When it came time to decide who was going to direct this year’s Doctor Who Christmas special, Twice Upon A Time, Steven Moffat and Peter Capaldi had one person firmly in mind: Rachel Talalay.
Talalay has built quite a reputation for her excellent work on Doctor Who, including the last two finale two-parters, and she has indeed been tempted back to direct Capaldi and Moffat’s swansong from the show (as well as Jodie Whittaker’s debut in it!).
But why? Well, Capaldi, chatting at New York Comic Con, declared Talalay one of his favourite people to work with. “She shoots so cinematically; she’ll never just shoot for coverage, every time the camera is on she lines up every shot herself”, he explained.
Also a fan is Matt Lucas who, in his new memoir Little Me, describes Talalay as “one of the most brilliant directors I have ever worked with”.
That’s quick a fan club. And rightly so. It’s unclear yet if Talalay will be on the roster of directors for Chris Chibnall’s first Who series, but we’ll let you know when we know…