Bonnie Langford left breathless by Doctor Who star

Ncuti Gatwa left Bonnie Langford puffing for breath during filming

Doctor Who legend Bonnie Langford said she was left breathless trying to keep up with star Ncuti Gatwa while filming the show.

The dancer and actress returned as Melanie Bush for the current series' penultimate episode, The Legend of Ruby Sunday, on Saturday.

She was last seen in "The Giggle" in which the current doctor was introduced.

The 59-year-old said: "He's very, very, very quick at running.

"He's got a fabulously long legs, and I haven't, so I was doing a little bit of [puffs] to keep up with him."

There was, she said, "quite a lot of silliness" in the show.

"I just ran down corridors screaming," she said.

"My character was supposed to be a computer programmer, but she never went anywhere near a computer."

Despite this, Langford insisted her character was still "very good at dealing with computers".

She praised Gatwa for being a "ray of light" and "just fantastic", adding: "We got on like a house on fire."

First aired on 23 November, 1963, and 61 years old this year, the programme was "as fresh as ever".

Langford said: "It has such a legacy, you know, 60 years of many, many people watching it - either in their childhood or older, or more recently."

Bonnie Langford, left, assisted Sylvester McCoy's Doctor from 1986 to 1987

"Whenever you say anything, everyone's always got their, 'Oh, that was my doctor' or 'I used to watch it with my dad,' or 'I used to watch it with my family,' or 'I didn't watch it because I was hiding behind the sofa'."

Langford added that showrunner Russell T Davies was an "utter joy to work with".

"What I adore about working with Russell is, not only is he so supportive, but he was also one of those fans.

"So he understands and loves the show."

Langford, from Surrey, first joined the show in 1986. Her first doctor was Colin Baker, the sixth doctor.

When he regenerated, she travelled with Sylvester McCoy. Decades later, she cameoed in Jodie Whittaker's final episode, and has now joined forces with Ncuti Gatwa.

Doctor Who: The Legend of Ruby Sunday is on BBC iPlayer.

Bonnie Langford's interview with Lucy Owen on BBC Radio Wales was first broadcast on Saturday and is available to catch up with on BBC Sounds.