In an interview in Doctor Who Magazine 580, producer Nikki Wilson gave an account of what to expect of the Doctor Who BBC centenary special.
Although Wilson has moved on to producing Hartswood’s Wolf with former Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat and hasn’t seen the final cut of the special, she was present for the entirety of the filming with its star, Jodie Whittaker.
“It was really important that we gave Jodie a good send-off,” Wilson told DWM. “She’s been so phenomenal as the Doctor, we just wanted to do her justice with a really thrilling, high-stakes journey for her final episode. And I really feel we’ve delivered that. The visual effects for the episode are huge.”
Along with the 2020 two-part episode, Spyfall, Wilson described the centenary special as “the craziest, and the most fun.”
Wilson also shared some heartfelt praise for Jodie Whittaker’s leadership and candour with the magazine.
“Jodie is just a joy, and a great figurehead for the cast. I have so much admiration for her — she’s just really straight down the line.
There’s no flannelling with her, she just tells it as it is. She’s one of the team. It’s been a real honour to see her tenure right through to the end.”
A long-standing producer for the franchise, Wilson’s first role on Doctor Who was as a script editor. She became a producer on the second and third series of The Sarah Jane Adventures. Her first role as a Doctor Who producer was for the 2009 special The Waters of Mars. She became series producer for Series 11 and 12 under showrunner Chris Chibnall and was promoted to the position of co-executive producer, during Series 13.
“I’ve had a brilliant time, and worked with some amazing people. But I made the decision back in January 2020 that I was going to see the next series through and leave,” Wilson told DWM. “I knew I needed to do something new, to flex some different muscles. So I was ready to go. But it’s still sad saying goodbye to people. It was emotional saying goodbye to Jodie, because she was very emotional. She has a sensitive soul. and she just has this huge, huge outpouring of compassion and joy. But it was the right time.”
Written by Chris Chibnall and directed by Jamie Magnus Stone, the Doctor Who BBC centenary special will air in October of 2022.
Doctor Who Magazine 580 is available by post and digital subscription and will be available at news stands in the UK on 21 July.