Could the next Doctor Who be transgender?
Rebecca Root says she wants to be the first transgender Time Lord.
The actress has also revealed that every time she sees Doctor Who’s showrunner Steven Moffat, she asks him when he’s going to give her control of the iconic blue phone box.
I’d love to be the first transgender Doctor,” the actress admitted at the Transgender Trailblazers panel at the Radio Times Festival – which was also attended by former boxing promoter Kellie Maloney.
“I know Steven actually and every time I see him I say… ‘aaaand..?’— but the Scottish guy’s got it at the minute hasn’t he,” she joked – referring to the current Doctor, Peter Capaldi.
Asked what kind of Doctor she would be, Root said: “A brilliant one! Is Steven Moffat around?
“I like vintage stuff, I like quirky things and I think the whole wardrobe thing looks such fun doesn’t it? More fun than the technology stuff, although I’m sure that would be fun too. I’d be a quirky Doctor.”
Root – who recently said she would love to see more trans actors in trans roles – also discussed being trans, saying she was around five when she first knew that she was trapped in the wrong body.
As the star of new BBC comedy Boy Meet Girl, Root is currently playing trans character Judy who starts dating a younger man, Leo.
Praised as the first ever sitcom to feature a trans actor playing a trans character, the show is being hailed as a piece of televisual history.
The show also stars Denise Welch of Waterloo Road as Leo’s mother, Janine Duvitski of Benidorm, Nigel Betts of Emmerdale, Lizzie Roper of Hollyoaks and Jonny Dixon of Coronation Street.
Other trans-focussed shows, such as Amazon’s Transparent, have received criticism for casting cisgender actors in trans roles.
Doctor Who is known for its positive and open-minded approach to LGBT characters – with trans actress Bethany Black set to appear later this series.
Michelle Gomez previously spoke about playing a Doctor Who character that was previously male.
In the penultimate episode of the last series of Doctor Who, the actress’s character Missy was revealed to be the female regeneration of villain The Master – who has always previously been male.
