Doctor Who star addresses character’s sexuality after long-time speculation

Doctor Who star Jemma Redgrave has addressed long-time speculation that her character, UNIT chief Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, is a lesbian. 

Redgrave reprises her role as Kate in Russell T Davies’ new Doctor Who spin-off series The War Between The Land and The Sea, alongside Russell Tovey leading the show as low-level UNIT member Barclay Pierre-Dupont.

During the first two episodes of the new-five part sci-fi series, which aired on BBC One on Sunday (7 December), fans caught a glimpse of Kate’s life away from her time as a high-powered commander in chief.

For the first time, it was confirmed that Kate is in a relationship with UNIT officer and her member of staff, Colonel Christofer Ibrahim (Alexander Devrient), another character previously seen in the Whoniverse.

The revelation appeared to catch some fans by surprise though, with one sharing a still from the show of the couple embracing on X, formerly Twitter, writing: “This is genuinely triggering.”

“Seeing Kate Stewart and that man whoever he is getting steamy is worse than Elphaba and Fiyero. Like ma’am are you not a lesbian,” a second questioned.

A third wrote: “Enough with the forced heterosexuality in my Doctor Who.”

this is genuinely triggering pic.twitter.com/VBv0DwNeh4

— eleni 🫧 (@twosjamie) December 7, 2025

For several years, some Doctor Who fans have assumed that Kate Lethbridge-Stewart is sapphic, despite her sexuality never having been confirmed on the show. Redgrave previously inadvertently poured fuel on the speculation by stating that when she started working on the show, she imagined her to be “married to a woman”.

In a new interview with Radio Times the actress has poured cold water on fan theories that the character is a lesbian, stating that there “wasn’t any discussion” between her and Doctor Who and The War Between The Land and The Sea showrunner Davies about Kate’s sexuality.

“I think maybe where it came from was a question that I was asked about how she’s a divorcee,” Redgrave told the publication, reflecting on fan speculation.

“I learned a great deal about her in an earlier episode [Death in Heaven] just from a few lines – she arrives at work in gardening clothes, she’s just come off either the allotment or her garden, and wasn’t expecting to be called in, and describes herself as a mother, as a divorcee, a mother of two, and an outstanding bridge player.

“So I knew that she was divorced, and I think I speculated that maybe she was in the same sex relationship. But it wasn’t any discussion that I ever had with anybody else,” she added.

“It was just things that I was mulling around about where she was in her life at that particular point.”

Reflecting on Kate and Colonel Christofer Ibrahim’s relationship, Redgrave said she thinks Kate doesn’t believe the relationship has a future, due to “the age difference” and “the power imbalance” between them.

Online, some fans are clearly hoping that Redgrave is correct about Kate and Colonel Ibrahim not working out.

“If I was Kate Stewart’s controversially young girlfriend I would be so much better than Colonel Flop-brahim let me tell you this,” one wrote on X, following the revelation of their romance.

The War Between The Land and The Sea continues on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 14 December.

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