Doctor Who Holiday Special Unveils a Jaw-Dropping Double Dose of Ncuti Gatwa!

Time travel, a Bridgerton star, and two Ncuti Gatwas. These are just a few of the fun elements featured in the all-new trailer for the upcoming Doctor Who Christmas special.

The special is set in what’s called the Time Hotel, a place where customers are able to visit particular points in history. With her role as the titular Joy, Nicola Coughlan of Bridgerton fame is also playing a big part in the story, as seen in the trailer. Fans can watch the video below.

Doctor Who has been back on TV for almost 20 years, but one early finale still stands out as the modern series’ crowning achievement.

The synopsis for “Joy to the World” reads, “When Joy checks into a London hotel in 2024, she opens a secret doorway to the Time Hotel — discovering danger, dinosaurs and the Doctor. But a deadly plan is unfolding across the Earth, just in time for Christmas.”

Nicola Coughlan Is Seeing Double in the Doctor Who Christmas Special

Along with Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor and Coughlan as Joy, the special also stars Steph de Whalley as Anita, Jonathan Aris as Melnak, Joel Fry as Trev, Peter Benedict as Basil, Julia Watson as Hilda, and Niamh Marie Smith as Sylvia. Steven Moffat wrote the episode, which was directed by Alex Sanjiv Pillai. Russell T Davies is the showrunner. Moffat also served as an executive producer alongside Davies, Joel Collins, Phil Collinson, Julie Gardner, and Jane Tranter.

Doctor Who has been around since 1963 with a variety of actors to take turns playing the titular role. Gatwa is considered to be the Fifteenth Doctor, though that follows David Tennant playing both the Tenth and Fourteenth Doctors. Gatwa debuted in “The Church on Ruby Road,” and with the new actor in the part, the series continues to maintain its popularity as one of the top shows for viewers under 35 across the world.

Even so, it remains to be seen for sure if Gatwa will get a third season in the role. The second season for the actor as previously ordered and is set to arrive sometime next year, but there haven’t been any indications as of yet that another renewal will be coming.

“It’s an industry decision, it’s like any business – these things take time,” Davies previously said about a potential renewal for Season 3 with Gatwa, per GamesRadar. “I think the decision will come after the transmission of Season 2. That’s what we’re expecting, that’s what we’ve always been heading towards.”