The modern continuation of Doctor Who has not shied away from LGBTQ characters — but aside from recurring guest characters like Captain Jack or River Song, the show has yet to feature an ongoing, permanent LGBTQ companion. That is until season 10 and the arrival of Bill.
Image: BBC
Bill Potts — played by the incoming Pearl Mackie — will have her sexuality revealed in her first scene in Doctor Who‘s 10th season, according to a new interview with the BBC:
There’s some fudging going by the BBC here with a weirdly specific definition of “companion” status that would some how stop the openly pansexual Jack Harkness — who’s portrayed on the show as being attracted to pretty much anything that moves, regardless of gender — from being the “first” LGBTQ companion on the show, in order to make Bill’s inclusion more prominent. But ridiculously fannish Doctor Who nitpicking aside, it’s great to see more inclusivity coming to the show’s narrative and characters. Hopefully some of that push for diversity will rub off when it comes to deciding the show’s next Doctor, too.
Doctor Who returns April 15 in the UK.