Welcome ABOARD!

VARADA SETHU on the wonders of becoming the Doctor's latest time-travelling companion

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Epic adventures across space and time beckon as Doctor Who returns to BBC1 this week - and Ncuti Gatwa's Fifteenth Doctor has a brand-new companion in the TARDIS. After a busy hospital shift, nurse Belinda Chandra (Annika and Andor star Varada Sethu) is desperate for a good night's sleep. But there's no chance of that when giant robots from outer space break into her house, and insist on taking her to their home planet!

Belinda has no idea why she's been targeted or where she's going, but upon her arrival, she meets the Doctor for the first time - and he promises that, one way or another, he's going to get her home.

Here, Varada, 32, tells TV Times why the role is out of this world...

What can you reveal about Belinda, Varada?

She's a nurse on modern-day Earth, and I think my favourite thing about her is that she's just so confident in herself. She's got her own values system, and she isn't afraid to stand up to the Doctor. She's very independent, and super-selfless.

Russell T. Davies [Doctor Who's current showrunner] told me it's one of the first times that the Doctor has come looking for the companion. Somebody has told him her name, and he comes crashing into her world!

You previously appeared in the 2024 episode Boom as a different character, Anglican soldier Mundy Flynn. When did you find out you'd be returning as Belinda?

Boom was a three-week shoot in Cardiff [the show's filming base], and I got along so well with the team; everyone was so supportive and lovely. I was really sad to leave, and I didn't think I would get the opportunity to come back.