Not to get you even more excited about the Tardis flying ever closer to your TV screen, but it turns out Pearl Mackie and Peter Capaldi have been given a great big thumbs up by those lucky reviewers who have seen the first episode of Doctor Who series 10.

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And we may now have an insight into why the time-travelling duo started off so well: before they began filming, Capaldi gifted Mackie some amazingly heart-warming advice – along with his phone number, telling her that if she ever needed him, she only had to call.

"When we first started, [Peter Capaldi] gave me like a little card and a candle for my new flat in Cardiff and just said that 'the whole whirlwind of Doctor Who can be a bit mad. There's so many other parts that go along with just making the show, but just remember that making the show is what we are here to do," mackie told New Zealand’s Stuff.

"You are a really good actress," he told her. "Just focus on that and the rest will come naturally. But if it doesn't, here's my number and if you need to ask me anything, you can.”

And Mackie added that this was hardly out of character for Capaldi: "I thought that was really nice, but typical of the man. He's amazing – a very generous actor. He always makes sure we rehearse things fully and double-checks that everything is all right for me. He's really enthusiastic too."

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The new Who companion also went on to say how welcoming showrunner Steven Moffat had been to her, even to the extent of injecting her own personality into her role. “As you kind of get to know each other and [Moffat] spends time with you, he puts little bits of you into the character,” Mackie said.

“I remember saying something in the audition about how I have to try hard to keep my face as still as possible in TV auditions because it just moves by itself. That made its way into the show. I remember reading it going, 'I swear I said that'. I think that's quite fun – it attaches it a bit to you and makes it completely individual."

However eyebrow-raising Mackie found the scripts, though, it was nothing compared to meeting aliens on set. "You actually don't realise how scary some of the monsters are until they are right there in your face and you are trying to battle them,” she said. “But then you'll be sitting there at 7:30am, chatting to a half-dressed Ice Warrior who has latex on his face, but also jogging bottoms on. Working on this show is such a brilliant, mad experience."

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Doctor Who returns to BBC1 on Saturday 15th April at 7:20pm

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