Doctor Who fans have spotted the moment Billie Piper might have let slip that she was returning to the show weeks before she was revealed in Ncuti Gatwa’s shock regeneration.
The 42-year-old appeared in the Doctor Who: Unleashed special to mark 20 years since the sci-fi show was rebooted by Russell T Davies.
Piper was also among the returning cast and creatives for the one hour special, featuring behind-the-scenes that included Ncuti Gatwa, David Tennant and Jodie Whittaker.
The last we saw Piper in the Whoniverse, it was after Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor had burned away to reveal a grinning familiar face: Piper’s beloved Tennant and Christopher Eccleston companion Rose Tyler.
While Piper’s reveal in the latest Who finale was a surprise to many, those filming the special episode of Unleashed might have seen it coming after she appeared to slip up during a pre-recorded interview.
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When asked if she would ever return to the show again, Piper told the cameras: ‘Yeah I would. I would come back. What’s funny is that I never feel like I’ve left Doctor Who, because there is this huge Doctor Who afterlife.’
She continued: ‘Obviously people still really want to talk about it, it’s a massive fandom, so we do conventions and we meet lots of the fans, and there’s always features. It’s always on the TV on some channel and a new generation pick it up, so it never feels like it’s over, like it does with all the other jobs I’ve done.’
As she continued to talk about the show, Piper then added: ‘So coming back is really good fun.’
Yet she immediately seemed to realise a misstep and stumbled over her words as she added: ‘So I would do it, but I still feel like I’m in it. Just a lot older.’
The clip from the episode was posted to the official Doctor Who account on Instagram, where fans took to the comments to point out the apparent slip-up.
With fans all aware that Piper is likely to become the Sixteenth Doctor, @mxtthxll_ commented: ‘Accidentally telling on herself there,’ alongside a crying laughing emoji, white @marshallexi echoed: ‘What a slip,’ with another crying laughing face.
‘“So coming back is always good fun- and uh so I would do it “ Not Billie slipping up there before it was confirmed,’ @li4mrice commented alongside a crying emoji.
@timie.lemmens also commented: ‘You can see she’s trying to hide something. Welcome back, Billie. Or should I say ‘Doctor’?’
Since filming Unleashed and Rose’s big reveal in the Tardis doorway is out the bag, Piper shared a statement saying: ‘It’s no secret how much I love this show.
‘And I have always said I would love to return to the Whoniverse, as I have some of my best memories there. So to be given the opportunity to step back on that Tardis one more time was just something I couldn’t refuse.’
We don’t yet know when or under what circumstances exactly Piper will be back on Doctor Who, but our resident Whovians have shared some possible theories.
Doctor Who: Unleashed is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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