There’s a new Doctor in the Tardis – and she’s a familiar face

Billie Piper will play the next Doctor following a dramatic reveal at the end of the latest series of Doctor Who.

The actor, 42, who previously played Rose Tyler, the sidekick to the ninth and 10th Doctors, played by Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant, will be making her return to the Tardis.

Billie Piper will replace Ncuti Gatwa as Doctor Who.Credit: Getty Images

Who is Billie Piper?

Piper replaces Ncuti Gatwa, 32, as the Doctor, with the character regenerating during the finale on Sunday.

Piper said: “It’s no secret how much I love this show, and I have always said I would love to return to the Whoniverse as I have some of my best memories there, so to be given the opportunity to step back on that Tardis one more time was just something I couldn’t refuse.”

After the episode was broadcast, Billie Piper posted on Instagram: “A rose is a rose is a rose !!!” with images from her previous time on the show playing the Doctor’s companion Rose Tyler.

Russell T. Davies, the Doctor Who showrunner, praised Gatwa and said: “What a Doctor! Thank you, Ncuti!

“As his final words say, this has been an absolute joy, and the team in Cardiff and everyone who has worked on this show for the past few years are so lucky to have been part of Ncuti’s great adventure as he shoots off to stratospheric new heights.”

As the 15th Doctor, Ncuti Gatwa was the first black man to lead the series.

On Piper’s new role, he added: “Billie once changed the whole of television, back in 2005, and now she’s done it again. It’s an honour and a hoot to welcome her back to the Tardis, but quite how and why and who is a story yet to be told.

“After 62 years, the Doctor’s adventures are only just beginning.”

What are Billie Piper’s previous roles?

Piper first shot to fame in 1998 at the age of 15 with the release of her debut pop single Because We Want To. She had another number one single, Girlfriend, and her platinum selling debut album Honey to the B.

But she then moved into acting, later saying it was what she wanted to do most, and her breakthrough role came as the companion to Doctor Who in 2005.

Billie Piper previously played Rose, companion to the ninth and 10th Doctors, played by Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant (pictured).Credit: BBC

What was her previous role on Doctor Who?

Piper played Rose, a feisty shop assistant who developed a strong bond with the Time Lord and kissed him at one stage.

She later starred in the ITV series Secret Diary of a Call Girl from 2007 to 2011, playing an escort in London. She made her directorial debut in 2019 with Rare Beasts, a dark comedy drama she also wrote and starred in.

Last year, she portrayed the Newsnight producer Sam McAlister in Netflix’s Scoop, which tells the behind-the-scenes story of Emily Maitlis’ momentous interview with the Duke of York, Prince Andrew. The performance earned her a nomination for Best Leading Actress at the 2025 Bafta TV Awards. The Telegraph, London

Doctor Who is now streaming on Disney+.

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