Doctor Who writer teases Christmas special: "Nicola Coughlan will break your heart"
By Ashley Hurst
Nicola Coughlan has quickly became one of the most popular Irish actresses around thanks to her role as Penelope Featherington, aka Lady Whistledown, in Netflix's Bridgerton. Before we see her on Bridgerton again, Coughlan will appear in the next season of Doctor Who, in the 2024 Christmas Special that writer Steven Moffat says "will break your heart."
Little is known of the upcoming Christmas Special, I mean it's July, I can't belive we're already talking about Christmas. Even so, the special will be aptly titled "Joy to the World," and marks the 50th script that writer Steven Moffat has written for the Whoniverse. His most recent credit was "Boom," one of the better episodes in the rebooted season 1.
Speaking to Irish AM, Moffat recently teased that Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan will tug on everyone's heartstrings. "Nicola is wonderful in it, she will break your heart," he said.
Coughlan previously told the BBC about how excited she is to get involved in the iconic sci-fi series. "I’m excited to join the Whoniverse under the leadership of the inimitable Russell T Davies," she said. "I’ve been a fan of Ncuti Gatwa for some time and getting to share the screen with him as the Doctor has been an absolute joy."
Outside teasing the fact that we're in for an emotional rollercoaster, Moffat can't say much more. "I'm not allowed to say anything about it. At least I think I'm not allowed to say anything about it so I'll just shut up."
In addition, Moffat also weighed on his experience of returning to the Whoniverse to write "Boom," in which the Doctor himself becomes a living landmine. The episode also introduces Varada Sethu, who will become a companion in season 2. Turns out, stepping back into the writer's room "wasn't as weird as it should've been" for him, and he seamlessly returned to his duties. "It was just fun and it was quite nice that I had my old job back for exactly one episode and then I could go lie down. Russell [T Davies] has to keep toiling away all the time, constantly," he explained.
Doctor Who returns on Christmas Day. Season 2 will premiere sometime in 2025.
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