Announcing a new companion for the Eighth Doctor – Rakhee Thakrar!
Joining Paul McGann in his exploits during the Time War, Rakhee Thakrar is to play his new companion in an adventure like no other.
After last week’s news that our November Time War release is part 1 of 4, we can now also reveal that a new companion will be joining in Eighth Doctor in a universe at war.
Rakhee Thakrar, who Big Finish listeners may recognise from her role as Shabnam Masood in Eastenders, will join Eight as Bliss.
We caught up with producer David Richardson to find out more. ‘He may be trying to avoid getting embroiled in the Time War, but the Eighth Doctor has found a new friend who knows how to blow up a Dalek – enter Bliss, a scientist trying to stay alive in the heat of temporal battle. Matt Fitton wrote the part for Rakhee Thakrar, and it was lovely when Rakhee accepted the part with such total delight. She’s brilliant and lovely and fits right in with the ever growing Big Finish family.’
‘Getting to voice the role of Bliss alongside the Doctor is an absolute dream,’ Rakhee tells us, ‘She’s a character who I’d like to be more like; someone who puts aside her own fear to help others. I think Big Finish have created a great companion with Bliss, she’s incredibly bright but is not excluded from making mistakes and having a sense of humour. I find her very real, and she’s a joy to play. I’m thoroughly excited to join the Doctor Who team.’
After all the speculation that Thakrar was playing Coleman’s replacement just a year or so ago, there’s a joke in here somewhere about playing the next companion, but probably not the one you were expecting.