Even the Doctor Who cast were fooled by that brilliant Dalek codename

What’s the most feared monster in the Doctor Who universe? A villain driven purely by hatred that’s taken millions of lives? The baddie that escaped its thousand-year-old burial chamber in New Year special Resolution?

10 points if you said Kevin.

As previously reported, the terrifying Reconnaissance Dalek was given the codename 'Kevin' in the build-up to filming in order to keep the Doctor Who villain's return a secret.

However, it turned out this ridiculous codename was so good at keeping the secret that even some of the cast weren't in the know.

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Nikesh Patel, who played Mitch in the episode, recently took to Twitter to explain that he didn’t know he was in a Dalek episode until his first day on set.

Yes, he genuinely thought he was battling an alien called KEVIN.

"I didn't realise it was a secret code name until my first day on set," he began.

"After accepting the part I have a quick phonecall with Wayne Yip, our brilliant episode director, who's already started filming in Cardiff," he explained. "He asks if I have any questions about Mitch. We talk accents. I *really* want to ask him if the baddie is called Kevin, but I bottle it."

Even after arriving on set, Patel had no idea. And it didn’t help that Jodie Whittaker, the Doctor herself, kept using the ol’ Kev codename during the run-through.

"We run our lines, and Jodie keeps the code name, thinking it sounds hilarious," he says. "It does! Unless you're me, in which case you hear the Doctor – with gusto – deliver the killer line, 'I'm coming for you, KEVIN!' and start to wonder if you're missing something."

It was only just before the cameras started rolling that director Yip told him 'Kevin' equalled Dalek. And Patel had to play it very cool.

Previously, Charlotte Ritchie – who played Lin in Resolution – revealed the Daleks' secret moniker, adding that the codename made the Daleks a lot less frightening.

So, there you have it: if you want to make the Daleks appear a lot less scary, just rename them Kevin before any episode. Best tell Patel about the swap first, though.

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