Russell T Davies’s decision to hand back the keys to the Tardis prompted fears that it could be the end of Doctor Who.
But the BBC this week followed through on its promise to put the Doctor, in whatever regenerated form they next take, out to competitive tender.
Producers across time and space have been invited to roll up, roll up and submit their ‘brave’ pitches on what Who 3.0 might look like (deadlines are early next month, should you wish to throw your hat in the ring).
The BBC said producers should detail a vision for Who to get it back on the air in 2028-29 and ensure the series remains ‘relevant, surprising, brave and inspiring for both long-standing fans and new audiences’.
Devout Whovians, ever grateful for the news after a long period of turmoil, have been quick to start fancasting what the new iteration might look like.
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Take a look at the Doctor Who subreddit and they’re debating everything from the next face to wield a sonic screwdriver (Jodie Comer, Ella Purnell and George Fouracres were a few suggestions I was taken by) to plot suggestions (among them, a murder mystery where we don’t know the identity of the Doctor yet).
But aside from the names, a common refrain from fans is the need to clean house behind the scenes, after a period of flagging ratings, unpopular storylines and the Disney debacle.
Writing on the Who Reddit thread, @The_Iceman2288 urged: ‘Keep everyone who worked on Who from 2005 to 2024 a million miles away from the next era.
‘We need fresh, bold takes and radical changes.’
Similarly, there was a call for new creatives ‘from the top down’ from @Three_Twenty-Three, writing: ‘No more Davies, no Moffat, no Chibnall. Treat the previous Doctor actors with respect and maybe late in the new series give them a little cameo or The Five Doctors kind of thing, but they don’t need to be part of the ongoing show.’
Reading the latter comment, I felt a twinge of sorrow: no more one-off Steven Moffat episodes like 2024’s Boom? No more David Tennant as the Tenth/Fourteenth Doctor down his shed in Donna’s garden?
It’s daunting, but ultimately I have to agree. That is what Who needs to reinvent itself and get back onto solid footing.
It is disappointing how Davies’ tenure came to an end. Despite his protestations to the contrary, I can’t imagine he’s too happy about it. But Moffat seemed to know it was time for a fresh start back in 2024.
He told The Times: ‘At some point Russell will leave again, and that will not be me taking over, I can assure you of that.
‘Quite rightly, I hope a whole flood of new people will come in. And I think that would be slightly weird for me to be bobbing around in my late sixties with a bunch of 20-year-olds making it.’
The BBC has said they are flexible on how the creatives will operate, stating in the tender document: ‘We are not necessarily looking to work to a strict showrunner model and would expect once in production that the series will also use episodic writers.’
In recent years, as my faith in Davies’ second stint as showrunner dwindled, those guest-written episodes were among the best the show was producing – they’re vital to its storytelling dynamism.
So while I find it hard to imagine never seeing another Moffat special announcement, how else will we find anyone to rival what was accomplished by Davies, Moffat and Chris Chibnall (and finally get a non-white man in the mix)?
This second go at revitalising the franchise needs a new leader and a new production team, even if it is daunting to be travelling through the Time Vortex into uncharted territory.
But that’s sort of the whole point.
It’s why Who is uniquely suited to this big overhaul moment: the show can make the rules up as it goes along. So it’s time to let others, who have never worked on the show before, come up with them.