Doctor Who: 4 Times David Tennant and Catherine Tate Have Worked Together Outside Of The Whoniverse

Hot on the heels of the announcement that Sex Education actor Ncuti Gatwa will be stepping into the Tardis as the Fourteenth Doctor, fans have received the equally welcome news that David Tennant, the much loved Tenth Doctor, and Catherine Tate as popular companion Donna Noble, will be returning to Doctor Who for a special appearance in the classic show's upcoming 60th anniversary special. Set pictures suggest that Bernard Cribbins, who played Donna's Grandfather Wilfred Mott, is also set to return.

David Tennant played the Tenth Doctor from the Doctor Who revival's 2005 Christmas special, 'The Christmas Invasion', through to the 2010 New Year's special, 'The End of Time, part 2'. In 2013, he reprised his role alongside The Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith, in the 50th anniversary special 'Day of The Doctor'. Catherine Tate first played Donna Noble in a guest spot for Doctor Who's 2006 Christmas special, 'The Runaway Bride'. She then returned as a full time companion in series four, followed by a final guest appearance in 'The End of Time'. Both Tennant and Tate have also reprised their roles in a series of audio dramas for Big Finish productions.

However, Doctor Who isn't the only place you'll find these two actors together. Here's four times David Tennant and Catherine Tate have worked together outside of the Whoniverse.

1. The Catherine Tate Show, 2007 Red Nose Day Skit

Aside from her role as Donna in Doctor Who, Catherine Tate is perhaps best known for the characters of Nan and bratty schoolgirl Lauren Cooper in her self-titled sketch show, The Catherine Tate Show. Over the years, Tate has contributed various sketches to the BBC's yearly Red Nose Day telethon.

In 2007, the sketch starred Tate's Lauren Cooper character, opening moments before Cooper meets her new English Teacher, Mr. Logan, played by David Tennant. Cooper irritates Mr. Logan progressively worse over the course of the sketch, culminating in the Teacher (implied to be The Doctor in disguise, as a nod to the actors' Who history) shrinking Cooper to the size of an a small doll. As an added joke, the doll used for the shrunken Lauren Cooper was a Rose Tyler action figure.

The sketch is so well loved that, despite the apparent death of the Cooper character some years previous, Tate and Tennant performed a new sketch for the BBC's Comic Relief Big Night In in 2020, featuring the Logan character struggling to teach Cooper in a Zoom School setting.

2. Nan's Christmas Carol

In 2009, Tate revived the character of Joanie 'Nan' Taylor for a Christmas Special, Nan's Christmas Carol. The special sets Nan in the role of Scrooge, refusing to let a down-on his luck neighbour, Northern Bob, his family, and their little dog, Tim, stay for Christmas.

David Tennant appears in the special as the Ghost of Christmas present. Taking the form of an 80s rocker, he enters the scene accompanied by the Ghostbusters theme song, and tries to convince Nan to change her ways by showing her Tim the dog choking on crisps because the family did not have a real Christmas Dinner.

3. Much Ado About Nothing

In between their TV and film work, both David Tennant and Catherine Tate have regularly performed in Theatre. In 2011, they shared the stage in a production of the Shakespeare Comedy Much Ado About Nothing. They play Benedick and Beatrice, an initially feuding pair who eventually realise that they are in love.

The Doctor Who reunion sparked great interest in the show, so much so that the website Digital Theatre offers a recording of the performance to rent or purchase.

4. Ducktales (2017)

When the creators of the Ducktales reboot decided that they wanted a genuine Scottish actor to replace the late Alan Young as the voice of Scrooge McDuck, David Tennant was an obvious choice. Soon afterwards, Catherine Tate was selected as the new voice of the Sorceress Magica De Spell, one of Scrooge's greatest enemies, and ultimate big bad of the reboot's first season.

Any scene in which the two characters appear together is a secret treat for Doctor Who fans. While Tennant and Tate were not able to record their Ducktales voicework together, they are believed to have consulted each other on Scrooge and Magica's shared scenes, and each is aware enough of the other's performance style that the chemistry between the two is still evident.

We can't wait to see them together again for the Doctor Who 60th anniversary special!