Firing squad
- Publication: TV & Satellite Week
- Date: 2025-04-26
- Author:
- Page: 6
- Language: English
Firing squad
After last week's wonderfully bright and colourful trip to 1950s Miami, a very different world awaits the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Belinda (Varada Sethu) as they arrive on an embattled industrial planet far in the future in this week's episode, The Well.
As the pair get to grips with their new environment, they discover that there is only one survivor remaining in a former mining colony. Naturally, the Doctor is curious as to what happened to leave the place so ravaged - but the truth will lead them to the most terrifying foe that they have faced together so far.
The guest cast for the episode includes Christopher Chung (Slow Horses) as Cassio, plus former EastEnders star and 2021 Strictly Come Dancing champion Rose Ayling-Ellis as Aliss.
'Aliss is a determined mother, desperate to find her daughter,' reveals Ayling-Ellis. 'She is emotional, scared and barely holding it together. She's raw and real. I've always wanted to be part of this show, and to land a complex, layered character like Aliss made it even more exciting’.
The character of Aliss uses British Sign Language (BSL) in the episode, and Gatwa was excited to have the chance to get to grips with a new language during filming.
NEW FRONTIERS
'Rose delivers such an amazing performance, he says. 'It was really amazing to learn BSL. I feel like we should all learn it?
Written by showrunner Russell T. Davies and Doctor Who newcomer Sharma Angel-Walfall (previously a writer on Sky comedy Dreamland), the episode has the classic Whoniverse mixture of adventure and terror, as well as some big shocks.
'Fans can expect to be wowed, promises Angel-Walfall. "There's an element of fear in there, and it's got that scary, edge-of-your- seat vibe. It's also got a lot of heart, warmth and beautiful characters. I was going into a world I haven't done before, so I got to stretch my legs as a writer. It was all so brilliant?
For Chung, meanwhile, the opportunity to appear in Doctor Who meant finally fulfilling a long-held ambition.
'It's absolutely mind-blowing to be in something as iconic as Doctor Who,' he says. 'Cassio is a trooper who follows the rules and does things by the book, but when the Doctor challenges that, he finds it difficult.
"The sets are mind-blowing, too, with the amount of detail that has gone into them - there is no reason why you wouldn't think you're in that space.
The cast also includes Industry's Caoilfhionn Dunne, who plays Shaya. As a long-time fan of Doctor Who, Dunne says she was more thrilled than anyone to land a role on the show - although she admits she didn't make the most of the opportunity.
'It's a very intense, thrilling episode. Shaya is very professional, almost to her detriment, but a good person under all of that, she reveals. 'It was a dream come true to be on the show - I didn't go the TARDIS, though. I saw the inside, but I didn't want to go on it. It's a weird thing. As a fan, it's almost like you have to earn your place to go on the TARDIS!'
Captions:
The Doctor and Belinda suit up
The mysterious mining team
Rose Ayling-Ellis playing Aliss
Belinda (Varada Sethu, centre) flanked by armed troopers
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- APA 6th ed.: (2025-04-26). Firing squad. TV & Satellite Week p. 6.
- MLA 7th ed.: "Firing squad." TV & Satellite Week [add city] 2025-04-26, 6. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: "Firing squad." TV & Satellite Week, edition, sec., 2025-04-26
- Turabian: "Firing squad." TV & Satellite Week, 2025-04-26, section, 6 edition.
- Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Firing squad | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Firing_squad | work=TV & Satellite Week | pages=6 | date=2025-04-26 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=12 July 2026 }}</ref>
- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Firing squad | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Firing_squad | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=12 July 2026}}</ref>
