Doctor Who showrunner reveals why The Story and the Engine cameo was crucial

The episode saw the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) arrive in Lagos where he was held hostage in a barbershop, and a crucial moment in the episode saw him experience a flashback to his past self as the Fugitive Doctor in order to make a key realisation.

In the latest episode of spin-off series Doctor Who: Unleashed, showrunner Russell T Davies outlined why it was such a perfect time to bring Martin's Doctor back into the fold.

"We’ve got a story that’s set in Lagos that’s kind of honouring the ethnicity of our Doctor," he said. "So actually, it felt like Jo Martin was missing. It’s just time to acknowledge her, and just time to say she still exists."

He added: "It’s also time to say that mythology still exists, in a very mythological episode about the lives of these men, the lives of the barber over these hundreds of years.

"You needed to look at the Doctor’s life and you needed to acknowledge that. So just a moment, and she’s so delighted to come to Cardiff and do it. So, it’s an honour."

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Meanwhile, Gatwa said it was "really nice having another Doctor on set" for the episode.

He continued: "We didn’t get to speak as much as we wanted to because time gets very tight, but we checked in with each other and had that Doctor conversation that only Doctors can have, when we speak about the pressures of saving the universe."

Martin had previously been open about her hopes of returning to Doctor Who, telling RadioTimes.com and other press that there's "always that chance" that she make another appearance on the beloved sci-fi series.

Doctor Who continues next Saturday (17th May), with new episodes available from 8am on Saturdays on BBC iPlayer in the UK and later the same day on BBC One. The series is available on Disney+ outside of the UK.

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