Oafish alien Nardole was perhaps not the most obvious choice for the new companion in Doctor Who – but Matt Lucas's character evolved quite a bit across the BBC sci-fi's last series.

Lucas told Digital Spy that he knows some people were "unhappy" when it was announced he'd be joining the show full-time... but he hopes he ended up proving his worth.

"When we first saw Nardole in 'The Husbands of River Song', it was a very broad character and I did a very broad performance," Lucas acknowledged. "It was a Christmas special and they're always a bit lighter, and I just thought it was a cameo – I didn't think anything more of it.

"Then when it was announced that I was coming back, I think people, understandably, thought, 'He's gonna do that throughout the series?!'"

BBC

Lucas suggested that his past associations with "broad" comedy series like Little Britain might also have coloured the public's perception of him.

"If I'd had the exposure that I'd had, but in drama rather than comedy, I think it would've been easier for me. But because the things I was known for were just straight out-and-out comedy, people were unhappy about it, and I understood that.

"So my job was just to keep my head down and just do the best I could do, and I either prove them right or wrong. I hope.... I get the sense that people – not everyone – but I get the sense that some of the doubters, in the end, appreciated what I contributed to the show."

BBC

The scripts for series 10, Lucas said, allowed him to "explore more texture" in the Nardole character, building to the character's emotional departure in finale episode 'The Doctor Falls'.

"When the character came back, I still wanted to bring a bit of levity to the show, but at the same time, I couldn't keep that [previous performance] up, because people would be throwing bricks at their TV sets...

"It was a real gift from Steven Moffat, and his great team of writers, to have a character that can be silly and grumpy... but at the same time can tune in emotionally, and become more emotionally responsive as the series goes through.

Albert L. Ortega / Getty Images

"As an actor I don't often get those opportunities. I tend to run from them, so this one lured me in, because [to begin with] I was silly Nardole, the funny alien robot hybrid, but by the end, I had to play real emotion."

It seems Nardole's arc is now over and we've seen the last of the character... unless, like Bill (Pearl Mackie), he'll be making a surprise reappearance in Peter Capaldi's Doctor Who swansong this Christmas?

Doctor Who will return to BBC One with festive special 'Twice Upon a Time' – and is expected to go out in its usual December 25 slot.

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