Doctor Who: Why The Doctor Really Said “Hello” To Barclay

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Be warned, this contains spoilers for the new Doctor Who series, The War Between the Land and the Sea. This latest spin-off asks what would happen if Earth were invaded and the Doctor wasn’t there to help. Like Torchwood before it, the series puts Earth in a difficult situation when the Sea Devils, a race known as Homo aqua, emerge from the ocean to confront humanity about pollution.

Although The Doctor doesn’t actually appear in The War Between the Land and the Sea – and it’s unclear which version of the Doctor would even show up – they are still referenced. Both Kate Lethbridge-Stewart and Barclay, played by Russell Tovey, mention The Doctor during the story.

Barclay encountered the Fifteenth Doctor while working a routine administrative job at UNIT, possibly during the events of “The Reality War” or “Empire of Death.” He recalls a brief meeting in UNIT Tower where the Doctor simply said “hello” and moved on. Although it was a small moment, Barclay often thinks about being introduced to alien life, and there may be a hidden reason why this encounter stuck with him.

Did The Doctor Say “Hello” To Barclay Because Of Alonso?

It’s worth noting that The Doctor is capable of being polite to everyone at UNIT, including those who aren’t central to the story. He easily could have just said hello to Barclay as a common courtesy. However, considering he doesn’t usually stop to chat with every person he encounters at UNIT headquarters, it’s likely there was a specific reason he chose to acknowledge this character.

Russell Tovey might be returning to Doctor Who! He previously appeared in the 2007 episode “Voyage of the Damned” as Midshipman Alonso Frame, a character who briefly assisted the Doctor. Alonso clearly made an impact, as the Doctor revisited him during his farewells before regenerating and introduced him to Jack Harkness.

You can easily picture Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor sprinting through the UNIT headquarters, briefly recognizing a man who strongly resembles someone from his past – perhaps a familiar face from Titanic.

Doctor Who frequently brings back actors to play different characters, later revealing they’re related. This happened recently in season 15, where Varada Sethu’s character, Belinda Chandra, was established as an ancestor of Mundy Flynn from the distant future. Given this pattern, it’s highly probable that actor Alonso’s character is related to Barclay from the story ‘The War Between the Land and the Sea’.

Barclay’s Connection To The Doctor Explains His Entire Story

In The War Between the Land and the Sea, an ordinary man named Barclay unexpectedly rises to become a key figure in deciding Earth’s fate. Chosen by Salt because of his kindness and honesty, Barclay proves to be dedicated to finding a peaceful solution as negotiations between land and sea creatures unfold, consistently striving to do what’s right.

Barclay demonstrates qualities that The Doctor typically seeks in companions – qualities also seen in Alonso from “Voyage of the Damned.” Like Alonso, Barclay helps The Doctor and bravely puts himself in danger to avert a major disaster, in this case, preventing the Titanic from crashing.

This kind of character recurrence happens in Doctor Who. For example, both Mundy Flynn and Belinda Chandra were good people who wanted to help others. Eve Myles played Gwyneth, who once saved the world from the Gelth, and later played Gwyneth’s descendant, Gwen Cooper, who saved the world on several occasions as part of Torchwood.

Looking at it that way, Barclay’s surprising emergence as Earth’s hero in The War Between the Land and the Sea seems inevitable. He has a natural, ingrained tendency to help others, a trait that will also become clear in Alonso Frame years later.

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2025-12-10 23:30