But when the world ground to a halt, Bishop\u2019s diary was suddenly a bit clearer. \u201cWhen the tour was pulled, I was lucky because Doctor Who\u2019s date had moved as well. They hadn\u2019t started filming, they hadn\u2019t cast anybody, so I asked them if the opportunity was still there. It was a godsend,\u201d he says.<\/p>
Still, the role wasn\u2019t a done deal. Bishop still had to audition over videocall, and then travel down to Cardiff for a secret \u201cchemistry test\u201d with Whittaker. \u201cIf we\u2019d done it in some audition space in London, it would have been a very abstract thing,\u201d Bishop says, \u201cbut I had to film an audition scene in the TARDIS with Jodie. So that was, you know, a bit of pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Happily, Bishop and Whittaker clicked on screen and he was cast as Dan Lewis, who joins Whittaker\u2019s Doctor and Yaz in the Tardis, replacing the recently departed Bradley Walsh and Tosin Cole. But what sort of man is Dan?<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s an everyday working man, a little bit down on his luck, a bit unlucky in love,\u201d Bishop says. \u201cHis life isn\u2019t going in the direction he\u2019d like it to. And then he makes a decision to go on this adventure, and embraces everything. Though at the start he literally is just bumping into stuff going, \u2018What on earth is happening here?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
![\""Doctor\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/10\/Doctor-Who-surrender-7cd7d41.jpg?quality=90&resize=619%2C413"\" "\\"\"Doctor\\"")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\nIn some ways, Dan\u2019s baptism of fire into a strange new world echoes that faced by Bishop. While no stranger to TV drama (with roles in Skins and Accused), the Liverpudlian had little experience of stunts and special effects.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re stood there looking at a green screen and somebody is telling you what you\u2019re meant to be looking at. And you\u2019re thinking, \u2018Is this like a grown adult\u2019s job?\u2019,\u201d Bishop laughs. \u201cAll we\u2019re doing is playing out! On one level, you\u2019re filming in the cold and wet but on the other side, we\u2019re getting to be children. You don\u2019t get that very often in your life, do you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Whittaker watched him with amusement. \u201cIt was so funny because he\u2019d be really taken away,\u201d she says. \u201cWe\u2019re totally used to prosthetics and special effects, maybe a few explosions down a corridor and he\u2019d say, \u2018Wow \u2013 madness, isn\u2019t it?\u2019 And you\u2019re like, \u2018Yeah it is!\u2019 When you see it from someone else\u2019s perspective, it\u2019s mad! He\u2019s kind of perfect for his character because he\u2019s initially out of his depth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Also like Dan, Bishop had to join an established partnership with Whittaker and Gill, which was made more challenging by COVID.<\/p>\n
![\""Doctor\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/10\/Doctor-Who-BTS-6427338.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"Doctor\\"")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\u201cThe Doctor and Yaz have known each other for years, so Dan\u2019s a bit of an outsider to begin with,\u201d he says. \u201cIn some respects that was like it was on set because Jodie and Mandip already knew each other, and because we were filming under COVID, we couldn\u2019t socialise as we would normally. But without any shadow of a doubt, the friendship with them two is the thing I\u2019ll take away the most. We\u2019re now genuine friends and you don\u2019t get that in every job.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pair are already helping Bishop navigate the very different level of fame that comes with Doctor Who \u2013 after only a brief debut at the end of the 2021 New Year\u2019s Day special, Bishop has been bombarded by fans asking him to sign photos of Dan \u2013 and all three stars describe a warm, family atmosphere on set.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrowing up, Tom Baker was my Doctor,\u201d Bishop adds. \u201cAnd then I watched the reboot from Christopher Eccleston right through. But I\u2019m so glad I got Jodie as my Doctor.\u201d At 5ft 11 \u2013 six inches taller than Whittaker \u2013 he promises a strong physical presence on set.<\/p>\n
![\""John\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/10\/doctor-who-flux-john-bishop-d2990de.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"doctor-who-flux-john-bishop\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\u201cPhysically, me stood next to Jodie and Mandip, it looks right. It feels right. I don\u2019t know how Dan would have fitted with some of the other Doctors. You know, if I\u2019d been stood next to David Tennant, I think it would have looked like I was delivering something to his house.\u201d<\/p>\n
John Bishop\u2019s Doctor Who journey is just beginning \u2013 but oddly, it feels like it\u2019s ending prematurely, with his character assumed to be departing along with Whittaker\u2019s Doctor sometime next year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the official line is you say you don\u2019t know, but I genuinely don\u2019t know,\u201d he says when asked if he\u2019d return. \u201cIn some ways, this was so good I wouldn\u2019t want to risk trying to do it again. I just feel so lucky to have had that time with those people.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut also, if someone phones and says Dan Lewis has got a place with the new Doctor, you think\u2026 it\u2019s a conversation to be had, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Doctor Who: Flux airs on BBC One on Sunday evenings. For more, check out our dedicated Sci-Fi<\/a> page or our full TV Guide<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p><\/body><\/html>\n By Huw Fullerton Published: Sunday, 31 October 2021 at 12:00 am If the pandemic hadn\u2019t happened, a totally different actor would have been travelling through time and space with Jodie Whittaker. Comedian and actor John Bishop, 54, remembers the moment in early 2020 when he got the Doctor Who offer. \u201cChris Chibnall approached me and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":6500,"template":"","categories":[5],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/10\/john-bishop-reveals-why-he-originally-turned-down-doctor-who.jpg",620,413,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/10\/john-bishop-reveals-why-he-originally-turned-down-doctor-who-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/10\/john-bishop-reveals-why-he-originally-turned-down-doctor-who-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/10\/john-bishop-reveals-why-he-originally-turned-down-doctor-who.jpg",620,413,false],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/10\/john-bishop-reveals-why-he-originally-turned-down-doctor-who.jpg",620,413,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/10\/john-bishop-reveals-why-he-originally-turned-down-doctor-who.jpg",620,413,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/10\/john-bishop-reveals-why-he-originally-turned-down-doctor-who.jpg",620,413,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Huw Fullerton Published: Sunday, 31 October 2021 at 12:00 am If the pandemic hadn\u2019t happened, a totally different actor would have been travelling through time and space with Jodie Whittaker. Comedian and actor John Bishop, 54, remembers the moment in early 2020 when he got the Doctor Who offer. \u201cChris Chibnall approached me and…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/6499"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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