Before taking control of the TARDIS, Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa got a little advice from some of its previous tenants.

The 31-year-old actor is the latest star to take up the mantle of the iconic British sci-fi series, playing the 15th incarnation of the Doctor. In an interview for Entertainment Weekly’s recent cover story on Doctor Who, Gatwa revealed that since his casting was announced, he’s received an outpouring of support from previous Doctors — including Jodie Whittaker, Peter Capaldi, Matt Smith, David Tennant, Sylvester McCoy, and more.

“They’ve all been absolute angels,” Gatwa tells EW, saying it feels like he’s been inducted into an unofficial “Whovian family.” “It’s a very small, very exclusive club, and it’s just nice to know that other people have gone through that experience as well. That solidarity from the other Doctors has been really nice.”

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Gatwa added that each of the Doctors he’s spoken to has offered a variation of the same advice.

“The main thing that everyone has told me is: Remember to have fun,” he explains. “Remember that even on the most tiring days, this job is one that not many people get to do. You’ll never do a job like this again in your life, and you’ll never get to creatively go to the places that you get to go to on the show. So, soak it all in.”

Gatwa is the 14th main actor to play the Doctor since the show’s debut in 1963, and he follows in the footsteps of William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy, Paul McGann, Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant (twice), Matt Smith, Peter Capaldi, and Jodie Whittaker. Throughout the years, other actors have made brief appearances as different incarnations of the Doctor, including John Hurt’s War Doctor and Jo Martin’s Fugitive Doctor, but officially, Gatwa's version is referred to as the Fifteenth Doctor.

Gatwa made his debut in last year’s 60th anniversary special, “The Giggle,” as Tennant’s Fourteenth Doctor split into two and “bigenerated” into Gatwa. Up next, Gatwa will star in his first full season when the show returns Friday, May 10, on Disney+ and the BBC.

For more on Doctor Who, read EW’s full cover story on the series’ return here.

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