Jodie Whittaker has admitted that she feared her casting in Doctor Who would “ruin” the chances of another female actor getting the role.

The Broadchurch star took over the role of the Doctor from Peter Capaldi in 2018, making her the first female performer to play the part. She will leave Doctor Who next year.

Speaking to The Guardian ahead of the finale of miniseries Doctor Who: Flux, Whittaker recalled the worry she felt watching her first episode as the Doctor in front of a crowd in 2018, saying: “I’d absolutely gone.

“I just thought, ‘There’s this crowd of Whovians that are really excited and full of love and support.’ And I was like, ‘What if I have pitched this so badly wrong? What if I’ve ruined it for actresses?’”

She continued: “Because I know full well that when lads were cast in the part, they weren’t representing men, they were representing their own personal casting. The way it was described in every outlet was not, ‘Can Jodie Whittaker play the part?’, it was, ‘It’s a woman!’

“I suddenly thought, ‘Have I hindered us? Have I held us back?’ Because we’d filmed the first series, and I’d loved it. I really felt confident all the way through. Then there is that moment where you go, ‘Oh God’... Hopefully, with the next 15 generations of Doctors, we never have to have this chat again. I’m delighted it was mine, but it never has to happen again, thank God.”

Whittaker will star in three Doctor Who specials in 2022, the first of which airs on New Year’s Day.

While the actor replacing her as the Time Lord is yet to be announced, you can find the latest odds here.

Doctor Who: Flux concludes Sunday 5 December at 6.20pm on BBC One.