Sophie Aldred “Burst into tears” when she got Doctor Who comeback call

Sophie Aldred, who plays Doctor Who companion Ace in the long-running BBC science fiction series, has spoken of how she burst into tears when she go the call telling her that she would be returning to the show.

Aldred reprised her role of the Seventh Doctor’s companion in Jodie Whittaker’s final episode of Doctor Who, The Power of the Doctor, a feature-length special that marked the 100th anniversary of the BBC, as well as Chris Chibnall’s final episode in charge of the show.

Ace, played by Aldred, was one of the many former companions to return for the episode alongside Tegan, played by Janet Fielding, and Ian Chesterton, played by the record-breaking William Russell. The episode also saw comebacks for many of the classic Doctor Who Doctor actors, including Sylvester McCoy who played the Time Lord during Aldred’s time on the show between 1987 and 1989 when the BBC cancelled the show.

“It was the call I’d always been waiting for,” explained Aldred in an interview with Express.co.uk when she was contacted to ask her to appear in The Power of the Doctor.

Adding  “I ended the call and I burst into tears,” describing the conversation as a “magic moment.”

And the best news was that Aldred was very well prepared to reprise her role, because she still had the original bomber jacket that she’d famously worn in the late 1980s on the show.

“So, I’ve had that jacket hanging in my cupboard for all these years and occasionally brought it out when people asked at conventions and things,” she explained.

Apparently, John Nathan Turner, who had been running Doctor Who at that time had told the cast to keep their costumes after the 1989 cancellation, and therefore the classic Ace look was easy enough to recreate for the October 2022 special.

In the same interview, Aldred was asked about her desire to be part of an Ace spin-off series now Russell T Davies is in charge and rumours are rife that the BBC and Disney are readying to gear up the Whoniverse, and she said she had “everything crossed” that it might happen.

Doctor Who is next on our screens in November 2023 with three special episodes to celebrate the shows 60th anniversary starring David Tennant, Catherine Tate, Yasmin Finney and Neil Patrick Harris to name but a few.

Those episodes will be followed by a festive special in 2023 which will see the introduction full-time of Ncuti Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor and his new companion Ruby Sunday, played by former Coronation Street star Millie Gibson.

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