Teaser for the Christmas special “Doctor Who 2024” with Nicola Coughlan

Doctor Who Spoilers follow.

Doctor Who has shared a first look at Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan in the 2024 Christmas special.

At Comic-Con on Friday, there was a preview of “Joy to the World” as well as a video introduction by Coughlan to her new character Joy.

“I can’t wait for you all to meet Joy,” she told the Comic-Con audience.

The preview shows various 20th century moments between the Doctor and those around him as he attempts to deliver a ham and cheese toastie and a pumpkin latte but keeps ending up in the wrong room.

In the present day, we meet Joy as she checks into the Sandringham Hotel in London for a week-long stay. Joy is determined not to be lonely during the holidays – but she doesn't count on a Silurian suddenly bursting into her room through a locked door.

Related: Best streaming services 2024 – including Disney Plus, Netflix, iPlayer and Apple TV+

Joy confronts the Silurian with a hairdryer before the Doctor arrives once again with a toastie and a latte, having finally found the right room. But what brought these three together?

The Derry Girls star's guest appearance in the 2024 Christmas special was announced back in November 2023, with former Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat confirming he would be back to write the episode.

Moffat then promised Doctor Who fans that Coughlan had delivered an unforgettable performance alongside Ncuti Gatwa's fifteenth Doctor.

“Nicola is wonderful in it. She will break your heart,” the author told Ireland AM. “I'm not allowed to say anything about it. At least I don't think I'm allowed to say anything about it, so I'll just keep my mouth shut.”

Coughlan has said she enjoyed working on Doctor Who, especially because it gave her the chance to reunite with her Barbie co-star Gatwa.

“[Ncuti Gatwa] is incredible in the role… It was a lot of fun,” she told The One Show in March. “I think it was supposed to be a secret that it was Christmas, but then Russell told everyone.”

After Christmas, Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson will prepare for season 15, with Varada Sethu joining them as an additional companion.

During the Doctor Who Comic-Con panel, it was also announced that Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw will star in the spin-off miniseries The War Between the Land and the Sea.

Doctor Who will be broadcast on BBC One in the UK and Disney+ elsewhere. Classic episodes of Doctor Who are available in the UK on BBC iPlayer.

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