Olly Alexander became the talk of Twitter over the weekend after reports suggested he was in line to take over the lead role in a future series of Doctor Who.
The Sun claimed on Sunday that Olly’s role as Ritchie Tozer in It’s A Sin had seriously impressed BBC bosses, to the point he was in “prime position to take over” the role of The Doctor.
However, the man himself has now spoken out, sharing a hilarious response to dispel the rumours – with a few less-than-subtle Doctor Who references thrown in for good measure.
A spokesperson for the Years & Years singer told HuffPost UK: “Even though Olly is often contacted by cybermen, I’m afraid I have to exterminate this spectulation.”
“As nice as it is to see interest in this story regenerate, it just isn’t true,” they added.
“As Ood as it might sound, Olly is focusing on his music, for the time being.”
Olly previously appeared in Skins, Penny Dreadful and The Riot Club before winning widespread praise for his performance as Ritchie in the Russell T Davies drama It’s A Sin.
Interestingly, Olly’s It’s A Sin character Ritchie actually appeared in a fictional episode of Doctor Who in the fourth instalment of the Channel 4 drama.
Russell T Davies previously said he included the scene not just as a nod to his own history with the sci-fi show, but as “a little smile” towards the late actor and AIDS campaigner Dursley McLinden, who played a small role in Doctor Who back in 1988.
“I was really desperate to do it,” Davies told Doctor Who magazine. “I did it for Dursley.”
Jodie Whittaker has played the Doctor since 2017, but it’s been widely rumoured she’ll be leaving the show after the forthcoming 13th series, though neither she nor the BBC has yet confirmed whether this is the case.