Doctor Who fans might be upset about the news that Jenna Coleman is set to leave the Tardis behind at the end of the current series, but her decision might give Downton’s audience something to look forward to once the Granthams wrap things up at Christmas.
Coleman, who confirmed her exit from Doctor Who on Radio 1, is playing Queen Victoria in an eight-part drama on ITV, written by novelist Daisy Goodwin and produced by Mammoth Screen, who made Poldark. The series is set to follow the early life of Queen Victoria, from her accession to the throne at 18 through to her courtship and marriage to Prince Albert.
The cast includes Rufus Sewell as Lord Melbourne, Victoria’s first prime minister, Paul Rhys as Sir John Conroy, Peter Firth as the Duke of Cumberland, Catherine Flemming as the Duchess of Kent, Queen Victoria’s mother, and another Doctor Who alumni, Broadchurch’s Eve Myles as Mrs Jenkins, the Queen’s senior dresser.
