In a telephone interview with PRIDE from Cardiff, Jinkx Monsoon gave an update on her filming progress and how showrunner Russell T Davies came to cast her in her Doctor Who role.

“I’m in Cardiff, Wales. I haven’t begun shooting Doctor Who yet, but I’ve been having meetings and costume fittings. And my god, it’s just… it’s a dream come true. I’ve had a lot of dreams come true recently.”

The award-wining Broadway star, actress and singer is likely filming for Block Four of Doctor Who Series 14, directed by Ben Chessell, in an episode written by Russell T Davies.

“I’m terribly excited. It’s not easy to encapsulate how excited I am with words. I was saying to the director yesterday, the role that I’m playing, it’s like everything I ever dreamed about doing as an actor in one character. It’s insane. It’s like all of my actor fantasies have been rolled into one character, and now I get to do it all on a show that I love, written by a prolific writer, a voice of our generation who has written so many astounding things. And this is just one example of his brilliance, Russell T. Davies. But it’s just… it’s extremely thrilling. And when I was dreaming, when I was a little boy, dreaming of growing up and being an actress, this is what I was imagining”

The two-time RuPaul’s Drag Race winner shared the story of how Davies advocated for her to be cast in Doctor Who, a possible hint that her role wasn’t specifically written for a drag queen.

“I’ll tell you candidly, after I was offered the role [on Doctor Who] and I accepted it, Russell told me that he saw my show Together Again, Again with my music partner, Major Scales, which is a show where I play myself in my 80s, a kind of dystopian look at my future. Russell said that he walked home from the show that night and decided, ‘Jinkx is the person I want to have play this role.’ So he advocated for me to play this role, and it’s just one of those moments where everything fell into place at the perfect time. I think old me would’ve been nervous, like, ‘Oh, is he just giving me this role because we’re friends and he’s taking pity on me?’ But with some things that have happened lately, I guess I’m trusting my abilities and my know-how a little bit more.”

Monsoon’s vocal talent, combined with recent casting calls for musicians (including a violin/piano double matching Monsoon’s measurements), indicate a music-heavy filming block.

Davies praised Monsoon in an Instagram post.

“There’s a storm coming in. A monsoon! Yes, Jinkx Monsoon, Broadway sell-out sensation, RuPaul’s Drag Race’s All-Star of All-Stars, joins Doctor Who in a major role, and it’s going to be spectacular! So excited. So honoured. This has been 6 months in the planning (more details in next month’s [Doctor Who Magazine]) and it’s going to be wild!”

There is no information yet available for the Block Four episode numbers. With the possible exception of the 2023 Christmas special filmed in Block Two, Doctor Who filming blocks typically consist of two episodes each.

Doctor Who will return in November 2023 with three 60th anniversary specials starring David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as companion Donna Noble. In the following festive period, Ncuti Gatwa will star in his first full Doctor Who episode as the Fifteenth Doctor. Doctor Who Series 14 starring Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson will debut in 2024.