British actor Ncuti Gatwa, best known for his role as the Fifteenth Doctor in Doctor Who, has revealed he spent much of his life mispronouncing his own name — a fact only corrected by his mother when he was 26 years old.
Gatwa, who first rose to international fame portraying the vibrant and beloved Eric Effiong in Netflix’s Sex Education, shared the revelation during a recent interview alongside his Doctor Who co-star Millie Gibson. The 31-year-old actor explained that even though he had often corrected others on the pronunciation of his name, he wasn’t actually saying it properly himself.
“My name is pronounced N-shoo-tee. It’s like a ‘n’ – pause – ‘shoo-tee’,” he explained. However, he admitted that he only discovered the correct pronunciation relatively late in life. “I only properly learned how to say it when I was 26,” he confessed. “When I started gaining a public profile, I made this whole video saying, ‘It’s Shootee — like a shooting star with an E at the end.’”
But his attempt to set the record straight didn’t go down well at home. “My mum called me immediately saying, ‘What are you talking about? That’s not how you say your name,’” he recalled, laughing. “And I just said, ‘Oh! Oh right. Thanks for telling me, mum. At 26.’”
Gatwa, born Mizero Ncuti Gatwa in Rwanda before moving to Scotland as a child, has made headlines not just for his acting talent but also for breaking new ground as the first Black actor to play the iconic role of the Doctor on Doctor Who since the series began in 1963. He officially took over the role from David Tennant and Jodie Whittaker in May 2022, with filming for his era beginning in February 2023.
However, stepping into one of British television’s most cherished roles hasn’t come without its pressures. In a December 2023 interview with the BBC, Gatwa opened up about the intense anxiety he’s felt since taking on the part.
“From the moment I wake up to the moment I go to bed, it’s anxiety,” he admitted. “But people tell me that it means I care — and I do. I absolutely love the show. But it’s tough. It’s a demanding role, one that comes with prestige and responsibility. I’m just trying to give it my all and hope that it’s enough.”
His candid reflections offered a glimpse into the emotional weight that often accompanies high-profile roles, particularly ones as culturally significant as the Doctor. Still, Gatwa’s blend of humour, humility, and talent has already endeared him to audiences old and new, making his journey — mispronunciations and all — one that many are cheering on.
