Doctor Who rumours are swirling again, with suggestions that the future of the show is looking grim. A few thoughts on it all.
For veteran fans and followers of Doctor Who, we’ve been here more than once. The tabloid speculation, the rumours of an impending cancellation, people talking about ratings, that the show isn’t what it once was: we’re all comfortably familiar with the drill.
Perhaps it’s not a surprise then that here we are again. This past month, a report from The Sun – as always, this piece is worth a read – has suggested that Ncuti Gatwa wants to go to Hollywood, Disney+ is unhappy with the American ratings for the show, and that a long hiatus for Doctor Who is ahead of us.
The circumstantial evidence is building, too. Russell T Davies has committed to a new drama for Channel Four, that you can read about here. Would he be doing that if there was more Doctor Who on the way? Furthermore, it’s been widely reported earlier this year that the Bad Wolf studios facility in Wales is advertising its space, space that many had assumed would be taken up by Ncuti Gatwa’s third season as the Time Lord.
Factually, we know that Doctor Who season three, as I’m still uncomfortable calling it, has not yet been commissioned. A statement from the BBC to the Radio Times reiterated that “as we have previously stated, the decision on season three will be made after season two airs. The deal with Disney+ was for 26 episodes – and exactly half of those still have to transmit. And as for the rest, we never comment on the Doctor and future storylines.”
Those 26 episodes are all shot too, if we include the spin-off series The War Between The Land And The Sea, which is expected to arrive later this year. Plus, we now know when Doctor Who will return: it’s back on Saturday 12th April, on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and Disney+ (the latter outside of the UK).
Also factually, we know that when the first episode of the renewed series landed last year, virtually all of series two had already been filmed. Not a single frame of series three is in the can, though, even though showrunner Russell T Davies has suggested he has stories and plans in place.
The absence of tangible information is, as always, leading some to fill in the gaps. I’ve seen clickbait about how Ncuti Gatwa has quit the role, about how Disney+ has cancelled the show, and that Russell T Davies is leaving. None of this has a known tangible source, but in a vacuum of information, it’s spreading.
Furthermore, Russell T Davies has addressed passing the torch to somebody else, and that’s inevitably poured some flames on things. Contextually, it wasn’t a response to the rumours that have spread, just that Davies said conversations had taken place. “There’s thinking about that, there’s conversations about that, but it’s hard. It’s a tricky one”, he said to David Tennant on his podcast.
Inevitably, that’s been amplified to the point of him disappearing in the TARDIS and confirming every rumour out there. Which isn’t the case.
Davies is imminently on the press tour for Doctor Who ahead of its new season launch, and the questions are inevitably going to be asked. Likewise, of Ncuti Gatwa.
Working on the information that the BBC and Disney+ have formally given us, a decision on more episodes is at best a few weeks off. For us to get a new series next year, filming would be starting around now, and a lot of the location and pre-production work would have already been done. That, and space booked at the Bad Wolf facility.
I’m no insider, but common sense suggests that a new series of Doctor Who next Easter is a long shot at best. Furthermore, there’s little sign of a Christmas special for this December at the moment. Again, it’s not official it’s not happening, but after three years of Disney-backed Doctor Who, 2026 looks a little lighter for the Whoniverse.
Thing is, for long time Doctor Who fans, this isn’t new. Those of us who lived through the late 1980s and 1990s are firmly used to the ratio of rumour to fact, and we’re living through a fresh iteration of that now. It happened recently too when the Chris Chibnall era of the show was coming to an end, and question marks were raised over how Doctor Who could complete in the streaming era, against streaming budgets.
But an answer was found. It will be found again.
Read more: Doctor Who in the 2000s | The Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant years
As much as there are rumours flying around, it’s hard not to conclude that there’s some clouds gathering over the show at the moment, though. Considering how open announcements have been over the past years, there are question marks over whether it’s done the kind of numbers that Disney+ is looking for. The fact that a fresh series hasn’t been commissioned suggests, at best, the targets haven’t been hit. That confidence has taken a dent. But like most people writing about the show, I don’t have the definite insight on that. I accept too that for every 1000 people spilling insider info on social media, one of them might actually be right.
But for now, I work with facts. That there are eight episodes of Doctor Who beginning next month, and they might be the last ones we get – aforementioned spin-off aside – for a while. I’m looking forward to them.
Furthermore, Doctor Who will always exist. If worst case scenario happens, and the show goes off the air for several years, then it’s happened before, and it’ll happen again. Doctor Who will never have Star Wars numbers, but it’ll always have a sizeable fanbase. The kind of fanbase who, for instance, keep the superb Blu-ray releases in the bestseller charts, and who continue to binge the hundreds of episodes out there in the world.
As always, new episodes need to recruit. This iteration may have done that, may not. Also, the spin-off series remains a big unknown, and I’d imagine Disney feels the same. But Doctor Who and storm clouds seem to go hand in hand. That it’s always seemed to have some degree of target on its back.
These days? I choose to enjoy the show, and look forward to more. What will be, will be.
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