You’re going to see a lot of headlines about how Alan Cumming returns to the world of Doctor Who in the upcoming season, and they may largely be slightly misleading: This time, Alan Cumming (who previously appeared in “The Witchfinders”) simply provides the voice of an animated character, Mr. Ring-a-Ding, in the season’s second episode. Temper your expectations accordingly.
But with that reality check out of the way: Hey, Doctor Who is back very soon! Disney announced today that Gatwa’s much-anticipated second season arrives in April on Disney+ and the BBC. This time around, the Doctor has a second companion, Belinda Chandra (Andor’s Varada Sethu) along with returning companion Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson). The brief season synopsis puts the focus on Belinda:
The Doctor meets Belinda Chandra and begins an epic quest to get her back to Earth. But a mysterious force is stopping their return and the time-traveling TARDIS team must face great dangers, bigger enemies and wider terrors than ever before.
Disney’s announcement has more to say about Cumming’s Mr. Ring-a-Ding, “a happy, funny, singalong cartoon, who lives in Sunny Town with his friend Sunshine Sally. However, in 1952, after years of repeats in cinemas across the land, Mr Ring-a-Ding suddenly looks beyond the screen and sees the real world outside—and the consequences are terrifying.”
Along with Cumming, the upcoming season’s guest stars include Rose Ayling-Ellis, Christopher Chung, Anita Dobson, Michelle Greenidge, Jonah Hauer-King, Ruth Madeley, Jemma Redgrave, and Susan Twist.
Russell T Davies continues to serve as writer and showrunner on Who, which premieres Saturday, April 12th, on Disney+ in the U.S. and the BBC and BBC iPlayer in the UK. This season has eight weekly episodes total.
