Bill Potts (Doctor Who)

Last updated

Bill Potts
Doctor Who character
Bill Potts.png
Pearl Mackie as Bill Potts
First appearance"The Pilot" (2017)
Last appearance"Twice Upon a Time" (2017)
Created by Steven Moffat
Portrayed by Pearl Mackie
In-universe information
Species Cyberman
Human (originally)
Affiliation Twelfth Doctor
Significant other Heather
Home Earth

Bill Potts is a fictional character created by Steven Moffat and portrayed by Pearl Mackie in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who . In the show's tenth series, starting with the first episode, Bill served as a companion of the Twelfth Doctor, an incarnation of the alien time traveller known as the Doctor (portrayed by Peter Capaldi).

Contents

Appearances

Television

Bill Potts is introduced in the tenth series premiere, "The Pilot". [1] [2] In their first encounter, Bill is discovered by the Doctor, who is hiding out as a university professor. Noticing her untapped potential, he offers to privately tutor her. However, when Bill's love interest Heather (Stephanie Hyam) is turned into a water creature that can travel anywhere in space and time, the Doctor reveals to Bill his alien nature and takes her on as his travelling companion, much to the chagrin of his assistant Nardole (Matt Lucas), who urges the Doctor to stay in Bristol and keep watch over a strange safe below the university.

In subsequent episodes, Bill learns about the Doctor's Time Lord nature and the rules of time travel, averting alien invasions and ending conflicts on faraway planets and deep space, growing closer to the Doctor all the while. In the series finale, "World Enough and Time" / "The Doctor Falls", Bill is shot through the heart after the Doctor's crew reacts to an alien distress call aboard a spaceship, and is carried away by menacing scientists to a lower deck where time moves much more rapidly. Bill's life is saved, but ten years pass before the Doctor is able to reach her, during which time she is converted into a Cyberman. Though Cybermen are normally emotionless and hellbent on converting humans to their ranks, Bill retains her humanity and sense of identity as a result of particular experiences she has had travelling with the Doctor. When the Cybermen are defeated, Bill is entirely alone: the Doctor appears dead, Nardole has taken Mondasian refugees to safety, and she is a horrific monster. She is rescued, however, by Heather, who transforms her into a creature like herself and offers Bill the choice of travelling space and time together, or being returned to her life on Earth as a normal, living human again. Bill returns the Doctor's body to the TARDIS, and bids him a sad farewell, before taking off with Heather to explore the universe.

Mackie makes a final appearance in "Twice Upon a Time" as a living avatar of Bill's memories, collected on her death by the Testimony Project. Recognising herself as a continuation of Bill, she is delighted to see the Doctor again, and helps him on his journey to accept he must regenerate again.

In the 60th anniversary special story "The Giggle", The Toymaker depicts Bill as a marionette alongside Amy Pond and Clara Oswald, taunting the Fourteenth Doctor by reminding him of companions who died while travelling with him. [3]

Other media

In April 2017, three new novels were released, featuring new companions Nardole and Bill Potts. They are titled The Shining Man, Diamond Dogs and Plague City. [4] Before her premiere episode was broadcast, Bill made a cameo appearance in a Doctor Who Magazine comic strip, titled "The Daft Dimension", alongside Nardole in Issue #511 (May 2017). [5]

Paul Cornell's novelisation of "Twice Upon a Time" reveals more details about Bill's experiences following the events of "The Doctor Falls". It states that Bill and Heather explore the Milky Way together for a time, until Bill suggests they try being human again. As they spend time together on Earth – magicking up enough money to rent a flat and adopting cats – Bill grows to know and love Heather as a person. Years later, they decide to live by the sea and grow old as humans. On her deathbed, Bill tells Heather to leave her and resume her astral form. After accepting a human death, Bill finds herself part of Testimony. When it encounters the Doctor, Testimony temporarily restricts Bill's access to some of her memories so that she can interact with the Doctor as he knew her, to test his trustworthiness; this limitation is lifted at the end of the story. [6]

Casting and development

"Bill is cool – she's quite young, doesn't really know much about the world. She's very real – she's not had a very easy upbringing and whilst she doesn't really let that affect her day-to-day life, it's there under the surface – she can be quite defensive. She's fun, she's excited, she's a bit geeky – she quite likes sci-fi stuff, she's into space and that type of thing so when she does go on adventures with the Doctor and discovers aliens are real and that kind of stuff it blows her mind which is really cool."

Pearl Mackie [7]

In April 2016, it was announced that Pearl Mackie would portray the newest companion Bill Potts, after the departure of Jenna Coleman. To avoid leaks while casting the new companion, the production team used the word "Mean Town", an anagram of "Ten Woman"; this is a reference to the fact that Bill is the companion in the tenth series, and was revealed by the casting director Andy Pryor to Radio Times . [8] [9] [10] Producer Steven Moffat said Mackie's ethnicity was a factor in the decision to cast her, as he wanted to make the cast more diverse: "We decided that the new companion was going to be non-white [...] because we need to do better on that". [11] Bill is also the show's first openly gay companion. [12]

A preview scene was filmed in April 2016 as part of a promotional clip shown on 23 April 2016 on BBC One, during the semi-final half-time of the 2015–16 FA Cup. Titled "Friend from the Future", it introduced Bill and the Doctor in an encounter with Daleks. [13] Despite initial doubts that this scene would be included in the series itself, [1] parts of it were incorporated into Mackie's debut episode, "The Pilot". [1] [2]

Mackie describes Bill as "cool, really fun and really excited", and that she is "really young and doesn't really know much about the world". Capaldi describes her character as coming into the series as "very much as a regular human being from the real world, to whom all of this stuff is extraordinary, she knows nothing about it". Bill challenges the Doctor on his ways, calling him out on issues that he hasn't faced in a long time, and having a curious mind, she asks him continuous questions. [14]

On 23 July 2017, a trailer for the 2017 Christmas special "Twice Upon a Time" was released revealing Mackie's involvement in that episode. [15] On the same day, Mackie officially announced at San Diego Comic-Con that she would not be returning for the eleventh series. [16]

Bill costumes - Doctor Who Experience - Cardiff-46 (36617440435) (cropped).jpg
Bill costumes - Doctor Who Experience - Cardiff-46 (36617440435).jpg
Doctor Who Experience series 10 (36276037671).jpg
Doctor Who Experience series 10 (36016005350).jpg
Bill costume - Extremis.jpg
The Monk trilogy costumes - Doctor Who Experience - Cardiff-53 (36448490822).jpg
Bill costume - Eaters of Light.jpg
Costumes worn by Bill during the series, on display at the Doctor Who Experience

Though the character shares a name with William "Bill" Hartnell, who played the First Doctor (and whose wife, like Bill's girlfriend, was named Heather), creator Steven Moffat has said that this was a coincidence. The character's name was in fact inspired when Moffat overheard David Tennant, who portrayed the Tenth Doctor, offhandedly call out to Billie Piper by the name Bill on the set of "The Day of the Doctor" in 2013. [17]

Reception

Before the episode was broadcast, an advance screening was given for critics. General reviews for Mackie's character were mixed. Following the broadcast of her first episode, the character was received more positively.[ citation needed ]

Patrick Mulkern of Radio Times described Pearl Mackie as "instantly winning as fledgling companion Bill". [18] Den of Geek's Simon Brew also gave a positive review of Mackie, praising the humour in Mackie's performance. [19] Alasdair Wilkins of The A.V. Club said Mackie brought "an energy distinct from any previous new series companion" and called her first appearance a "solid introduction". Wilkins also commented, "that she is gay, black, and working class is another welcome step in Doctor Who's ability to reflect the entire spectrum of [those] who enjoy the show and identify with its characters". [20]

However, Catherine Gee of The Telegraph gave a more negative review, saying that Mackie in her premiere episode "lacked the charismatic spark of Jenna Coleman" and that Mackie's character was a "muddle", but praised the fact that Bill was not middle-class. [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twelfth Doctor</span> Fictional character from Doctor Who

The Twelfth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Peter Capaldi in three series as well as four specials. As with previous incarnations of the Doctor, the character has also appeared in other Doctor Who spin-offs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amy Pond</span> Fictional character in the TV series Doctor Who

Amelia "Amy" Pond is a fictional character portrayed by Karen Gillan in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Amy is a companion of the series protagonist the Doctor, in his eleventh incarnation, played by Matt Smith. She appears in the programme from the fifth series (2010) to midway through the seventh series (2012). Gillan returned for a brief cameo in Smith's final episode "The Time of the Doctor".

<i>Doctor Who</i> series 5 2010 series of Doctor Who

The fifth series of the British science-fiction television programme Doctor Who was originally broadcast on BBC One in 2010. The series began on 3 April 2010 with "The Eleventh Hour", and ended with "The Big Bang" on 26 June 2010. The series is the first to be led by Steven Moffat, who took over as head writer and executive producer when Russell T Davies ended his involvement in the show after "The End of Time". The series has 13 episodes, six of which were written by Moffat. Piers Wenger and Beth Willis were co-executive producers, and Tracie Simpson and Peter Bennett were producers. Although it is the fifth series since the show's revival in 2005, the series' production code numbers were reset.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rory Williams</span> Fictional character in the TV series Doctor Who

Rory Williams is a fictional character portrayed by Arthur Darvill in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Having been introduced at the start of the fifth series, Rory joins the Eleventh Doctor as a companion in the middle of Series 5. As Amy Pond's fiancé, Rory is initially insecure because he believes Amy secretly loves the Doctor more. Later, however, he proves to be a hero in his own right and he and Amy get married. The couple conceive a daughter aboard the Doctor's time machine, the TARDIS, while in the time vortex, but their baby is kidnapped at birth. In "A Good Man Goes to War", Rory and Amy discover their time traveller friend River Song is actually their daughter, Melody Pond. The Doctor and River marry in "The Wedding of River Song", and Rory becomes the Doctor's father-in-law. In "The Angels Take Manhattan", the fifth episode of the seventh series, he and Amy are transported back in time by a Weeping Angel, leading to the couple's departure from the series.

"Flesh and Stone" is the fifth episode of the fifth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Steven Moffat and directed by Adam Smith, the episode was first broadcast on 1 May 2010 on BBC One. Featuring the Weeping Angels as primary villains and the recurring character River Song, it is the conclusion of a two-episode story; the first part, "The Time of Angels", aired on 24 April.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clara Oswald</span> Fictional character in the TV series Doctor Who

Clara Oswald is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. She was created by series producer Steven Moffat and portrayed by Jenna Coleman. Clara was introduced in the seventh series as a new travelling companion of the series protagonist, the Doctor, in his eleventh and twelfth incarnations.

Last Christmas (<i>Doctor Who</i>) 2014 Doctor Who episode

"Last Christmas" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who that was first broadcast on 25 December 2014. It is the tenth Christmas special since the show's revival in 2005. It was written by Steven Moffat and directed by Paul Wilmshurst.

<i>Doctor Who</i> series 10 2017 series of Doctor Who

The tenth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who premiered on 15 April 2017 and concluded on 1 July 2017 with twelve episodes, after it was formally announced in July 2015. The series is led by head writer and executive producer Steven Moffat, alongside executive producer Brian Minchin. It is the third and final series overseen by the two as executive producers, as well as Moffat's sixth and final series as head writer. This series is the tenth to air following the programme's revival in 2005 and is the thirty-sixth season overall.

"The Eaters of Light" is the tenth episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by Rona Munro and broadcast on 17 June 2017 on BBC One. Munro previously wrote Survival, the final serial of the original run of Doctor Who, making her the only writer to date to have worked on the classic and revived eras of the show. The episode received generally positive reviews from television critics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nardole</span> Fictional character in the TV series Doctor Who

Nardole is a fictional character created by Steven Moffat and portrayed by Matt Lucas in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is a companion of the Twelfth Doctor, an incarnation of the alien time traveller known as The Doctor, played by Peter Capaldi. Nardole initially appeared in the 2015 Christmas special "The Husbands of River Song", as a companion of River Song, before returning in the following episode "The Return of Doctor Mysterio", having become the Doctor's companion in the meantime, later alongside Bill Potts, who comes to mistakenly believe Nardole to be a robot.

"Extremis" is the sixth episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by Steven Moffat and broadcast on 20 May 2017 on BBC One. "Extremis" received very positive reviews from television critics, with many praising Peter Capaldi's performance and Steven Moffat's script, though some commented on the complexity of the script.

"Knock Knock" is the fourth episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by Mike Bartlett and was broadcast on 6 May 2017 on BBC One.

"Oxygen" is the fifth episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by Jamie Mathieson and broadcast on 13 May 2017 on BBC One.

"The Lie of the Land" is the eighth episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Toby Whithouse, it was broadcast on 3 June 2017 on BBC One. "The Lie of the Land" received mixed reviews from television critics.

"The Pilot" is the first episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by Steven Moffat and broadcast on 15 April 2017 on BBC One. "The Pilot" received mostly positive reviews, with praise on the introduction of Pearl Mackie, and how the episode served both as a soft reboot and as a series premiere.

"World Enough and Time" is the eleventh and penultimate episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by Steven Moffat, directed by Rachel Talalay, and was broadcast on 24 June 2017 on BBC One. The episode was the first part of a two-part story, concluding with "The Doctor Falls".

"The Doctor Falls" is the twelfth and final episode of the tenth series, and 843rd episode overall, of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by Steven Moffat, directed by Rachel Talalay, and was broadcast on 1 July 2017 on BBC One. It is the second episode of a two-part story, the first part being "World Enough and Time".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thirteenth Doctor</span> Fictional character from Doctor Who

The Thirteenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who. She is played by Jodie Whittaker, the first woman to portray the character, in three series as well as five specials.

"Empress of Mars" is the ninth episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by Mark Gatiss and broadcast on 10 June 2017 on BBC One. "Empress of Mars" received generally positive reviews from television critics.

Twice Upon a Time (<i>Doctor Who</i>) 2017 Doctor Who episode

"Twice Upon a Time" is a special episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, broadcast on BBC One on 25 December 2017 as the programme's thirteenth Christmas special. The episode was written by Steven Moffat and directed by Rachel Talalay. It features the final regular appearance of Peter Capaldi as the Twelfth Doctor, the first official appearance of Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, and also stars David Bradley as the First Doctor. Pearl Mackie stars as the Twelfth Doctor's former companion Bill Potts, while his other companions make guest appearances – Jenna Coleman as Clara Oswald and Matt Lucas as Nardole. Mark Gatiss plays a First World War British army captain. The episode is a continuation of "The Doctor Falls", and takes place during the final serial of the First Doctor, The Tenth Planet (1966); footage from The Tenth Planet is used in the special. "Twice Upon a Time" is Capaldi's fourth and final Christmas special as the Twelfth Doctor, and at the time was the last Doctor Who story to be written and produced by Moffat, who served as the show's executive producer and chief writer since taking over from Russell T Davies in 2010. After the special's broadcast, Moffat was succeeded as executive producer and showrunner by Chris Chibnall.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Lu, Anne (18 August 2016). "'Doctor Who' season 10: Bill's intro scene may cause continuity errors, may not be canon". IBTimes. Retrieved 24 August 2016.
  2. 1 2 "'Poldark' director joins 'Doctor Who' Christmas special". CultBox. 22 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  3. ↑ Griffin, Louise. "Doctor Who brutally references Amy Pond and more companions in The Giggle". Radio Times. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  4. ↑ K McEwan, Cameron (6 March 2017). "3 Brand new Twelfth Doctor adventures coming to books in April!". Doctor Who. Archived from the original on 27 March 2017. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
  5. ↑ "Back on TV!". Doctor Who Magazine . No. 511. 6 April 2017. p. 10.
  6. ↑ Cornell, Paul (2018). Twice Upon a Time. London: BBC Books. ISBN   978-1785943300.
  7. ↑ Busch, Jenna (10 April 2017). "Doctor Who Season 10: Meet New Companion Bill Potts". ComingSoon. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  8. ↑ "Doctor Who: Pearl Mackie named as new companion". BBC News . 23 April 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  9. ↑ Gill, James (26 April 2016). "Doctor Who: new companion Pearl Mackie's codename revealed". Radio Times. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
  10. ↑ K McEwan, Cameron (26 May 2016). "Steven Moffat reveals Pearl Mackie to debut in 2017, her name and when's she's from..." Doctor Who. Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  11. ↑ "Doctor Who: Role was offered to black actor, says Steven Moffat". BBC News . 3 June 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  12. ↑ Mzimba, Lizo (31 March 2017). "Doctor Who gets first openly gay companion". BBC News . Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  13. ↑ Earnshaw, Jessica (23 April 2016). "BBC tease first glimpse of new Doctor Who companion in action ahead of big reveal". Daily Express . Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  14. ↑ Warner, Sam (8 April 2016). "Pearl Mackie and the Doctor Who cast tell us everything we need to know about Bill Potts". Digital Spy . Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  15. ↑ "Bill returns and the Doctors unite in new Doctor Who Christmas special pictures". RadioTimes. 24 July 2017. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  16. ↑ "Pearl Mackie confirms that she will not return to Doctor Who beyond the Christmas special". Radio Times . 23 July 2017. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  17. ↑ "Steven Moffat unveils his final Doctor Who episode – and reveals why Carey Mulligan said no to the Tardis". Radio Times . 3 December 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  18. ↑ Mulkern, Patrick (5 April 2017). "Doctor Who spoiler-free review: "The Pilot explores afresh the key concepts and joys of this 54-year-old show"". Radio Times . Retrieved 9 April 2017.
  19. ↑ Brew, Simon (4 April 2017). "Doctor Who series 10: The Pilot spoiler-free review". Den of Geek . Retrieved 9 April 2017.
  20. ↑ Wilkins, Alasdair (15 April 2017). "Doctor Who returns at long last, and it's got us a brand new companion". The A.V. Club . Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  21. ↑ Gee, Catherine (4 April 2017). "Doctor Who, series 10, episode 1: The Pilot is a rather clunky introduction to the new companion - first look review". The Telegraph . Retrieved 9 April 2017.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.