Doctor Who and Torchwood stars will be returning for spinoff series The War Between The Land And The Sea.
The BBC announced on Friday (August 23) that Ruth Madeley is reprising her Doctor Who role from the 60th anniversary specials, as UNIT fixer Shirley Ann Bingham.
That’s not all! Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies will also be bringing back Colin McFarlane as American military boss General Pierce — a character he originally played in the 2009 miniseries Torchwood: Children of Earth.
These two returning characters join Doctor Who mainstays Jemma Redgrave and Alexander Devrient, reprising their own roles as UNIT’s Kate Lethbridge-Stewart and Colonel Ibrahim.
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Former Doctor Who guest stars Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw will lead The War Between The Land And The Sea, but both are playing brand new characters.
Davies announced the castings on Instagram: “The eve of war. RETURNING: Jemma Redgrave as Kate Lehbridge-Stewart, Ruth Madeley as Shirley Anne Bingham, Alexander Devrient as Colonel Christofer Ibrahim, and Colin McFarlane as General August Pierce, a character last seen in Torchwood: Children of Earth, fighting the 456, now leading the way into an even bigger conflict.
“But at what cost..? CENTRE: Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as… ah, you’ll have to wait and see. THE WAR BETWEEN THE LAND AND THE SEA, 5-episode mini-series, BBC & Disney+. We’re excited! Lots more cast to come!”
The premise of The War Between The Land And The Sea involved UNIT having to mount a defence when “a fearsome and ancient species emerges from the ocean” — rumoured to be classic Doctor Who monsters the Sea Devils.
Davies confirmed that pre-production was ramping up on this Doctor Who spinoff series earlier this week, when he shared a picture from the script readthrough on Instagram.
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“Day One. The war begins. Readthrough day for all 5 episodes of THE WAR BETWEEN THE LAND AND THE SEA,” he wrote on Instagram. “So much excitement. What a cast! Thrills, deaths, chases, fish, and seven seas of danger. Can’t wait!”
The War Between The Land And The Sea will air on the BBC in the UK and Disney+ internationally next year.
Doctor Who airs on BBC One in the UK and Disney+ elsewhere. Classic episodes of Doctor Who are available on BBC iPlayer in the UK.
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