Doctor Who icon Christopher Eccleston reveals his verdict on Billie Piper taking on Time Lord role

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Christopher Eccleston, known for his role in Doctor Who, has publicly expressed his support for Billie Piper following the surprising character change at the end of the show’s last season.

The most recent episode, “The Reality War,” featured Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor changing into Piper. While it’s not yet official that Piper is the new Doctor, many viewers suspect there’s a hidden depth to her character.

Billie Piper first appeared in Doctor Who as Rose Tyler in 2005, playing alongside Christopher Eccleston’s Doctor. Eccleston has repeatedly supported the idea of Piper taking on the role of the Doctor herself, most recently in 2022.

During an appearance at the Oxford Literary Festival on March 29th, the actor jokingly referred to himself as a prophet when asked about a prediction he’d made in the past.

I recently heard, via OxfordMail, that someone was asked about casting choices and their response was incredibly enthusiastic about Billie for the role. They basically said, ‘Absolutely, give it to Billie! What’s stopping us?’ It was a really simple, yet passionate endorsement.

Piper has hinted at her return to Doctor Who, sharing after the latest episode that she’s always loved the show and would jump at the chance to be involved again. She confirmed she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to revisit the ‘Whoniverse’ and step back inside the TARDIS, but she’s keeping the details of her return – who she’ll be playing, how it happens, and when it will air – a secret for now.

I’m really hoping we’ll finally get some explanations in this year’s Christmas special! It’s great that Russell T Davies, the showrunner, is writing it – he always delivers!

Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper starred in the revival of Doctor Who, when the series was brought back to television by writer Russell T Davies.

Though Eccleston only appeared for a single season, Piper continued with David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor for another season and made guest appearances in future episodes.

The actor, known for revisiting his part as the Ninth Doctor in Big Finish audio dramas, has recently discussed the possibility of appearing on screen again, even though he had previously said he wouldn’t return to the show.

He explained that Doctor Who has historically been created by male writers. Notably, no woman has ever been the head writer, or ‘showrunner,’ of the series.

He explained his ideal scenario: a young girl, maybe six to eight years old, watched his show when it first aired in 2005, and years later, she hires him to work with her. He’d accept immediately and enthusiastically.

Doctor Who is coming back this Christmas and will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer. You can also explore a complete guide to the show’s history, including reviews of every episode since 1963, information about the cast and crew, behind-the-scenes details, and exclusive content from the TopMob archive.

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Authors

Louise GriffinSci-Fi and Fantasy Editor

Louise Griffin is the Sci-Fi & Fantasy Editor at TopMob, where she writes about popular franchises like Doctor Who, Star Wars, Marvel, House of the Dragon, and Good Omens. Before joining TopMob, she was a Senior Entertainment Reporter at Metro and holds a degree in English Literature.

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2026-03-31 17:04