Clara Oswald’s replacement is likely to be “someone who’s not so impressed by the Doctor” and “doesn’t take him seriously,” suggests Capaldi.

Peter Capaldi has given us some further insight into the new Doctor Who companion, building on some comments he made last month about what we can expect from Clara Oswald’s successor. And – as if there was any doubt – it’s definitely a she…

“I think the companion has to be someone who’s not so impressed by the Doctor – she’s not an assistant, she’s not a servant, she can’t be that – she has to be someone who really says ‘are you sure that’s the right thing to do? What are you doing?’ and also doesn’t take him seriously,” Capaldi told Mexican blogger La Lata when asked what he was looking for from Jenna Coleman’s replacement.

We know from earlier interviews that have come out of Capaldi’s recent tour of Mexico that the new companion has already been cast and that we can expect “a very different sort of take” on the role following Coleman’s departure. And Capaldi’s latest comments would seem to fit with the idea he’s already put forward of a more down-to-earth character.

“Clara had prior knowledge of the Doctor,” Capaldi told Brazilian website Omelete in March. “It was conceived as a human connected to your timeline, and so had access to the cosmic nature of the Doctor. She understood a little about how he was. And as she was already with [Eleventh Doctor] Matt [Smith], she knew the Daleks and the TARDIS. Now we have someone who knows very little about the Doctor.”

Hmmm… someone who knows very little about the Doctor and doesn’t take him seriously. We seem to be building up a picture here of a companion who is going to be rather unimpressed with the Time Lord and is unlikely to put up with any posturing or sense of self-importance from him.

This could be a lot of fun…

The Mr Selfridge actor took to his YouTube channel to discuss his part in Patrick Ness’ Class.

After all the announcements about Doctor Who spin-off Class yesterday (including the cast and some of its premise), we thought no-one could be more excited than us about the upcoming series – but we hadn’t taken newly-announced star Greg Austin into account.

In fact, Austin – who will appear alongside cast mates Vivian Oparah, Sophie Hopkins, Fady Elsayed and Mr Selfridge co-star Katherine Kelly – was so pumped about the whole thing that he posted a video to his YouTube gaming channel all about his big new role, recounting the day he was given the part and how difficult the secret has been to keep.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_X2Wure5TE

You can watch Austin fanboy out above (also a handy way to see what he’s like if you’ve never seen Mr Selfridge). Basically the whole thing is very sweet, even if we are a little jealous about all the time he’s spent on the Doctor Who set. Clearly, Class will have some class.

Class will come to BBC3 this autumn

The new BBC3 series might have a baddie who we’ve seen in the Whoniverse before.

We found out a lot more about upcoming Doctor Who spin-off Class earlier this week including its cast and basic premise (as well as having a good old speculate about how Twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi would fit into affairs), but one mystery remained – who was the big bad villain threatening our young student heroes, and where did he/she/it come from?

All we know so far is this line from the official press statement, which is suitably vague:
Coal Hill School has been a part of the Doctor Who universe since the very beginning, but that has come at a price. All the time travelling over the years has caused the very walls of space and time to become thin. There’s something pressing in on the other side, something waiting for its chance to kill everyone and everything, to bring us all into Shadow.

So who is this Shadow? Luckily, we didn’t have to wait long until the forces of the Whovian fandom started digging, and they’ve come up with a pretty convincing theory that (sadly) doesn’t involve any sort of crossover with Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog series.

Basically, the theory goes like this: as pointed out in a new reddit post, the capitalization of Shadow in the release would indicate a villain actually called that rather than a metaphorical shadow of evil, and there are quite a few candidates as to who said Shadow might be.
It could be the Vashta Nerada, for example – ravenous living shadows who brought death to a library in 2008’s Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead, with no weak spots and the perfect camouflage. Or it might be some sort of reference to The Shadow Proclamation, the intergalactic police force seen in the series who have occasionally had run-ins with the Doctor.

But redditor hamzasalem151’s most convincing idea looks back to classic Tom Baker episode The Armageddon Factor, where the Fourth Doctor faces an agent of The Black Guardian called…drum roll…The Shadow, who battles the Time Lord over the Key of Time.  As played by the late William Squire he looked like this (below) with a skull-faced mask, so maybe any fans in Cardiff should keep their eyes peeled for anyone dressed in such finery and report back.

Anyway that’s our best guess for Class’ main villain at the moment, and we think it’s pretty convincing. Of course, you could point out that Class creator Patrick Ness has emphasized his desire to create new characters in his spin-off, and you might think that it’s pretty unlikely he decided to revive a B-villain from 1979, evil tree-shadows or rhino policemen.

You might even point out that the way Shadow appears in the context of the press release makes it sounds like it could be the named effect of some evil plan, perhaps a horrible state of being inflicted by a villain rather than the name of the villain him/her/itself. Maybe you’d even bring up the idea that Shadow could be some weird synonym for Hell, considering the fact that it’s described as coming after comes after the death of “everyone and everything”.

Yes, you could suggest all that – but then we’d be back to not knowing ANYTHING about Class’ Big Bad, and we’d rather not live in that world any more, thanks. 1979 villains for the win!

Class will air on BBC3 online this autumn.

“Time has looked at your faces now. And time never forgets…”
What if your planet was massacred and you were the sole survivor?
What if a legendary figure out of space and time found you a place to hide?
But what if the things that want to kill you have tracked you down?
And worst of all, what if you haven’t studied for your A-Levels…?

On the first day of term, BBC Three today announce the stars of the Doctor Who spin-off series Class – exciting young new talents Greg Austin, Fady Elsayed, Sophie Hopkins and Vivian Oparah. They will be joined by Katherine Kelly, as she takes the role of a teacher and powerful new presence at Coal Hill School.

Like all sixth formers, these four Coal Hill School students have hidden secrets and desires. They are facing their own worst fears, navigating a life of friends, parents, school work, sex, sorrow – and possibly the end of existence.

Coal Hill School has been a part of the Doctor Who Universe since the very beginning, but that has come at a price. All the time-travelling over the years has caused the very walls of space and time to become thin. There’s something pressing in on the other side, something waiting for its chance to kill everyone and everything, to bring us all into Shadow.

Fear is coming, tragedy is coming, war is coming. Prepare yourselves, Class is coming.

Award winning YA writer and Class creator Patrick Ness, says: “We searched far and wide for this amazing cast, fantastic actors who understand what we’re aiming for with this show. And how lucky we are to get Katherine Kelly! She’s been stunning in Happy Valley, The Night Manager and Mr Selfridge, just wait until you see her here.”

Steven Moffat, Class and Doctor Who Executive Producer, says: “There’s nothing more exciting than meeting stars that nobody’s heard of yet. We had the read through of the first few episodes last week, and there was a whole row of them. Coal Hill School has been part of Doctor Who since the very first shoot in 1963, but this new show is anything but history. Class is dark and sexy and right now. I’ve always wondered if there could be a British Buffy – it’s taken the brilliant Patrick Ness to figure out how to make it happen.”

Class is a YA series set in contemporary London. It is scary, funny, and as painful and sharp as youth. It will also shine a light on a whole new corner of the Whoniverse.

Damian Kavanagh, Controller, BBC Three, adds: “I can’t wait for Class to arrive on BBC Three. BBC Three will always back best young British talent.”

From writer Patrick Ness, director Ed Bazalgette (Poldark, Doctor Who), producer Derek Ritchie, and executive producers Patrick Ness, Steven Moffat and Brian Minchin, the BBC Cymru Wales production, co-produced with BBC America and BBC Worldwide, starts filming today and will premiere on BBC Three this year.

Further casting will be announced in due course.