At the London Film and Comic Con last week, both Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann gave their approval for upcoming companion, Pearl Mackie.

McGann, who of course played the Eighth Doctor, seemed particularly smitten, saying:

“I had a crush at first sight! I saw a photo of them shooting in Valencia, and my heart went pitter-patter.”

He seemed particularly pleased that Mackie trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, located in the city he now lives near. In fact, many Doctor Who faces are alumni of the Old Vic, including Ian Marter (Harry Sullivan), Faye Marsay (Last Christmas), Olivia Colman (The Eleventh Hour), Sean Pertwee (The Five-Ish Doctors Reboot, and son of Third Doctor, Jon Pertwee), Milton Johns (The Enemy of the World), Tim Pigott-Smith (The Masque of Mandragora), and Adrian Scarborough (A Town Called Mercy) – good company, don’t you think?

Seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy was also very enthusiastic about Pearl, calling the casting:

“Great. Yeah, she’s gonna be terrific. She’s going to be feisty and fun!”

Saying he’s a big fan of Peter Capaldi, McCoy also reaffirmed his love of audio adventures:

“I’ll be working with Big Finish until the end of Big Finish. Big Finished! Or I’m finished. Because I started off with Big Finish, working with it… Yeah, I enjoy audio a hell of a lot. The sets don’t shake. I’m 6ft tall; I’m 21 years of age – going on 900; you don’t have to learn the lines! I like it better [than even TV].”

So there we have it: the seal of Rassilon approval from two much-loved Doctors!

Sadly, we likely won’t get to see new companion, Bill in action until at least Spring 2017 – presumably the Twelfth Doctor will have a sort of “interim” companion this Christmas – but time flies when you’re waiting impatiently, the hours filled solely by replays of The Light at the End and the occasional shriek of anxiety.