According to a BBC one listing for the programme, the second Doctor Who Season Two episode The Well will air on BBC One Saturday 26 April at 7:20pm.
Stranded far in the future, on the tough, brutal, inhospitable Planet 6-7-6-7, the Doctor and Belinda team up with a platoon of troopers who have been sent to investigate Colony Base 15 – a mining operation that they’ve lost contact with. Arriving at the installation they soon discover the colony has only one survivor. Something is very wrong — and that something soon reveals itself to be at the heart of the Doctor’s worst nightmares. The TARDIS duo must face absolute terror to discover the truth.
Rose Ayling-Ellis guest stars as Aliss Fenly, a young mother in a perilous situation. She’s desperate to get home to her two-year-old daughter. The Doctor is able to communicate in sign language with Aliss, who is deaf. The Troopers communicate with Aliss via holographic subtitles. The Troopers don’t understand sign language and don’t always use their holographic translators, making a tense situation worse with a breakdown in communication and trust.
It wasn’t a glamorous role for Ayling-Ells. She told Scott Mills on BBC Radio 2, “I got painted-on eyebags. I look like a mess. I’ve got greasy hair. Like, I never felt so gross in my whole life, acting for the whole month!”
Christopher Chung guests stars as Cassio Palin-Paleen, second in command of a platoon of troopers who has an insubordinate streak and a fractious relationship with platoon leader, Shaya (Caoilfhionn Dunne). His priorities conflict with the Doctor’s.
The Cast:
Ncuti Gatwa: The Doctor
Varada Sethu: Belinda Chandra
Rose Ayling-Ellis: Aliss Fenly
Caoilfhionn Dunne: Shaya Costallion
Christopher Chung: Cassio Palin-Paleen
Bethany Antonia: Mo Gilliben
Annabel Brook: Hanno Yeft
Luke Rhodri: Callo Rence
Gaz Choudhry: Kai Sabba
Gary Pillai: Albie Bethick
Frankie Lipman: Sal Van Hyten
Jermaine Dominique: Ulric Dazen
Amy Tyger: Val Vivo
Anita Dobson: Mrs Flood
Written by Russell T Davies and Sharma Angel-Walfall and directed by Amanda Brotchie, the 47-minute The Well transmits on Saturday 26 April at 8am on BBC iPlayer and 7:20pm on BBC One in the UK. Those outside of the UK can stream The Well on Disney+ where available simultaneously starting at 3am ET/12am PT. The remaining five episodes of Doctor Who Season Two will transmit on subsequent Saturdays.
Directly after the BBC One broadcast, Steffan Powell goes behind the scenes of The Well in Doctor Who: Unleashed on BBC Three and on the official YouTube channel where available at 8:05pm.