Ncuti Gatwa reveals why he stopped 'enjoying' filming of Doctor Who

Ncuti Gatwa "wasn’t able to enjoy" filming 'Doctor Who'.

The 31-year-old actor has taken over the role of the titular Time Lord in the BBC sci-fi series but admitted that things became "annoying" towards the end of his hectic filming schedule in July that he just wanted to "get to the finish line"and was unable to think about "amazing" career opportunity he had been landed with.

He told the December/ January issue of British GQ: "It was annoying. I just wasn’t able to enjoy things anymore because [from the] outside, I can see that this is amazing, and oh, my God, you work with amazing people, and it’s a great opportunity, but I just felt like I was trying to get to the end, the finish line."

The former 'Sex Education' star - who will be toasted at the annual GQ Men of the Year celebration in association with BOSS, in London on November 15 - went on to add that he had initially put the audition out of his mind because he had no idea he would be successful in his bid to land the coveted TV role as he reflected on his humble beginnings as a shop worker.

He added: "I knew I needed to go in and give them a wink and a [smile] . But I almost forgot about [the audition] as soon as I left the room, because there was just no way. Because there’s life and then there’s life. I’m a good actor [but] this is a 60-year-long British institution and I’m a black man, so I never thought that I’d be chosen to front something that is basically the heart of the BBC. "Your existence when you’re a marginalised person is political. So you, and the world, are aware of that, and people make decisions accordingly.

"Lots of amazing actors work in that [clothes shop] there. I was one of them, five years ago. Incredible actors are serving your coffee. My industry is not a meritocracy. So yeah, I was like… I don’t think I’ll get it. And then I did, and I thought Wow... Oh s***…. Oh s***! What have I done?!”

"And then once the shock of it all left my system, it was a no-brainer."

The December/ January issue of British GQ is available via digital download and on newsstands on the 28th November.

Read the full interview here: https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/ncuti-gatwa-interview-2023