Doctor Who’s Shocking Return of Susan Sparks 61-Year-Old Plot Twist
In Episode 6 titled “The Interstellar Song Contest,” the foundation for Season 2’s finale was set within Doctor Who (played by Ncuti Gatwa) and Belinda Chandra (portrayed by Varada Sethu). Their journey led them to a musical competition, held on the Harmony Arena space station in the year 2925. The evening initially promised fun and entertainment, but the festivities were abruptly halted as the station was attacked. The Doctor found himself involved in an effort to exploit the Interstellar Song Contest’s broadcast. With Belinda separated from him and left adrift in space, the Doctor drew courage from a familiar face that unexpectedly reappeared from his past.
In the sequential episodes of “Doctor Who” Season 2, the second being “The Interstellar Song Contest,” and the fifth titled “The Story and the Engine,” there were surprising appearances by notable returning guest stars. Jo Martin made a brief appearance in the fifth episode, delighting fans with this unexpected twist. However, the special guest star in Episode 6 carried more weight for the future of “Doctor Who.” Although the character didn’t interact directly with the Doctor in the episode, it was suggested that she was trying to contact him. This hints that the granddaughter of the Doctor could make a full comeback in the Season 2 finale.
Carole Ann Ford Returns as Susan, the Doctor’s Granddaughter
Susan Foreman Made a Surprise Return for the First Time Since Doctor Who’s Classic Era
At the beginning of “The Interstellar Song Contest,” Harmony Arena was seized by a pair of Hellions, named Kid and Wynn. These beings, resembling humans with horns, hailed from a planet that was destroyed by the contest’s organizers, the Corporation. As a result, they were widely despised throughout the galaxy. In retaliation, Kid and Wynn aimed to exploit the Interstellar Song Contest to emit a Delta Wave across the cosmos, potentially annihilating trillions of beings. Their scheme initiated with the forced ejection of the audience from Harmony Arena into space. Belinda was miraculously rescued by the roof of the pod where she and the Doctor were seated, but the Doctor himself was among those expelled from the space station.
Above Harmony Arena, the Doctor began to freeze. At this point, a voice echoed, urging him to return. To dedicated “Doctor Who” enthusiasts, that voice might have sounded familiar, and it was soon revealed that it belonged to none other than Carole Ann Ford’s Susan Foreman. As the Doctor hovered near death, he saw Susan’s face looking at him, apparently from within the TARDIS. Even then, she continued to address him as “Grandfather,” a term she often used throughout their travels together, and pleaded with him to find her.
In response to Susan’s words, an unconscious Doctor was spurred into action. He grabbed a discarded confetti cannon from the audience and launched himself back towards the space station, a maneuver he described as “extraordinarily flamboyant.” Throughout the episode, brief glimpses of Susan reappeared. These included moments when the Doctor grew concerned that Belinda was missing after the station attack, times when Susan intervened to prevent the Doctor from using the hologram system cruelly against Kid, and instances where she appeared in the Doctor’s thoughts as he pondered having seen her face even though… Finally, Susan made one more appearance when the Doctor reminisced about his encounters with her.
Who is Susan Foreman on Doctor Who?
The Doctor’s Granddaughter was His Very First Companion
In its very first episode titled “An Unearthly Child,” we encountered a captivating schoolgirl named Susan Foreman who demonstrated an unusually advanced knowledge in certain subjects compared to other 20th-century teenagers, but showed signs of being puzzled about some aspects of her education. Two of her teachers were so intrigued by this paradox that they decided to visit her home one evening. To their surprise, they found Susan’s residence was a junkyard, and the Foreman surname came from a sign at the entrance. Inside the yard, they encountered an enigmatic old man known as the Doctor, who turned out to be Susan’s grandfather, and a larger-than-usual police phone booth.
Initially, Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright, Susan’s teachers, eventually became part of the group that included the Doctor and Susan. When the show first aired, Susan acted as a link for the young viewers, making the series more approachable. Played by Ford, who later appeared in “The Interstellar Song Contest,” Susan was essentially the primary character in the early days of ‘Doctor Who.’ She was easier to understand and connect with compared to the Doctor, who was portrayed as enigmatic and sometimes untrustworthy. As both the Doctor’s granddaughter and someone comfortable in 1960s Earth, Susan served as a bridge between the science fiction world of the Doctor and the audience’s everyday life.
As a devoted fan of Doctor Who, I embarked on an extraordinary journey alongside Susan during the inaugural season. Later, in Season 2’s second serial of 1964, “The Dalek Invasion of Earth,” Susan bid adieu to her grandfather, the Doctor. Throughout our travels together, I had watched Susan evolve from a young girl to a woman yearning for independence amidst her overprotective grandfather. In her final adventure, Susan crossed paths with David Campbell, a valiant freedom fighter opposing the Daleks in the 22nd century. Torn between her affection for David and her duty towards the Doctor, Susan found herself locked out of the TARDIS at the end of the serial by her grandfather, acknowledging her new life with David. In a poignant farewell scene, the Doctor vowed to return one day to Susan, leaving us all in eager anticipation of their reunion.
In 1983, Ford reprised her role as Susan in the Doctor Who special “The Five Doctors.” This special marked the 20th anniversary of the series and began with a clip of the First Doctor bidding farewell to his granddaughter. Throughout the episode, Susan was seen alongside the First Doctor as he teamed up with his four subsequent versions. Although Susan seemed older in “The Five Doctors,” her age wasn’t mentioned explicitly. The novelization suggested that she had been taken from some point in her future, where she had married David and started a family. Ford’s additional on-screen performance as Susan was in the 1993 special “Dimensions in Time,” but the validity of this special an unusual collaboration with the BBC soap opera EastEnders remains questionable.
What Susan’s Return to Doctor Who Means
Carole Ann Ford Brings the Original Companion Back to Doctor Who
In the exciting event of “The Interstellar Song Contest,” Susan, who previously appeared on “Doctor Who,” made a surprising return. This appearance might just be the most impactful cameo the show has ever had. Susan, being the first companion, initially joined the sci-fi series as the Doctor’s granddaughter. So far, the Doctor’s promise to visit her has remained unmet. In Season 1 of 2024, the Doctor hinted that his time with Ruby could lead him to correct this oversight and locate his granddaughter after a long absence. The fact that Susan asks the Doctor to find her in “The Interstellar Song Contest” implies that their reunion could finally unfold in the finale of “Doctor Who,” Season 2.
In the final episode of Season 1, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday,” there was a hint that Susan, who had been chasing the Doctor and Ruby across time and space throughout the two-part finale, might return. However, this turned out to be a misdirection. The woman who initially appeared in the first episode was not Susan, the Doctor’s granddaughter as initially suspected, but rather an Angel of Death named Susan Triad. Sutekh, the god, had given her this name as part of a plan to lure the Doctor, leading him to believe she could be his granddaughter, when in fact she was a trap set by Sutekh.
In summary, at the close of “The Interstellar Song Contest,” the Doctor hinted that the images he witnessed of Susan were not merely his recollections. He appeared to think these visions suggested Susan was genuinely trying to contact him, though he swiftly rejected this notion. It’s possible Susan is being utilized as part of a trap for the Doctor again. Yet, it’s improbable that Season 2 would replicate the twist from Season 1. Moreover, since the 13th Doctor started traveling in the TARDIS, there have been hints about Susan’s return. The fact that Carole Ann Ford has resumed her role as Susan rather than having an off-screen regeneration makes her comeback even more significant. Ford is the last surviving original cast member of “Doctor Who,” and her reappearance would help resolve a plot thread that the series has left hanging for 61 years.
Every Saturday, you can catch new episodes of Doctor Who streaming on BBC iPlayer in the United Kingdom, or on Disney+ wherever it’s accessible.
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2025-05-18 04:10