Oldham’s Bernard Cribbins is set to make a posthumous appearance in the BBC’s Doctor Who specials later this month, following a nod to the actor in the most recent episode.

Warning: skip past this section if you want to avoid minor spoilers for the latest Doctor Who special, ‘The Star Beast’.

In the most recent special, ‘The Star Beast’, which hit screens last week, David Tennant’s Doctor asks Catherine Tate’s Donna about the location of her grandfather, Wilfred “Wilf” Mott.

Played by Cribbins, who died last year aged 93, Donna responds “he’s not with us anymore”.

The Doctor replies: “I loved that man, I’m so sorry for your loss”, before Donna explains that Wilfred is in sheltered accommodation.

At the episode’s conclusion, the Doctor shows Donna the TARDIS and suggests: “I was thinking we could go and see Wilf.”

The duo is eventually transported away to an as-yet-unknown location after Donna mistakenly spills coffee on the TARDIS console.

The special is currently on BBC iPlayer.

End of spoilers.

Cribbins present at script read-through

In a social media post by the Doctor Who account on Saturday, video showed the Oldham actor was present at the first script read-through for the specials on May 3, 2022.

The beloved actor died just 12 weeks later.

In the video, showrunner Russell T Davies said: “I think the whole room sighed when Bernard Cribbins said his first line.”

Sign up to our newsletters to get the latest stories sent straight to your inbox.

The next of the three specials, named ‘Wild Blue Yonder,’ is due to broadcast on Saturday, December 2 at 6.30pm.

While Bernard Cribbins’ appearance has not yet been confirmed for that specific episode, he is expected to appear in at least one of the two specials remaining.

The final special, ‘The Giggle’ is set to air on Saturday, December 9, and will see Neil Patrick Harris in the role as classic Who enemy ‘The Toymaker’ – from a mostly missing 1966 serial.

David Tennant confirms Cribbins will appear

Speaking at the GalaxyCon convention in March this year, David Tennant confirmed that Cribbins was on set prior to his death, and he is set to make a posthumous appearance in the role.

Tennant described Cribbins as ‘full of beans and full of energy’ while he was on set, with the actor said to have been set for a larger role before his death.

Follow The Oldham Times on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, and Threads.

The Oldham Times: Bernard CribbinsBernard Cribbins (Image: Nicholas T Ansell, PA Wire/PA Images)

Answering a question from an audience member, who asked Tennant to share memories of Cribbins, the actor responded: “He was one of these human beings who just channels warmth, and I think that’s what comes across in his acting.

“That’s why Wilfred is such a wonderful character. All that twinkle and all that humanity is just what Bernard brought for free.

“He just was one of those people that everyone adored, and having him on set was just always a joyous experience, and he was still going strong.

“He was working into his 90s and when we came back to the show again, we knew that Catherine Tate was coming back to play Donna and then very quickly the talk went ‘is Bernard- can we get Wilfred back, can granddad be back on set?’.

“And he was getting old and a little bit infirm by then but he was still full of beans and full of energy, and I’m thrilled to say that, though very sadly he wasn’t in those episodes as much as we hoped, he was on set with us and Wilfred lives on, and Bernard, who is much missed and much grieved for, but I’m so excited that his final on-screen performance will be, I have the great honour of being part of, and you’ll see it all on your screens before the year is out.”

The news was greeted by loud applause from the American audience.

The late actor, who was born in Oldham in 1928, got his start at the Oldham Coliseum theatre, then known as the Oldham Repertory Theatre.

In a letter dated January 2, 1943, producer Douglas Emery offers Cribbins – aged just 14 – a position at the theatre for just 15 shillings a week, or about £27 a week in today’s money.

The iconic actor was known for his roles in films such as The Railway Children and Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy. 

If you have a story, I cover the whole borough of Oldham. Please email me at jack.fifield@newsquest.co.uk.