TV sci-fi series Doctor Who has taken a small but significant step towards disability rights – by installing a ramp so wheelchair users can get into the famous Tardis
Actor Ruth Madeley who stars as scientific advisor Shirley Anne Bingham on the show, has said on her pinned tweet on X, formerly Twitter, that ‘for every disabled kid who couldn’t get into the Tardis, this ramp is forever yours.”
A wheelchair-friendly ramp attached to the Time Lord’s space craft was unveiled during the third episode of the BBC sci-fi drama’s 60th anniversary specials.
For the 60th anniversary episodes, David Tennant, who played the 10th Doctor returns as the 14th incarnation, starring alongside Catherine Tate as the Time Lord’s companion, Donna Noble. For the third special, titled The Giggle, Tennant’s Doctor was joined by his successor, the 15th Doctor, played by Ncuti Gatwa.
In the episode, the Tardis is duplicated and when Tennant’s character opens the door to the second time machine, he spots something different and unfolds a ramp.
Madeley, who has spina bifida and uses a wheelchair, says to Tennant’s Doctor “At last, you’ve finally caught up with the 21st century.”
