Considering she was up against a heartwarming story, absolutely enormous stunts and – oh yeah! – the return of two of the franchise’s most popular actors ever, it’s really a testament to Miriam Margolyes that she still managed to absolutely steal the show during the first of Doctor Who’s 60th anniversary specials.
On Saturday night, the first of three new specials aired on BBC One, in which Miriam voiced the adorable (and, later, slightly terrifying) Beep The Meep.
The moment we first clapped eyes on The Meep we were, frankly, obsessed, and as part of companion show Doctor Who: Unleashed, fans were treated to footage of the Bafta winner and all-round national treasure recording the cuddly/menacing character’s lines...
And there was one particular piece of Miriam’s dialogue that immediately captured people’s attention…
“It’s always exciting to do a new character – to find a voice and create it,” Miriam said while recording her lines. “And there’s one rather special thing about The Meep. There are hidden depths, shall I say…”
Our favourite clip of the lot, though, has to be this special edit one fan made including some of Miriam’s less family-friendly TV moments…
When she was first announced to be joining the Whoniverse earlier this year, Miriam enthused: “I’m relieved I got to work on Doctor Who before I died. With sci-fi you never know. Thank you for making an old woman very happy.”
Miriam already has an expansive CV of past voice work, which includes films like Babe and Happy Feet and ad campaigns like Cadbury Caramel and Dolmio as well as, believe it or not, audio porn.
Doctor Who continues with the second of the 60th anniversary specials on Saturday night at 6.30pm on BBC One.