According to an article in The Sun, Susan Twist, who has already appeared briefly as two different characters in Doctor Who specials, will play a major antagonist to Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor in the 2024 series of Doctor Who.
Twist first appeared in the Doctor Who 60th anniversary special Wild Blue Yonder as Mrs Merridew, Sir Isaac Newton’s housekeeper. Merridew encourages Newton to find inspiration on a fine Lincolnshire summer day in 1666. It also happens to be the day the TARDIS haphazardly lands on an apple tree above him. After apparently mishearing something Donna says, Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation is now the Law of Universal Mavitation. History changes and gravity becomes mavity.
The second time we see Susan Twist is in the Doctor Who Christmas special The Church on Ruby Road. It’s now 2023 and Twist’s new character appears in a club as a woman who looks a bit like a hippy with a Bohemian-style red headband. The woman heckles Ruby Sunday’s (Millie Gibson) band and strangely asks for the 16th century Christmas carol Gaudete.
According to The Sun, Twist will play tech businesswoman Susan Triad, head of Triad Industries, in the 2024 Doctor Who series. Triad is referenced by Mel Bush in the 60th anniversary special The Giggle as she attempts to use dynamic software to align telescopes, satellites, deep space scans and mesh reflectors to focus on a singular threat.
We’ve seen the Doctor’s new companion Ruby Sunday disembark from a London double-decker with a Triad Technology advertisement on it in The Church on Ruby Road. The advertisement isn’t visible in the special but it was spotted at location filming and captured by camera crews for Doctor Who: Unleashed.
The Sun isn’t the first to mention Susan Triad. A prop magazine cover for “Union Jack ICON” spotted framed in Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies’ office in a Blue Peter clip from December contains an image of Susan Twist as Susan Triad.
Someone anonymously pointed me in the direction of this. It was implied we will see Mrs Merridew again in the form of Susan Triad. Russell T Davies has a “Union Jack ICON” magazine mockup cover featuring her in his office. Triad Technology from 2024 series filming reports. pic.twitter.com/SRqtmZhu9p
— Doctor Who Production News №() (@DoctorWhoPN) December 19, 2023
Here’s what The Sun has to say about Susan Twist in Doctor Who:
“Susan’s characters are going to appear through space and time following the Doctor through his new adventures but she won’t be a friendly face. She’s going to be a huge foe for the Time Lord and Ruby to face off against and the reveal will be explosive.”
The Sun’s source says that Susan Twist “will appear again and again in the upcoming eight-part series.”
It’s striking that an actress named Susan Twist plays a character named Susan Triad. Consider also that Susan is the name of the Doctor’s granddaughter and first companion. This is quite a Susan twist, indeed.
When Millie Gibson was asked in Doctor Who Magazine 600 if she could she give some hints about what to look forward to in the 2024 series, she cryptically answered, “A twist. There’s always a twist.”
The 2024 Doctor Who series will premiere simultaneously worldwide on BBC iPlayer in the UK and on Disney+ where available at midnight, 00.00 BT on 11 May, 2024 with the first and second episodes of the series. The second episode is titled The Devil’s Chord. The two episodes will also be broadcast back-to-back before Eurovision on the evening of 11 May on BBC One.