Doctor Who - Jodie Whittaker Responds To Coronavirus with Short Message
March 25, 2020
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Doctor Who officially responded to the coronavirus crisis in a wonderful video by Jodie Whitaker. Currently, the world is a terrifying place, and all aspects of life have been shaken by the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic. Entire states are in a lockdown, with countless millions practicing self-isolation.
Of course, this means that people have a lot of time to kill. Doctor Who fans find solace in group rewrites of classic stories; last weekend fans continued watching "The Day of the Doctor". Tomorrow, they will celebrate the fifteenth anniversary of Rose, the episode that re-launched Doctor Who for the 21st century. Former showrunner Steven Moffat released the new funny Sontaran short in order to introduce "The Day of the Doctor," and there are reports that the BBC has a surprise in store for people who rewatching "Rose" as well.
The BBC has just released a short video clip on Twitter featuring Jodie Whitaker as The Doctor. Whitaker recorded this on her own using her phone and imagined how the doctor would respond to the Coronavirus crisis. It's fun to note that Whitaker is wearing an outfit; this could mean that the BBC gave her a spare outfit to keep at home - like many ex-doctors - or instead, they shipped it for her.
Incoming transmission. #MessageFromTheDoctor #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/WRTROxWRQy— Doctor Who Official (@bbcdoctorwho) March 25, 2020
The video is rich in Jokes, as the doctor claims TARDIS has detected "an increase in psychological signs from somewhere in space and time." In other words, TARDIS teleportation circles revealed that someone, somewhere, is really very worried. So the doctor takes a break from her self-isolation - and she's hiding from the Sontaran Army - to send a message to Earth. The doctor provides five tips:
- Remember - you'll get through this, and things will be alright. "Darkness never prevails," the Doctor insists, in dialogue that's perfectly in-character and will remind fans of countless scenes.
- Tell jokes - especially bad ones.
- Be kind. She's echoing the words of numerous world leaders, who've stressed the importance of thinking of one another in this time of crisis. The Doctor recommends looking out for one another and sharing your fears and worries, remotely if possible.
- Listen to science, and listen to doctors. Doctor Who is a British TV series and the U.K. has struggled to put together its faltering lockdown policy because of a number of people believing they know better than the science and refusing to do as asked by the authorities.
- Stay strong, stay positive.
This may seem foolish, but messages like this have tremendous power. There is a tendency to reject science fiction as just an escape, but in fact, the best sci-fi holds a mirror of reality itself. Currently, Doctor Who's Chris Chibnall has tried to do this continuously in seasons 11 and 12 with varying degrees of success; the "Rosa" episode was exceptional, while other episodes such as "Orphan 55" were very straightforward. But this short clip is the BBC's attempt to shed a little hope in a dark position.
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