who’.
The sci-fi series’ writer Mark gatiss is keen to see a lady take on the lead in the popular show in the near future and already has someone in mind for when the current Doctor Peter Capaldi – who has played the titular character since in 2013 – decides to leave it behind.
Speaking exclusively to BANG Showbiz on the red carpet at the Women in Film and TV Awards held on Friday (02.12.16) at The Hilton in London, the 55-year-old screenwriter said: "Yes I really hope there’s a female Doctor Who very soon. Whenever Peter [Capaldi] hangs up his solitary of driving the show – but I hope he’s not [going to] for a very long time."
When pushed on whether there was a female replacement on the horizon, Mark laughed and teased: "Maybe…I’m sure it will happen, it should happen and the master has been generated into a woman and it’s wonderful.
"Michelle Gomez is just fantastic so you just want to find, and make sure it’s the right person. She would have made a great Doctor…maybe she will."
Michelle – who plays a villain called Missy, which is short for The Mistress, in the series – is expected to return in 2017 for the show’s tenth revival series, which is set to air next April.
She last appeared in the role in episodes one and two of series nine, ‘The Magician’s Apprentice’ and ‘The Witch’s Familiar’ as a female incarnation of the Doctor’s arch-enemy, the Master.
Speaking about why he’d like to see a lady at the helm, Mark explained: "I think that would be wonderful. Not because someone is telling you to but just because you find the right person, whether they are male, female, black, white, Asian, gay, straight, you just find someone who’s the doctor and go ‘It has to be them’."
Last week Peter, 58, appeared to be growing tired of the show as he admitted he often raises his eyebrows when he gets the script because it’s so unrealistic and childish.
Although Gatiss believes there should be more female lead roles in film and on TV, he thinks the castings should be "led by the character" and not due to simple "box ticking."
He said: "People want to see different faces on the television, different styles and good and bad people, not just cookie cutter version of a very attractive Hollywood model."
Meanwhile, the ‘Doctor Who’ Christmas special is set to air on December 25.
Writer Mark Gatiss says Michelle Gomez could soon become the first female Doctor Who
