What we learnt from the season 11 premiere of Doctor Who

Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for the first episode of Doctor Who season 11. Watch the episode here before reading on!

The Doctor’s new friends aren’t strangers

We loved that The Doctor’s new friends all knew each other and already had interesting relationship dynamics. Nineteen-year-old Ryan had been raised by his nan Grace since his mother had died six years earlier. 

Ryan has a co-ordination disorder

In the opening sequence, Ryan is trying to learn how to ride a bike, with the help of Grace and her husband Graham. Ryan suffers from dyspraxia and showrunner Chris Chibnall has said he thought it was “important to see that heroes come in all shapes and sizes”.

Graham and Ryan don’t have an easy relationship

From the beginning it was obvious that Ryan wasn’t entirely convinced about Graham, referring to him as Grace’s second husband and not grandad. Also, to play the older Graham, Bradley Walsh had to wear a wig to make his hair greyer.

Yaz and Ryan go way back

Yasmin, now known as Yaz thanks to The Doctor, is a police officer who went to school with Ryan and crosses paths with him again when Ryan calls 999. When the pair catch up, we found out Ryan is a warehouse worker who is training to become a mechanic.

The Thirteenth Doctor explodes back onto the screen

The Doctor’s first appearance in the episode is sudden and exciting! She crash-lands on to the train Graham and Grace are on which has been attacked by an electrical alien being. Whittaker has said she was “really proud” that she did all her own stunts in the first episode.

Graham was a bus driver

A couple of times in the episode Graham says bus drivers are the best people to ask when something strange is going on in a city. He’s now retired but calls in a favour from his old colleagues, telling the others how much he loved his job. 

There’s a new sonic screwdriver

When The Doctor lands on earth, she has lost her TARDIS and her sonic screwdriver and is still wearing her predecessor’s clothing. As soon as she has the proper materials she crafts a new sonic screwdriver which she tells her new friends is more like a ‘Swiss Army Sonic’.

Graham met Grace when she was his nurse

Graham had cancer when he first met Grace. She was his chemo nurse and they fell in love. Now he has recovered, and they have been married for two years. 

The Doctor’s new clothes are second hand

The Doctor spends most of the first episode in the Twelfth Doctor’s clothes, which are now baggy and odd on her new form. At the end of the episode Yaz and Ryan take her to find new clothes and they find the perfect look in a charity shop.

Watch the episode again right here!