Watch: Thaddea Graham sings in delight at hearing her Irish accent on Doctor Who

Thaddea Graham on Doctor Who

An Irish actor who appeared on the latest episode of Doctor Who has spoken about her delight that her natural accent was used on the show.

Thaddea Graham appeared as Bel in the episode ‘Once, Upon Time’ and the Co Down star, who was adopted from China at 13 months by her Northern Irish parents and raised there by her family, says she auditioned for the role in her own accent.

She said she has heard from fans who are delighted to hear her Irish accent on screen.

“To be able to use my own accent on screen in such a big show also means the world. I've seen a lot of people saying that it's great to see the representation and I fully agree,” she says.

“Bel's accent was never a question. I auditioned in my own accent and nobody said anything. That's something I really love about this show, everyone is accepted wherever you're from, whoever you are, whatever you are it doesn't matter. It's about being kind and it's about being curious, being generous, and I think that is the heartbeat of it, as are [Doctor Who fans]. It is so loved and respected that I'm just delighted to get to be a tiny part of it. Thank you so much for welcoming me in with such warmth and open arms.” 

Graham, who has also starred in the Netflix series The Irregulars, shared a video of her singing as a thank you to the welcoming Doctor Who fans.

🔔💚 #DoctorWhoFlux pic.twitter.com/RjmtynkuXm

— Thaddea Graham (@ThaddeaGraham) November 15, 2021

While she received praise for the role, Graham admitted to turning off the show five minutes after it began due to her nerves.

“To be honest, I started watching the episode and five minutes in I had to turn it off because I got too anxious and too nervous that I had ruined it and that I was going to wreck the whole thing.

“It's such an iconic show to be part of. You step on, you get down to the sets and you walk around and you feel this weight of responsibility drop on your shoulders. Everyone who has come before and everyone who will come after and everybody's watching at home you think ‘oh god, I can’t mess this up!’ But it's an exciting thing. It's not a scary thing.

“When I was shooting it, I was just absolutely delighted to be there. I think reality sunk in last night, as I realized that you were all going to see it. You forget about that when you’re shooting and you just shoot the show, but when you realise that other people are going to watch it you really hope you haven’t messed this up.”