Doctor Who Likely Now Off Air For Years, Report Suggests

Doctor Who is unlikely to return on-screen for up to five years, a new report has suggested.

Yesterday, the BBC stunned fans by confirming that its previously-announced Doctor Who Christmas special had been scrapped, as the rights to produce future series were now being offered to other production companies. The announcement also acknowledged the departure of veteran showrunner Russell T Davies and production studio Bad Wolf — effectively placing the show on indefinite hiatus.

Now, Deadline has reported that the breakup between the BBC, Russell T Davies and Bad Wolf was a mutual decision, based on the realization that Doctor Who “required a level of surgery that could not be masked by the sticking plaster of a festive episode.”

Many fans had assumed the Christmas episode would have been Davies’ swansong, with the one-off special announced simply to wrap up his remaining plot threads — such as the unexplained reappearance of Billie Piper, whose role may now never be established.

Whether she was playing the Doctor or not, though, the episode would likely have been expected to establish who exactly is the Doctor now, following the departure of Ncuti Gatwa’s incarnation. It may be that the answer to that question simply could not be determined in time to produce an episode this year — or that it is a question the BBC would now rather leave to the series’ next showrunner.

Whatever is the case, clearly it has been decided that the show’s future will be served best by starting afresh — and this will take time, even starting sooner rather than later. Deadline reported that “2028 at the earliest” was the soonest fans could hope for, though this was “an outside bet.” Another production source suggested a hiatus of up to five years, which the series could use to take a proper break.

Speaking to several unnamed production companies involved in making UK drama, however, Deadline found hesitation about taking the show on, after concerns over recent storylines and Davies’ “sledgehammer” approach to tackling topics of diversity.

“You would have to be mad,” one source said. “[It’s a] bit of a nightmare for any producer in this market with the shadow of the Disney fallout,” said another. A third suggested the series’ budget would likely be around $3 million per episode — half of the budget for the episodes Disney previously funded.

The report tallies with comments from former Doctor Who Magazine editor Tom Spilsbury, who last year suggested it would likely be “five or six years before we see anything new,” as the series’ next incarnation is determined. “At which point, it will be the children of 2005 who will be bringing the show back, just as Russell predicted. As ever, time will tell.”

That said, there seems to be no doubt that Doctor Who will eventually regenerate. While it may take years, the series’ long-running nature, adaptable format and large fanbase make it feel inevitable — even if fans have to go the long way around.