News | Entertainment
31 Oct 2025 20:02
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Jodie Whittaker has a phobia of fire

    The 38-year-old actress suffers from pyrophobia which was an issue on when she starred in 2014 British drama 'The Smoke' which followed a team of London firefighters


    Jodie can recall filming on scene in which her character Trish Tooley was trapped in a blazing tunnel which left her petrified and feeling out of control, despite the strict health and safety measures on set.

    She said: "I'm petrified of fire. On set I'm always front and centre for the safety demonstrations.

    "In 'The Smoke', at the end I was in a tunnel engulfed by flames. Even though there was an amazing SFX team and people in protective gear ready to stamp it out, I can't cope with that.

    "It's about not feeling in control of your surroundings, and internally I'm thinking worst-case scenario."

    The 'Doctor Who' star also admitted she finds herself in an "absolute state" if she can see one of her text messages has been read but she's not received a reply.

    She said: "My biggest weakness is being paranoid about getting two ticks on a Whatsapp and no response.

    "I get in an absolute state and wonder what I've done. I overthink things and that can be exhausting.

    "I've grown more nervous as I've got older. I've lost that ability to dive in without thinking. Now I dip my toe in and test the temperature. I was very freefall when I was younger. I miss that."

    And Jodie - who has a five-year-old daughter with husband Christian Contreras - also admitted she avoids social media because she would be left upset by any negative comments from trolls, something that happened when she was cast as the first ever female Doctor by the BBC.

    Speaking to The Times Magazine, she said: "I don't do Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. It's just not for me. If you only take the compliments, you create a monster. I take a lot of things to heart."

    © 2025 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

     Other Entertainment News
     31 Oct: Fatboy Slim was snogged "full on the face" by Brazilian soccer superstar Ronaldo when he was the DJ at his wedding
     31 Oct: John Cleese has led tributes to Prunella Scales who has died at the age of 93
     31 Oct: Pamela Anderson "jumped off the crazy train" by ditching makeup
     31 Oct: Wanda Sykes has revealed Will Smith called her to apologise for ruining her big night at the Oscars
     31 Oct: Bam Margera has celebrated a year of sobriety after "deleting" all the "negative" influences from his life
     31 Oct: Simu Liu feels that using artificial intelligence (AI) to replace actors is "antiethical"
     31 Oct: Georgia May Jagger is "precious" about mother Jerry Hall's clothes after Lizzy Jagger lost some of her collection in a house fire
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    Three changes to the All Blacks' run-on side from their last outing in Perth, to face Ireland on Sunday morning in Chicago More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    One of Christchurch's hottest hospitality spots has sold for 60 million dollars More...



     Today's News

    Health & Safety:
    Pet owners may be loving their animals to death - leaving a gap in the market for weight-loss drugs 18:57

    Law and Order:
    Health New Zealand has released footage of a fire that broke out in the Whangarei Hospital car park last week to quell speculation 18:37

    International:
    What happens to Prince Andrew's children? Princess Beatrice and Eugenie to keep their titles 18:17

    Law and Order:
    Three men have been arrested after allegedly attacking two people in Westport in one night 18:07

    Rugby:
    Three changes to the All Blacks' run-on side from their last outing in Perth, to face Ireland on Sunday morning in Chicago 17:27

    International:
    Prince Andrew stripped of title by King Charles and told to leave Royal Lodge 17:17

    National:
    Spiders inspired biologists to create artificial webs to capture airborne DNA for biodiversity monitoring 17:07

    National:
    New discovery reveals chimpanzees in Uganda use flying insects to tend their wounds 16:57

    Soccer:
    Football Ferns coach Michael Mayne has offered a short- and long-term solution for New Zealand to close the gap to the top nations in the world 16:57

    National:
    If the US resumes nuclear weapons testing, this would be extremely dangerous for humanity 16:47


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2025 New Zealand City Ltd