Disney and the BBC are parting ways on Doctor Who – but Russell T Davies has agreed to write a Christmas special in 2026. Confirming what feels like the worst kept secret this side of Gallifrey, Disney has now confirmed that it’ll no longer be partnering with the BBC on Doctor Who going forward. The ... Doctor Who | Disney confirms it’s done, but Christmas special due in 2026
Disney and the BBC are parting ways on Doctor Who – but Russell T Davies has agreed to write a Christmas special in 2026.
Confirming what feels like the worst kept secret this side of Gallifrey, Disney has now confirmed that it’ll no longer be partnering with the BBC on Doctor Who going forward.
The deal between the BBC and Disney+ technically comes to an end following next year’s spin-off series The War Between The Land And The Sea, but the absence of any filming for new Doctor Who episodes in the last months has told its own story. Following Ncuti Gatwa’s departure from the show at the end of ‘season two’, there’s no Christmas special this year, and we were left with a cliffhanger that remains on the, er, ‘curious’ side.
The BBC’s director of drama, Lindsey Salt, had made all the right noises in an official statement from the Beeb. “We’d like to thank Disney+ for being terrific global partners and collaborators over the past two seasons, and for the upcoming The War Between The Land And The Sea”, she enthused.
“The BBC remains fully committed to Doctor Who, which continues to be one of our most loved dramas, and we are delighted that Russell T Davies has agreed to write us another spectacular Christmas special for 2026. We can assure fans, the Doctor is not going anywhere, and we will be announcing plans for the next series in due course which will ensure the TARDIS remains at the heart of the BBC.”
Which basically means, reading between the gaps, that the hunt is still on for a fresh partner, and that there’s enough in the budget for a bridging episode of sorts at the end of next year. That in itself raises questions as to who the Doctor will be, and presumably a fresh deal will need to have been sorted by then, to help determine the future of the show and who the Time Lord will be.
For now, more questions than answers. But also, confirmation of something that pretty much everyone saw coming…
