By Huw Fullerton

Published: Saturday, 26 March 2022 at 12:00 am


Ahoy! Jodie Whittaker’s Time Lord is about to get her sea legs in upcoming Doctor Who special Legend of the Sea Devils, which will see the TARDIS team take to the high seas as they battle the titular watery monsters alongside some historical pirates.

And now the BBC has released some first-look images for the extended springtime episode, giving us a better look at the episode’s villains as well as some new costumes sported by Whittaker and co-star Mandip Gill (aka the Doctor and Yaz).

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Crystal Yu as Madame Ching in Doctor Who
BBC

First up, there’s another tease of a shifty-looking Sea Devil (see main image) – but he’s almost outdone in menace by the threatening presence of Madame Ching (Crystal Yu), looking armed (and fabulous) on the deck of her ship.

Both human and non-human villains look set to give the Doctor some trouble in this one, with the main story apparently focusing on a small village they’re terrorising.

Meanwhile, another shot gives fans a glimpse of a new-look costume change for Whittaker’s Doctor, who’s decided to pick an outfit that’s a little more era-and-geographically-appropriate than her usual get-up. We expect fans to be planning their cosplay accordingly.

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Jodie Whittaker and Mandip Gill in Doctor Who
BBC

Altogether, there’s not an awful lot new that we can learn from these pictures, but they’re sure to whet the appetite of fans who’ve not had much to go on about Legend of the Sea Devils since it was officially confirmed in January.

In one way or another, it’s a bit of a… sea change… in the promotion of this special (sorry). And based on what we’ve seen so far, it’s looking fairly shipshape (even more sorry).

Doctor Who: Legend of the Sea Devils comes to BBC One this April. For more, check out our dedicated Sci-Fi page or our full TV Guide.

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