Doctor Who legend Alex Kingston has shared her thoughts on the latest regeneration twist, which saw Ncuti Gatwa’s Time Lord become Billie Piper’s character
Alex Kingston doesn’t see Billie Piper as the new Doctor Who (Image: Getty)
Doctor Who icon and Strictly Come Dancing star Alex Kingston has expressed her scepticism about the recent regeneration twist in the show, stating: “I don’t buy that!”
Viewers of the enduring BBC series watched as Ncuti Gatwa’s Time Lord character regenerated into the returning actress Billie Piper, though the final outcome is yet to be revealed.
However, 62-year-old Alex, renowned for her role as River Song and having shared screen time with David Tennant and Matt Smith during their tenures on the programme, remains doubtful that Billie will indeed assume the mantle of the new Doctor.
In an exclusive interview with RadioTimes.com at the Radio Times Covers Party 2026, she confessed: “I didn’t see the Billie Piper twist coming at all. To be perfectly honest, I still don’t quite believe it because she’s not a Gallifreyan, she’s a human.
“I think there’s some playing going on here. But I don’t buy that she’s the next Doctor, and if she is, they’re gonna have to work hard to convince me, because she’s not a Gallifreyan!” reports the Mirror.
Billie Piper starred alongside Christopher Eccleston (Image: undefined)
Billie, now aged 43, previously portrayed companion Rose Tyler in Doctor Who. With her recent reappearance, could this signal a potential return for River as well?
Alex commented: “I haven’t really stopped being River because I do so many audio recordings and boxsets of her journeys with the Doctors, but also she has her own River Song Diaries.
“So I’ve never left that world. Would I like to come back? 100 per cent. It’s nothing but sheer joy when you work on Doctor Who, and I’ve actually even said that I believe that, because she’s been saved in a computer program, she could come back in a computer program.
Ales on Doctor Who with Peter Capaldi (Image: BBC)
“She could 3D print herself. She could hack into any computer in the universe and cause mayhem. I just feel like there’s a lot of opportunity if they wanted to go down that route.
“But maybe they feel like that’s the end of that character. But never say never!”
The ER actress was last seen gracing the dance floor in the 2025 series of Strictly Come Dancing, partnered with professional dancer Johannes Radebe.
Despite impressing with high scores, she became the 10th celebrity to exit the competition after a Cha Cha dance-off against EastEnders’ Balvinder Sopal, her performance hampered by a “painful injury”.
