Doctor Who Season 14: Who is Mrs Flood?
BBCUnassuming old lady Mrs Flood (Anita Dobson) is responsible for one of Doctor Who Season 14’s biggest surprises. So, who is she and what does her introduction mean for the Fifteenth Doctor’s (Ncuti Gatwa) future adventures?
Mrs Flood was just one of several mysteries the 2023 special, “The Church on Ruby Road,” left Doctor Who fans to mull over. Ruby Sunday‘s (Millie Gibson) nosy neighbor left Doctor Who Season 14 viewers thinking there might be more to her, and with that have come some pretty convincing theories.
Then came Doctor Who Season 14, which brought her back and left everyone thinking that she could be a Doctor Who villain in disguise. With Russell T Davies behind all of this, anything could be possible.
Here’s everything you need to know about Mrs Flood, including who she is, and what fans think she could signify. (Warning: spoilers ahead for Season 14!)
Doctor Who Season 14: Who is Mrs Flood?
Mrs Flood is Ruby Sunday’s elderly neighbor and lives at 4 Minto Road, Notting Hill.
She’s portrayed as an ordinary old lady for most of the Doctor Who Christmas special‘s runtime, however, its mid-credits scene hints that there’s more to this old lady than meets the eye.
Here, Mrs Flood — initially depicted as oblivious to Time Lord culture — turns to the camera and smirks, before quipping, “Never seen a TARDIS before?” It’s currently unclear how Mrs Flood knows about the Doctor’s time-traveling spacecraft, and how and when she acquired this info.
“Mrs Flood is a mysterious character,” Davies said in an episode of Doctor Who: Unleashed (via Radio Times) after the episode. “You will eventually find out more about her. She’s a slow burn, Mrs Flood. Who is Mrs Flood? Come back and find out!”
“Today what you see is a friendly neighbor,” added Dobson. “What the future may be, no one knows. Russell is writing it as we speak.”
In ‘The Legend of Ruby Sunday’, it’s revealed that Mrs Flood isn’t what she presents to be. When looking after Cherry Sunday, the sky turns dark and Mrs Flood begins speaking strangely, telling Cherry: “I’d be very careful, Mrs Sunday. There’s a storm coming in. He waits no more.”
Then, in ‘Empire of Death’, Mrs Flood is killed alongside Cherry, and says: “Tell your maker I will come to storm down his gates of gold and seize his kingdom in my true name,” and later calls the Doctor a “clever boy” when he brings everyone back to life.
At the end of the episode, an undisclosed amount of time later, Ruby is sitting down for dinner with Carla, Cherry, and her birth mother when the camera pans up to the roof of the flat where Mrs Flood is standing, wearing a fluffy white coat.
She talks directly to the camera, telling us that the Doctor’s story “ends in absolute terror.” Creepy!
Doctor Who Season 14: Mrs Flood theories explained
Initial theories involved Mrs Flood secretly being the Master, Rani, and River Song, but none of these have been proven to be true.
“What brings a flood? The Rain,” wrote one X user. “What’s an anagram of Rain? Rani.” “Melody Pond. River Song. Mrs Flood. Calling it now,” added another, referencing Song’s birth name. “Has anyone else spotted how TARDIS-like Mrs Flood’s front door is?” asked a third. “Maybe she is the Master, as doesn’t the Chameleon Circuit on his/her/their TARDIS work?”
While Mrs Flood’s ominous final speech only hints at what would be to come in Doctor Who Season 15, there’s still plenty of possibilities. For one, she could be a whole new villain altogether.
However, some fans have noticed a strange detail to do with her costuming that may indicate something greater. As you can see in the collage below, most of Mrs Flood’s costumes are very similar to the outfits of former companions, including Clara and Rory.
Could this mean that Mrs Flood is connected to the Doctor’s past friends, or perhaps even the TARDIS, like Sutekh? As far as Russell T Davies is concerned, he’s not willing to give too much away.
“She’s not part of what Sutekh was up to,” said Davis of Mrs Flood [via Yahoo! News]. “She’s kind of trapped in whatever Sutekh was up to in as much as the whole world is.
“Well, I wonder what means. I can promise you reveals, I can promise you astonishing reveals and a lot of fun with her as well. [Dobson is] so much fun to work with, so good times with Mrs Flood to come!”
For more Who mysteries, check out our guide to Susan Twist. You can also keep note of the Doctor Who Season 14 release schedule, and make sure you know how to watch Doctor Who Season 14.
You can also find out everything there is so know about Ruby’s mother, as well as our ‘Legend of Ruby Sunday’ review!