When an otherworldly presence directly affects the life of four people in Sheffield, it’s up to a mysterious woman dropping in out of the blue to to help sort things out.

Has ever a new Doctor had so much resting on their arrival? Christopher Eccleston’s Ninth had the responsibility of bringing Doctor Who into the 21st Century, but Jodie Whittaker’s has the added challenge of convincing the naysayers that gender is not an issue. The fact that she does so (seemingly) effortlessly has only gone to prove what we really knew all along – that if you’ve got the right person it really doesn’t matter what age, sex, colour, etc they are.

It’s a regular convention in Doctor Who to set the new Doctor’s launch story on contemporary Earth (or as near as dammit). Doctors 3, 4, 8, 9, 10 and 11 all fit this mould, and this is one of the few legacies that new showrunner and head writer Chris Chibnall has held onto. Otherwise it’s a complete jumping on point for the show; there’s enough of an explanation of what has happened previously to our traveller to grasp the basic concepts, but then it’s straight on to the new business at hand.

Much has been made of the cinematic look of the show, which indeed is very handsome, and it held up well to the big-screen projection at The Light Cinema’s premiere screening in Sheffield. It’s not just the widescreen 2:1 ratio, but the use of filmic grading and the depth of the colour palette, finding a beauty in the city’s nocturnal cityscape.

As for the story, I’m saying nothing more than you already know. You’ll thank me for this. Inevitably you could build up a picture of the narrative from the various snippets and teases that others will share elsewhere, but hitting the story with as little foreknowledge as possible will let the story unfold as planned and paced by director Jamie Childs, who has now moved on to His Dark Materials.

While never personally having an issue with the ‘timey-wimey’ oh-so-clever tropes of Steven Moffat’s era, the criticism was often raised that it was a bit too smart for its own good. The Woman Who Fell to Earth is a palette cleanser in this regard, straight-forward enough for any adult to understand and enjoy it (the kids were always OK), recognising that the driving force behind a strong story is relationships and emotion and not just narrative sleight of hand.

If I’m going to be critical on any level, it’s that the alien presence is a little generic, though I totally accept that too strong a foe might detract from the all-important character and world building. And while I was very impressed with Segun Akinola’s underscore for the instalment, I can’t comment on opening titles (there were none) or how the final end titles will sound.

Jodie is a force of nature; she describes herself as ‘fizzing around’, and this kinetic energy is infectious. She’s not a woman, she’s not a man… she’s the Doctor. Proving that the role is bigger than gender, we’re drawn into Jodie’s performance as she recalibrates post regeneration. And this is no time for ‘Am I a good man/woman?’ navel-gazing or self-reflection, the newly transformed Gallifreyan is ready and fit to go long before the end of this extended opener, and you’ll immediately want to see what happens next.

And what of the good companions, or ‘friends’ as they’re now called? I’ll let the story beats explain how they come in to the picture and how they are interconnected, but importantly you feel like you could happily spend the next ten episodes with them. Bradley Walsh’s Graham is a calming influence, miles away from the actor’s popular gameshow persona, and more aligned to his Ronnie Brooks from Law and Order: UK (where he also worked for Chris Chibnall). It’s not showy, and far more nuanced than you might imagine. Former Hollyoaks regulars Mandip Gill and Tosin Cole also make a positive impact as Yaz and Ryan, young people trying to find their place in the universe, and thankfully eschewing any irritating qualities that can hinder the likability of companions.

Verdict: Change, my dear. And it seems not a moment too soon. You can change the showrunner, the Doctor and the day of the week it’s shown on, but provided there’s a beating heart (well, two actually), optimism and a sense of adventure, the essence of Doctor Who will feel authentic, and Series 11 promises to be a confident, accessible, cinematic bunch of adventures with some engaging leads and a powerhouse Doctor. 9/10

Nick Joy

Read the full transcript of the launch press conference (bar spoilers) here