Bonnie Langford Returns As Companion In ‘Doctor Who’ Alongside Ncuti Gatwa!

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‘Doctor Who‘ is seeing an old companion return to the sci-fi drama, as the BBC announces star of stage and screen Bonnie Langford will once again reprise her legendary role as Melanie Bush as she returns to Doctor Who, this time starring alongside Ncuti Gatwa, who plays the Fifteenth Doctor in the new series. And apparently, this is not just a cameo…

Bonnie first entered the world of Doctor Who in 1986 as the companion to the Sixth and Seventh Doctors played by Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy, before returning in a cameo role in Jodie Whittaker’s final episode as the Thirteenth Doctor.

Making her West End debut at just seven years old in Gone with the Wind at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, Bonnie has since gone on to lead an outstanding career. From her countless performances on both Broadway and West End, such as Chicago, 9 to 5 and Cats, to her award-winning role as Carmel Kazemi on EastEnders. Now Bonnie is back, as Melanie returns for another epic adventure.

“I am absolutely thrilled to be bringing Melanie Bush back. To be part of the exceptional cast, crew and production team led by the force of nature that is Russell T Davies is a career highlight,” said Bonnie Langford about the news. “I’m so privileged and proud to have been a member of the Doctor Who family since the classic era and to be included in the new generation is phenomenal.”

What’s particularly interesting about this announcement is that it isn’t just a cameo or one-off guest spot. It seems to imply she is back as an actual companion over multiple episodes – something supported by comments from the new (old) showrunner, Russell T Davies:

“Open those TARDIS doors wide, because Bonnie’s back! What an honour, delight and hoot to welcome back the character of Melanie, after too long away,” said Davies, continuing, “And this isn’t just a cameo, Bonnie is right in the thick of the action, battling monsters and chaos and cliffhangers, right at the Doctor’s side, just like the old days.”

There are, of course, plenty of guest roles announced for the new season including Jemma Redgrave, who returns as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, Indira Varma (‘Torchwood’, ‘Game Of Thrones’, ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’) as “the Duchess”, and Aneurin Barnard (‘The White Queen’, ‘Cilla’, ‘Peaky Blinders’) as the mysterious Roger ap Gwilliam, alongside Jonathan Groff (‘Mindhunter’, ‘Glee’), Anita Dobson (‘Eastenders’), Michelle Greenidge (‘After Life’, ‘It’s A Sin’) and Jinkx Monsoon (‘Chicago’ – Broadway, ‘Drag Race’) who appear in undisclosed roles. Redgrave is also possibly set to return as Lethbridge-Stewart in a new spin-off series based around ‘UNIT’, although that has yet to be officially confirmed by the BBC.

Before we get to all of this though, the adventures of the timelord (and friends) kick off again in November 2023, when new/old face David Tennant returns to the series as the Fourteenth Doctor in three specials to coincide with the 60th anniversary of ‘Doctor Who’. That will be followed by Ncuti Gatwa taking over the role as the Fifteenth Doctor in Christmas 2023, and then this full series in 2024.

‘Doctor Who‘ returns to screens in November 2023 with Tennant starring in three specials to coincide with the 60th-anniversary which will premiere exclusively on the BBC for the UK and Ireland. Disney+ will air the series internationally. Ncuti Gatwa then takes over in Christmas 2023 as the Fifteenth Doctor.

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