New Doctor Who companion Tosin Cole didn’t know who Jodie Whittaker was during his first audition
And along with Mandip Gill, the series 11 star had an odd first impression of co-star Bradley Walsh…
After Jodie Whittaker was announced as Doctor Who’s new star back in summer 2017, it felt like the whole world knew her name – but as it turns out, one of her own co-stars had no idea who Whittaker was even during his audition.
“I didn't know! I was away, I wasn't in tune at all,” Tosin Cole, who plays Ryan Sinclair in the new series, told RadioTimes.com in an exclusive video interview alongside co-star Mandip Gill (below).
“I remember at the audition I was like, 'Oh, who's this?' And I phoned my agent and she said, 'That's the Doctor'. I was like, ‘Ohh! That's why she's here…’”
Clearly, if Whittaker ever needs to make herself feel a little more humble about her new-found stardom, Cole is the man to talk to.
However, once the new Tardis team including Cole, Gill, Whittaker and Bradley Walsh did get to know each other along with showrunner Chris Chibnall, things went pretty smoothly.
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“The four of us met with Chris in a hotel, and we had a little bit of a read-through and a talk about each others' characters,” Cole’s co-star Gill recalled.
“But I think it might've been more to just meet each other. And hope we get on, because it's too late!”
However, one usually larger-than-life figure wasn’t quite himself…
“Brad was quite quiet then!” she said of The Chase star Walsh, who spent most of the Sheffield Doctor Who premiere teasing and pranking his co-stars.
“I remember thinking 'Ooh, he's quite serious isn’t he?'" she said.
Cole agreed: “After that he started easing his way in and I was like 'Oh, OK.' When we started filming I was like, 'Jeez he's a totally different person!'”
Of course, now the Tardis team are fully settled in and ready for audiences to see their series of Doctor Who in action – and according to them, we have plenty to look forward to.
“The whole series, the episodes, the themes – there is so much truth and emphasis on relationships and friendships and stuff like that,” Gill concluded. “I just think there's something for everyone.”
If nothing else, we’re pretty sure everyone will know who Jodie Whittaker is from now on...
Doctor Who returns to BBC1 on Sunday 7th October at 6.45pm
