A Heartwarming Message of Hope From 'Doctor Who's' Thirteenth Doctor
During these dark and uncertain times, as the world struggles to contain the coronavirus pandemic - it's easy to wonder: What would the Doctor do? Wouldn't we all feel better if the TARDIS just materialized somewhere? After all, if anyone is qualified to advise us on a debilitating global crisis, it's the woman who has faced off against everything from Daleks to Slitheen. (Not to mention that time the Sontarians created a technology system designed to spread poisonous gas around the world.)
The Doctor knows what to do, and, thankfully, she's here to tell us. (Let's just ignore the fact that, theoretically, she's supposed to be in a Judoon prison cell at the moment.)
Doctor Who star Jodie Whittaker put the Thirteenth Doctor costume back on to record a special message as the Doctor to the world. And it's as uplifting, heartwarming, and frankly, smart, as you'd expect.
"If you're seeing this, the TARDIS must have detected an upsurge in psychological signals from somewhere in space and time. Basically, I think somebody, somewhere, might be a little bit worried," the Doctor says, a master of understatement as usual. "I'm actually just self-isolating, or as I like to call it, hiding, from an army of Sontarans. But keep that to yourself."
The Doctor offers up five tips for handling any anxious and uncertain time.
Incoming transmission. #MessageFromTheDoctor #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/WRTROxWRQy
— Doctor Who Official (@bbcdoctorwho) March 25, 2020
You Will Get Through This. At the end of the day, darkness never prevails. Most incarnations of the Doctor are pretty great with an inspirational speech, but Thirteen is particularly good at it. ("Keep the faith. Travel hopefully. The universe will suprise you.")
Tell Jokes. Even bad ones. Especially bad ones.
Be Kind. "Laugh hard. Run fast. Be kind." That was a mantra of Peter Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor, and it's something Thirteen herself has taken to heart. Be kinder than ever before. And remember we're all family, now.
Listen to Science. Listen to scientists and doctors and the people who know things. They've got your back. Trust that.
Stay Strong. The Doctor's final admonishment is to stay strong and positive, and to remember that we're here for each other, even when it might not feel like it. We're in this together, and we'll get through it together.
At the end of her video message, the Doctor promises to see us soon, so maybe if we're lucky, this won't be our only TARDIS transmission in the next few weeks. After all, according to Digital Spy, Whittaker has a Thirteenth Doctor outfit - also, I assume, known as her regular clothes - at home with her during breaks between filming. You never know when we might need the Doctor, after all.
Travel hopefully, folks. We got this.
