The new ‘Doctor Who’ just added some serious muscle and a ‘Drag Race’ legend

Hold on to your Sonic Screwdrivers, because Doctor Who is about to get very, very queer.

The long-running sci-fi franchise has a habit of shaking up its universe every now and again—as it follows the inter-dimensional adventures of the heroic Time Lord—and this year will be no different, shepherded by returning showrunner Russell T Davies, a.k.a. the man who brought you Queer As Folk and It’s A Sin.

This holiday season, The BBC will air a handful of Doctor Who specials, which are set to feature Heartstopper favorite Yasmin Finney, as well as Neil Patrick Harris, who will be playing some sort of diabolical toymaker? You know what, when it comes to this show, we don’t ask questions, we just roll with it.

But most exciting of all will be the introduction of our “Fifteenth Doctor,” future Barbie star Ncuti Gatwa. The actor was a major breakout on Netflix‘s coming-of-age comedy Sex Education, playing gay student Eric Effiong, and we were pleased to learn his version of the Time Lord will also be gay!

Gatwa’s Doctor will first appear in the holiday special later this year before helming his own season expected to hit the airwaves in 2024.

Related:

‘Doctor Who’s’ new Time Lord will be gay and sexier than ever, star confirms

“He’ll be the first gay Doctor, which is going to be super cool, a sexier Doctor,” says Neil Patrick Harris of his future ‘Doctor Who’ co-star Ncuti Gatwa.

Davies, for his part, is already hyping up his new Time Lord. After Gatwa was named “the most impactful TV personality of 2022” by Radio Times, the showrunner couldn’t contain his excitement:

“Sometimes you know you’ve got a secret,” Davies tells the media outlet. “And you hold it close to your chest and let it burn, because secrets are so delicious. I’ve got that right now, because my secret is seeing Ncuti with Millie Gibson [as the Doctor’s new companion] on the rushes of Doctor Who, every single day, and oh my god, this is so good!”

Gatwa, meanwhile, is doing some hyping up of his own. Recently, the actor took to Instagram to share some gym progress pics, and we can say with confidence: The Doctor is in—and he’s looking fit!

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A post shared by Ncuti Gatwa (@ncutigatwa)

In the caption, Gatwa shouts out his personal trainer, David Higgins, who has also worked with Marvel stars like Simu Liu and Kumail Nanjiani. If their bods are any indication, Gatwa’s only going to get more swole from here.

The actor featured even more fitness content on his Instagram Story, including this particularly cheeky photo complimented perfectly by the Beyoncé Renaissance cut “THIQUE”:

With all respect to Gatwa: I think you’re gonna need a bigger TARDIS. *wink, wink*

Doctor Who adds an internationally tolerated drag superstar

But Gatwa’s glutes aren’t the only things that got Doctor Who fans—”Whovians”—excited this morning.

Fresh off of her incredible run as Mama Morton in the Broadway revival of Chicago, none other than Drag Race legend Jinkx Monsoon will be heading to the Who-niverse for what’s been described as a “major role” in the next upcoming season.

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A post shared by Doctor Who (@bbcdoctorwho)

“I’m honored, thrilled, and utterly excited to join Doctor Who!,” Monsoon said in a statement. “Russell T Davies is a visionary and a brilliant writer—I can’t wait to get into the weeds with him and the crew! I hope there’s room in the TARDIS for my luggage.”

We can’t even image that amount of Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve, and Talent that Monsoon will bring to the series, but with her, the possibilities are endless. Maybe they’ll find a way to include some of her incredible celebrity impressions? Perhaps she’ll show off those Broadway-honed pipes? Or maybe—just maybe—she’ll make the Doctor a sandwich.

Related:

Jinkx Monsoon on what she did immediately after winning ‘All Stars 7’ and what’s up next

The morning after her crowning, Jinkx spoke with Queerty to unpack the season that was, touching on her favorite runway looks, her bond with Monét X Change, and her big plans for the year ahead.

The announcement caps off what’s been an incredible year for the queen. It was just a year ago that we learned she’d be part of the cast of Drag Race‘s first-ever all-winners season—a season she went on to dominate, claiming the title “The Queen of All Queens.”

Since then, she’s launched her own comedy series on WOW Presents+, Sketchy Queens, traveled across the country w/ BenDeLaCreme for their annual holiday show, wowed sold-out audiences on Broadway, and announced her own solo tour this summer, “Everything At Stake.”

And—most importantly—Monsoon took home the Badass award at this year’s Queerties! You know, we’re starting to think we were onto something by giving her that award… she really is a badass!