Warning: SPOILERS for the Doctor Who episode “Lucky Day” are ahead!
After months of Jonah Hauer-King’s role in Doctor Who being shrouded in secrecy, we finally learned the truth in the latest episode to premiere to Disney+ subscription holders. Although initially presented as Ruby Sunday’s new boyfriend, Hauer-King’s Conrad Clark was actually a self-centered anti-UNIT activist spreading disinformation. While it was left ambiguous at the end of “Lucky Day” if Conrad would return later in Season 2 (a.k.a the fifteenth season in Doctor Who’s revival era), Millie Gibson, who plays Ruby, has confirmed we will see him again in the finale, and I’m looking forward to this rematch.
Gibson shared this information while appearing on BBC’s The One Show (via Collider), teasing that Conrad’s conflict with Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor is far from over on the 2025 TV schedule. As she stated:
I can say that Jonah comes back – the battle is not won. He comes back and Russell [T Davies] has written an amazing script, as always. I come back as well and I’m reunited with the Doctor and Belinda, played by Varada Sethu.
To be fair, it’s not like this reveal comes entirely out of nowhere. After The Doctor and Conrad had their big showdown aboard the TARDIS, the former sent the latter back to his prison cell. With The Doctor having just told Conrad that he would die behind bars at the age of 49 when his heart gave out, it seemed like there was nothing more to be done with the character. Then along came Anita Dobson’s mysterious Mrs. Flood to free Conrad from his cell.
That was more than enough of a tease of his eventual return, but I’m nonetheless glad that Millie Gibson shared that The Little Mermaid’s Jonah Hauer-King will be back in the Season 2 finale, titled “The Reality War.” It makes sense, as that’s also when Gibson will return as Ruby Sunday. Doctor Who Season 2 has seen The Doctor traveling with new companion Belinda Chandra, and while we did get a flashback in “Lucky Day” of when Ruby was still traveling with the Time Lord, I’m eager to see her reunited with his current self. The Doctor who chewed out Conrad was from a point in his timeline before he met Belinda.
“The Reality War” drops at the end of the month, and I’m curious to learn how Conrad Clark factors into Mrs. Flood’s plans. After being introduced in “The Church on Ruby Road” and appearing sporadically in Doctor Who Season 1, Anita Dobson’s character has appeared in every Season 2 episode so far across different points in time and space. She’s giving off quite the sinister vibe, and recruiting someone like Conrad, who expressed no remorse for his actions in “Lucky Day,” is only going to be trouble.
We’re now at the halfway point with Doctor Who Season 2, so keep checking back with CinemaBlend in the weeks ahead for updates on the Fifteenth Doctor and his allies and enemies. Whether or not the show will continue after that remains to be seen, hopefully Ncuti Gatwa’s new gig strengthens the chances for Season 3.
