April 29, 2025
Millie Gibson discusses the return of Ruby Sunday in Lucky Day...
The last time we saw Ruby Sunday, she and the Doctor had parted ways in order to spend time with her newly-extended family. But, as all so often, leaving the TARDIS doesn’t mean the end of a companion’s adventures; and a past enemy may be lurking on the horizon.
We spoke to Millie about her Who homecoming (Whomecoming?), the always-chaotic Sunday household, and Ruby’s mysterious new boyfriend…
How does it feel to be back in the Whoniverse?
It feels like returning home after a long day. It's so nice to be back playing Ruby Sunday in a whole new light. As Ruby grows up, so do I. In Season 2, you see more of a mature and stronger version of Ruby. She’s recovering from her Season 1 adventures, and you see her learn to deal with that a bit. I'm really excited to be back, it was a fun few episodes to read for Ruby.
What can you tell us about Ruby, and what she’s been up to since we last saw her?
You saw her look out the window in Joy to The World written by Steven Moffat, and I think she is waiting for the Doctor. She's waiting for an adventure, but she's also getting back to her life with her family, her new dad, her new mum, and Carla and her Gran Cherry. It’s still as bonkers as ever in the Sunday household! [Laughs].
Ruby is going back to her life and pretending everything's back to normal, but she can't really get her head around all the things she saw while travelling with the Doctor. So, she's just waiting around and trying to process all of that.
What can audiences expect from this episode?
UNIT are back, and Ruby gets her chance to shine with UNIT, which is lovely, because I absolutely love working with Jemma Redgrave [Kate Lethbridge-Stewart] and our beautiful Ruth Madeley [Shirley Anne Bingham]. Honestly, those two women are just incredible to work with. They’re like Ruby's third and fourth mothers. There is even a line in the episode where Ruth's character, Shirley, makes a joke about it. So, UNIT are back, and we are uncovering a new monster called the Shreek, and that is the big creature in the episode. It’s a fabulous episode!
Is there anything you can tease about Conrad, played by Jonah Hauer-King?
Oh My God, I absolutely love Jonah! He was just a burst of energy. It’s not every day you get told your boyfriend is going to be played by Prince Eric* [laughs]. I was really, really chuffed. He is such a professional, and he's such a giving actor. I know a lot of people say that, but I really mean it with Jonah.
I’m excited for people to see what’s in store for Ruby’s first love interest. Jonah plays him exceptionally and I couldn't imagine anyone else playing him.
*From Disney's live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid.
What is the dynamic like between Ruby and Conrad?
I think he gives off the energy that he wants to match to the Doctor. It’s one of them where your new boyfriend wants to be better than your ex, however he is just so sweet and so clumsy. He has these really cute characteristics and attributes where he's just a little bit of a clown, and it's a lovable energy.
Ruby loves being able to talk about her adventures with someone that is genuinely interested. She doesn’t feel like a strange outsider in her own world anymore, which is a really beautiful thing.
Do you have any standout memories from set while filming this episode?
Oh, so many, so many. I love working with Peter Hoar. He was such a cool director, and he gave me so much new light into Ruby’s character. He really wanted to explore this new side to the companion. You rarely see the companion after the events because they either die or you just don't see them again.
There's a scene where Ruby talks about all her experiences in Season 1, and I love a specific line that Pete McTighe wrote for Ruby. She's opening up to Conrad about her PTSD from her travels with the Doctor. It was a really strong speech that was also kind of humorous, because it's so bonkers what she’s experienced.
Ruby is going back to this normal life after traveling the universe. It’s a really cool concept, because how does someone deal with that?
What was it like acting alongside the monster ‘the Shreek’ in this episode?
Gethin Alderman who played the Shreek was the loveliest person ever, but terrifying. There is a scene in a café where Ruby is telling Conrad about the Shreek. Peter Hoar does a really cool kind of nightmare story where what she’s telling him actually happens. It's all kind of melted into one another to make this horror story aspect come to life. Gethin was honestly terrifying, and we were scared for our lives [laughs], but he played it so well.
This episode reunites Ruby with UNIT, along with Ruth Madeley who returns in this episode. How was it working with her?
I had never worked with Ruth before so that was really exciting. As the season goes on, you see Ruby's and Shirley's relationship develop a lot more. And yes, she's her third mother. I feel like her and Ruby have a northern sense of humour that they can relate with. Ruth lives in Manchester, so when we met, we were like, ‘Oh, you've been to this pub’, so that was always great! It was a breath of fresh air working with Ruth and developing that relationship with Shirley.
Ruby has a signature style, what will we see her wearing in this season?
It's a bit more grown up, but it's still cool. She's kind of packed away the tweed vibes, I'd say.
My favourite outfit is towards the end of the episode, I genuinely thought they dressed me like David Tennant's Tenth Doctor! [Laughs]. I had a pinstripe waistcoat and pinstripe pants and then a white shirt, I was literally just like David Tennant.
Pam Downe, our costume designer, has a really subtle way of illustrating that these are what these characters would wear when they get older. The colour scheme is a lot of plums, a lot of dark greens and a lot of dark blues, it's just more mature colours.
If you could travel in the TARDIS to any time and place in the universe, where would you go and why?
The 1800s. I love the corsets and the costumes. And we should bring balls back. They should be a thing like the episode Rogue in Season 1. I was just living my dream filming that. So, yeah, I think somewhere with the era of ball gowns and big party events and people courting one another.
If you had to describe the episode in one word or phrase, what would it be?
Haunting and revealing…
Watch Lucky Day from Saturday 3rd May on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Disney+ where available. Find out more about Season 2 here.
