Comedy actress Michelle Gomez (Bad Education, Green Wing) will guest star in the new series of Doctor Who, the BBC announced today.

Gomez will play “the Gatekeeper of the Nethersphere” in Series 8’s finale, which is currently filming in Cardiff.

She commented: “Well of course Peter Capaldi is our next Doctor, which makes complete sense. I’m thrilled to join him. Well, you would be, wouldn’t you?”

Writer Steven Moffat added: “I’ve known Michelle for years, and I’m thrilled to welcome her to Doctor Who. She’s everything we need – brilliant, Scottish, and a tiny bit satanic.”

The BBC has released an official promotional photo of Gomez in costume as the Gatekeeper of the Nethersphere:

Series 8 will begin on BBC One on Saturday 23 August with a feature-length premiere episode entitled ‘Deep Breath’.

> Here’s everything we know about Series 8 so far.

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