Doctor Who: 10 Actors Who Could Play The Next Companion

3. Celia Imrie

Celia Imrie would shatter expectations as a Doctor Who companion simply by existing in the TARDIS. Historically, the show has leaned towards younger companions, leaving the older, wiser perspective largely unexplored. We’ve had Wilfred Mott, but the Doctor is yet to travel with an older woman on a regular full-time basis. Imrie brings everything you could need from that portrayal: a commanding presence and a ‘prim and proper’ persona, tempered by a cheeky twinkle, the kind of warmth that seeps through even the sternest expression. Plus, if her stint on Celebrity Traitors is anything to go by, this woman is a total oddball and a comedic delight.

I’m imagining Adelaide Brooke’s rigid morals combined with Wilfred Mott’s quiet humanity and wholesomeness. Plus, she’s just a phenomenal actress - in her brief appearance on Doctor Who in The Bells of St John, she delivered one of the series’ most quietly heartbreaking moments of NuWho, as her deliciously evil Miss Kizlet is reverted to the mind of a little girl, having lost a vast portion of her life to the Great Intelligence’s mind control (seriously, that scene is BLEAK).

Her extensive career, from Calendar Girls to The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and most recently The Thursday Murder Club, demonstrates her blend of authority, charm, and whimsy. She’s a bit of a national treasure these days, but still within reaching distance for the show.

The vision: A retired MI6 Agent with a forensic mind and a love for crochet - unassuming, but capable of clobbering you with a handbag if you step out of line. She’d fit a snappier, more verbose Doctor, capable of bickering with her like a married couple one moment but also bonding over juicy gossip and general moaning about manners. Colin as Old Sixie would nail this.