John Barrowman is set to make his return to Doctor Who as the ‘omnisexual’ time-traveller Captain Jack Harkness, the BBC has revealed.
The actor first appeared as Captain Jack Harkness in the long-running BBC series in 2005, and he quickly became a fan-favourite.
Barrowman went on to reprise his role in a January 2020 episode titled “Fugitive of the Judoon” – and now the BBC has announced that he will return again for the 2020 Doctor Who Christmas special.
In the special, titled “Revolution of the Daleks”, Captain Jack will help “the fam” after they discover a shocking plan involving the Daleks, one of the Doctor’s most feared enemies.
John Barrowman said reprising his role in Doctor Who was ‘just like going back home’
“Putting on Jack’s coat and setting foot back on the set of Doctor Who was just like going back home,” Barrowman said.
“It’s always thrilling to play Captain Jack. He’s a character very close to my heart who changed my life, and to know the fans love him as much as I do makes his return even sweeter.
“I hope everyone enjoys Jack’s heroic adventure with Thirteen.”
Executive producer Chris Chibnall said Captain Jack Harkness would help “bast away the sheer rubbishness of 2020”.
“A Doctor Who festive special means treats galore, and there’s no bigger treat than the return of John Barrowman to Doctor Who, for an epic and emotional feature-length episode,” Chibnall said.
“If anyone can blast away the sheer rubbishness of 2020, it’s Captain Jack. Daleks beware!”
Matt Strevens, executive producer at BBC Studios, said it was a “joy and thrill” to bring Barrowman back to Doctor Who.
“One of the most iconic characters in Doctor Who lore, his presence ignites this festive special from the start,” Strevens added.
The ‘omnisexual’ character has been ranked as one of the best gay and bisexual TV characters of all time
Captain Jack broke new ground when he joined the rebooted series in 2005, becoming the first LGBT+ character in Doctor Who‘s history.
Barrowman has previously said that the character is “bisexual, but in the realm of the show, we call him omnisexual, because [characters] also have sex with aliens who take human form.”
That Captain Jack Harkness was a swashbuckling action hero who just happened to be LGBT+ was not overlooked by the queer community, who have regularly ranked him as one of the best gay or bisexual TV characters of all time.
Captain Jack was given his own spin-off, Torchwood, which aired between 2006 and 2011.
Since then, Barrowman has publicly campaigned for the character to be brought back, reprising the role in a series of Torchwood audio plays.