UK Edition
'The BBC did the right thing:' Ex-Doctor Who Colin Baker joins fans defending choice of Jodie Whittaker
Doctor Who loyalists have leapt to the defence of the first female Time Lord Jodie Whittaker after a number of fans aired their grievances over the move.
Whittaker, best known for playing the mother of a murdered boy in detective drama "Broadchurch," will replace Scottish actor Peter Capaldi at the end of the year, the BBC said.
"I want to tell the fans not to be scared by my gender," she said. "Because this is a really exciting time, and 'Doctor Who' represents everything that's exciting about change."
While the majority of committed viewers delighted in the announcement on social media, others hit out at the decision.
Fan website Doctor Who Online, which boasts more than 35,000 daily visitors and is edited by Sebastian Brook, said they were "genuinely appalled at some of the comments" made in reference to Whittaker being cast.
They added: "Whether you agree or disagree with the BBC's decision, there is no place for hate speech."
A fan of the show for more than 25 years, Will Howells, who often contributes to the Doctor Who magazine and has attended conventions, said "what the character does is more important than what their gender is".
He said: "I think it's really cool. It will divide fandom. I think, you know, there were a lot of people who didn't want it, didn't want a female Doctor. But I think the most important thing is you have a really good actor playing the Doctor."
The show has such a "flexible format" that the gender of the Doctor should not be an issue, Howells added.
The 38-year-old digital manager from London said it is "very silly to get angry about a TV show", adding that the show will be entertaining no matter who is playing the lead, provided they are good at acting.
"I think it actually gives the show lots of new potential, lots of different dynamics we haven't seen before," he said, adding that it will also provide a good role model for female viewers.
Most fans celebrated as Capaldi's successor was named, including the daughter of Twitter user Jenny Trout who delighted at the character being portrayed by a woman.
Other users joked that if the Doctor could be resurrected and time travel why was it impossible for character to become a woman?
A string of celebrity Doctor Who fans also jumped to her defence.
Actress Julie Hesmondhalgh described the Yorkshire-born actress as one of the "acest" and funniest people she had ever worked with adding she was "over the moon" in a post on Twitter.
Former Doctor Colin Baker lauded the BBC for "doing the right thing".
And Tracy-Ann Oberman, who has previously starred in Doctor Who, posted: "A generation of young Whovians who will now know that as a female in the Universe you don't have to be the assistant."
Dark Mirror creator Charlie Brooker - who cast Whittaker in the first series of the hit show - said it was a "great choice".
Other celebrity fans of the hit sci-fi show, including actress Angela Griffin and broadcaster Matt Edmondson, also welcomed the news.
Matt Edmondson tweeted: "Woo Hoo! I bloody love Jodie Whittaker - met her at a party once, and she was beyond pleasant. What a top bit of casting."