What do you think of Jodie Whitaker as The Doctor?

I had heard the rumours that the Doctor might be female this time, and I was kind of hoping for a an actress who was a bit older and more unconventional I was hoping it might be someone like Tamsin Greig or Olivia Coleman (who starred in Broadchurch alongside Jodie Whitaker). Presumably the folks producing the show know what they are doing, and she is a talented actress. I will be very interested to see what she brings to the role.

I was actually somewhat opposed to the idea of the Doctor being female on the grounds that it would be nice to see some new, great roles written for women instead of making an existing character female. But reading some of the objections of male fans made me think that this was something that needed to happen after all. Some commented that the Doctor couldn't be a woman because a woman couldn't play the character properly, or couldn't be as nuanced, or as alien seeming or that it would be wrong for a female hero not to be "nice". And all the "what about the boys? They need a role model!" Granted, the Doctor is a good role model for boys (and girls) as a character who tends to use his brains rather than guns or fists to get out of trouble, but there are still so precious few great female role models for kids on tv, I think they can afford to give us this one for once.

My daughter was excited to hear the news. Any of the fans who are complaining about the Doctor being a woman can always go and re-watch decades of episodes with a male doctor.

by Jennifer Muirhead

I'm not really a Doctor Who fan, but I still completely endorse this change. I typically am against gender-swapping, mostly because I believe that more original female characters are needed. It often feels like a cop out when a character is gender swapped. This feels different simply because the Doctor is meant to swap out bodies, it's part of the lore, so it works really well. I look forward to seeing how the series plays.

by DamienR

Definitely a NO>
I do not associate Dr Who with a female - be it sexist or not - I love the show but not sure I will watch it any more....then again there were several Drs that I did not like and watched, and then turned out to like them.

by Finy