Sir Lenny Henry praises Russell T Davies for casting Ncuti Gatwa as Time Lord

Sir Lenny Henry has heaped praise on Russell T Davies for casting Edinburgh-raised Ncuti Gatwa as the new Doctor Who.
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Rwanda-born Gatwa, who went to Boroughmuir High School in the Capital, will become the 14th Doctor on the popular BBC series, after Jodie Whittaker announced last July she will be leaving the series.

Sir Lenny is over the moon about the casting, telling the Radio Times that that black children need role models and gatekeeper allies.

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The 63-year-old, who famouly spoofed the role 37 years ago for The Lenny Henry Show, said: “A lot of black fans have been looking at our watches for a while! More power to Russell T Davies.”

Sir Lenny Henry has heaped praise on Russell T Davies for casting Edinburgh-raised Ncuti Gatwa as the new Doctor Who.Sir Lenny Henry has heaped praise on Russell T Davies for casting Edinburgh-raised Ncuti Gatwa as the new Doctor Who.
Sir Lenny Henry has heaped praise on Russell T Davies for casting Edinburgh-raised Ncuti Gatwa as the new Doctor Who.

Queer As Folk and It’s A Sin writer Davies is returning as Doctor Who showrunner after departing the show in 2009.

Davies, who was responsible for Doctor Who’s revival in 2005, will be back to celebrate the show’s 60th anniversary in 2023, the BBC previously said.

Sir Lenny, meanwhile, will next star in a BBC adaption of Kit de Waal’s book My Name Is Leon, about a young black boy from Birmingham who is stuck in the care system during the 1980s.

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The Dudley-born actor said: “With people like Kit, Steve McQueen, Malorie Blackman and our team on this – writer Shola Amoo and director Lynette Linton – we’re securing a future for British drama.

“I grew up in a working-class neighbourhood in the Black Country, I want to see those stories. The Crown is great, but can we see ourselves on TV too?”

Gatwa, 29, is best known for his role as Eric Effiong in Netflix hit Sex Education.

In 2020, he was named the winner of the actor category at the Scottish Baftas for his role in Sex Education, and was nominated at this year’s Bafta TV awards.

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Last month, Gatwa said he can “finally breathe” following the announcement he is the new Doctor after being cast in the role months prior.

He said: “I feel really happy that I can now talk about it because I got cast in February and I have been keeping it a secret since then.

“So it is nice to finally breathe. But also really nervous.

“It is an incredibly iconic role and an incredibly iconic show.

“I just hope I do it justice. I am following in some very, very big footsteps so I am just hoping that I fill them up.”

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Speaking about how Doctor Who relates to diversity, Gatwa said of the Time Lord: “He is literally an alien – ‘they’ are an alien. And so they can regenerate into anything and anyone.

“And for me, I just find the show to be the most beautiful form of escapism. You can forget about all your worldly troubles and you get to go to space and battle aliens.

“I feel like anyone can put themselves in those shoes. The Doctor is not from anywhere.

“They don’t fit in anywhere and I think for marginalised people they have been a real beacon of feeling seen in a way.

“They are someone that can help people escape, which I love.”

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