Jonah-Hauer King and Millie Gibson discuss Ruby Sunday’s return in Doctor Who season two episode four, Lucky Day. Watch Lucky Day on iPlayer and BBC One on Saturday, May 3.
Doctor Who season 2 episode 4, Lucky Day, sees Ruby Sunday facing life back on Earth without the Doctor. But when a dangerous new threat emerges, can Ruby (Millie Gibson) and UNIT save her new boyfriend, Conrad (Jonah-Hauer King), from the terrifying Shreek?
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Q: How does it feel to be back in the Whoniverse, Millie? And, Jonah, what was it like joining the Doctor Who family?
Millie: It feels like returning home after a long day. It’s so nice to be back playing Ruby Sunday in a whole new light. As Ruby grows up, so do I. In season two, you see more of a mature and stronger version of Ruby. She’s recovering from her season one adventures, and you see her learn to deal with that a bit. I’m really excited to be back; it was a fun few episodes to read for Ruby.
Jonah: It feels amazing to be joining the Whoniverse. It’s a very, very iconic TV show that’s been on our screens for decades. I feel like it’s a big honour because it’s sort of a rite of passage. I went to the screening for the first episode, and at the beginning, they showed a showreel of Doctor Who over the last twenty years. Not only did it include the iconic Doctors and companions we’ve had, but it was also a reminder of how many actors have popped up over the years in roles big and small. There’s been so many incredible actors in the show, and it feels like a massive privilege to now be part of that universe.
Q: Millie, can you tell us about Ruby and what she’s been up to since we last saw her?
You saw her look out the window in Joy to the World written by Steven Moffat, and I think she is waiting for the Doctor. She’s waiting for an adventure, but she’s also getting back to her life with her family, her new dad, her new mum, and Carla and her Gran. It’s still as bonkers as ever in the Sunday household! [Laughs].
Ruby is going back to her life and pretending everything’s back to normal, but she can’t really get her head around all the things she saw while travelling with the Doctor. So, she’s just waiting around and trying to process all of that.
Q: Jonah, how did you come to join the Doctor Who family?
I received an email from my agent saying that Russell T. Davies had been in touch to ask if I was interested in doing it. The answer was yes, so he sent me a script to look at. I read it, and it felt really exciting.
It has a lot of what we have come to expect from Doctor Who, with the heart and the soul and the monsters and the scares. But I think there’s something particularly grounded and unique about this episode. I really liked it and told him I would love to do it. I’ve been a big fan of Russell’s work in and outside of Doctor Who, so any chance to work with him was very appealing. It was great that it happened to be on Doctor Who.
Q: What can audiences expect from this episode?
Millie: UNIT are back, and Ruby gets her chance to shine with UNIT, which is lovely, because I absolutely love working with Jemma Redgrave and our beautiful Ruth Madeley. Honestly, those two women are just incredible to work with. They’re like Ruby’s third and fourth mothers. There is even a line in the episode where Ruth’s character, Shirley, makes a joke about it. So, UNIT are back, and we are uncovering a new monster called the Shreek. It’s a fabulous episode!
Jonah: There’s a lot in it! It has everything you want. It has monsters, it has twists, it has scares, it has love, romance, a bit of friendship, a bit of good vs. evil – it’s the whole shebang.
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Q: Are there any teasers you’d like to share about Ruby and Conrad?
Millie: I’m excited for people to see what’s in store for Ruby’s first love interest. Jonah plays him exceptionally, and I couldn’t imagine anyone else playing him. I think he gives off the energy that he wants to match the Doctor. It’s one of those where your new boyfriend wants to be better than your ex; however, he is just so sweet and so clumsy. He has these really cute characteristics and attributes where he’s just a little bit of a clown, and it’s a lovable energy.
Ruby loves being able to talk about her adventures with someone genuinely interested in them. She doesn’t feel like a strange outsider in her own world anymore, which is a really beautiful thing.
Jonah: Without giving too much away, the episode is very much about Conrad and Ruby’s dynamic and relationship. Conrad met the Doctor when he was a young boy. From that point, he was obsessed with him. He’s desperate to meet him and idolises him on some level. He’s dedicated a lot of his life to finding out about him and trying to meet him. When we meet Conrad, he’s running a podcast which, at least in part, focuses on sightings of the Doctor. He’s a superfan.
Q: If you could travel in the TARDIS to any time and place in the universe, where would you go and why?
Millie: The 1800s. I love the corsets and the costumes. And we should bring balls back – they should be a thing like the episode Rogue in season one. I was just living my dream filming that. So, yeah, I think it’s somewhere in the era of ball gowns and big party events, when people would court one another.
Jonah: I know it’s an obvious one, but I would quite like to see the dinosaurs. I’d like to see what the world looked like; I bet it was ridiculously beautiful. I don’t think I’d last more than an hour at best, but if I had the TARDIS to make a quick exit before getting eaten, I’d love to see the dinosaurs in all their magnificence.
Q: Finally, can you sum up the episode in one word or phrase?
Jonah: Edge of your seat!
Millie: Haunting and revealing…
Watch Lucky Day on iPlayer and BBC One on Saturday, May 3.
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