Manning, who played Jo Grant in the classic series, has revealed if she’d be keen to reappear in a new spin-off.
It’s been confirmed that the next phase of Doctor Who under returning showrunner Russell T Davies will include spin-offs from the flagship series – and now classic companion Katy Manning has spoken about her possible involvement.
Since her original stint on the show between 1971 and 1973, Manning has twice reappeared as her character Jo Grant – in 2010 on The Sarah Jane Adventures and in a cameo for Jodie Whittaker’s final episode in 2022.
Most recently, Jo appeared in a short film produced to promote the Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 9 Blu-ray set which saw her go up against a Sea Devil, with fans subsequently calling for a spin-off featuring the character.
Speaking at a special BFI screening of the original story ‘The Sea Devils‘ from 1972, Manning was quizzed about just such a possibility.
“There will be spin-offs, there will be people returning – I do know that,” she said. “I think Granny Jo […] is a glorious character now – this woman with all these children, championing the world… and the thought of this extraordinary old lady of 77…
“I think it’d be lovely if she just occasionally comes in for a very good reason. They’ll bring lots of people back but I hope that Great Granny Jo gets just a little kind of nod here and there.”
It sounds then like Manning’s keen on at least another guest appearance, even if the fan dream of a Jo-led spin-off hasn’t been confirmed just yet.
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- Doctor Who: Flux was almost axed, reveals Chris Chibnall
In November 2022, it was reported that new shows set in the Doctor Who universe would focus on iconic monsters including the Daleks and the Cybermen.
Chris Chibnall, who served as showrunner from 2018 to 2022, recently suggested that he had “wanted to do” spin-offs during his tenure, but that there “wasn’t the space or budgets” for any such projects.
New episodes of the long-running sci-fi show premiering later in 2023 will air globally on Disney Plus, while still airing exclusively on the BBC in the UK.
Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 9 Blu-ray box set is available to pre-order now from Amazon.
Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer with episodes of the classic series also available on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial here.
New Doctor Who episodes will stream on Disney Plus in the US. Sign up to Disney Plus now for £79.90 for a year or £7.99 a month.
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