Growing up, my Saturday nights were dominated by that gentle whir and hum of the Tardis landing in an unexpected location, as the Ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler faced some unknown enemy, or helped a group of unsuspecting aliens. It was the time of The Tenth Doctor and Donna Noble arguing constantly. Of scenes of the Doctor and Amelia Pond eating fish fingers and custard, accompanied by shouts of "Geronimo!" as Matt Smith's iteration of the famous Time Lord burst onto screen. But now a whole new generation won't get to experience this joy, as the BBC just confirmed they're putting the iconic show out to competitive tender, and the previously announced Christmas episode won't be going ahead.
Doctor Who is one of oldest shows on British TV, first appearing in 1963 with William Hartnell taking on the iconic role of The Doctor, a time-travelling, er, Time Lord who has a particular affinity with humans and travels through time and space with a companion. Over the years it's gone through a number of iterations, and went on pause in 1989, before being brought back again for a whole new era in 2005, with Christopher Eccleston taking the lead.
Most recently it saw a partnership take place with Disney+ in the US, to bring the show to a global audience, and Sex Education actor Ncuti Gatwa was cast as the Doctor, a move many fans were excited about. However, after just two seasons, it was announced Gatwa was stepping down from the role and it was expected that Billie Piper, who had previously played Rose Tyler, was going to take on the titular role, after she was reincarnated as the Doctor at the end of the most recent series.
Earlier today though [10th June], the BBC announced it was putting the show on competitive tender, saying: "As part of securing the next phase of the show for future generations, and in line with the BBC’s Charter and Agreement requirements, the BBC will put Doctor Who out to competitive tender this year. Doctor Who remains an important part of the BBC and this tender underpins the BBC’s continued commitment to Doctor Who ensuring audiences will enjoy the show for years to come."
It's shocking news for Whovians around the world, but also perhaps not that surprising to many viewers as the most recent iteration left many feeling confused, disappointed and underwhelmed, with overall ratings dropping off.
So what went wrong with the most recent seasons? Here are 5 reasons why Doctor Who seemingly didn't work this time around.
Everything was rushed
In previous seasons, Doctor Who would usually produce 12 episodes per season and a Christmas episode. But in the two most recent seasons, there were only eight episodes per season.
Four episodes might not feel like a lot of difference, but when it comes to character and plot development, it matters. The shorter seasons never really gave a chance for Gatwa's Doctor to really settle into himself, and develop those quirks we've come to associate with the previous Doctors.
It often meant the companions were the centre of the plot rather than the Doctor himself; in fact, there were often episodes were he hardly appeared at all such as '73 Yards,' 'Dot and Bubble' and 'Lucky Day.'
And it also meant we didn't get the relationship development between the Doctor and his two companions Ruby Sunday and Belinda Chandra. This in part wasn't helped that each companion only had an eight episode run.
The shortness also meant that episodes often felt over before they'd begun, with mysteries wrapped up quickly and problems solved inordinately fast.
The teasing out of mysteries
But on the flip side, there were some mysteries that ran for the entire season, only to leave the audience feeling disappointed at the revelation. After every episode of season one, I would join the many Reddit forums deep diving for clues as to who Ruby Sunday's mother could be. Was she the Doctor's daughter? Was she a secret Time Lord with extraordinary power?
Nope: it turns out she was the daughter of a woman who gave her up when she gave birth to her as a teenager. It was a sweet story but not exactly the gripping conclusion fans expected.
And then of course, there was the mysteries of Mrs Flood, Susan Twist, The Boss and The Pantheon. Each delivered the promise of classic enticing Doctor Who mysteries, but then fell short by the time they were wrapped up.
It wasn't scary enough
Speaking of gripping...as a child, one of the best parts of Doctor Who was the episodes that made me want to hide behind the sofa. Each generation has their own terrifying episode of Doctor Who; for me it was 'Blink', and even now the thought of the weeping angels makes me shudder.
However, in the most recent series, there wasn't a single episode that made viewers want to watch from behind their eyes. Arguably the closest to this was '73 Yards', where Ruby is followed by a mysterious woman who is always 73 yards behind her - but that still fell a bit flat.
Who is this for?
The partnership with Disney+ and Bad Wolf also brought in the big question as to who the new version of the show was for. Was it aimed at children or adults? New fans or old? With the varying themes (some light-hearted, some musical and others whacky) it felt like it was trying to appeal to all, and therefore left many feeling disconnected to it.
The tone was all over the place
Across one season of Doctor Who you would get a Black Mirror-esque episode such as 'Dot and Bubble', a musical episode like 'The Interstellar Song Contest' and an episode that felt like the audience were children, aka 'Space Babies'. Yes, it helped to keep things fresh, but it also meant there was no overarching thread or tone to the season, and also added to the lack of characterisation given to Gatwa's Doctor. Ncuti Gatwa could have had a generational run as the Doctor, and it's shame he never really got the chance to shine.
But maybe it is time for Doctor Who to have a break. After all, it was off our screens for 16 years before it became a beloved show all over again when Eccleston appeared as the Ninth Doctor in 2005. It could come back stronger than ever, but only if it focuses on its core British scrappy approach to creating those 'can't stop talking about' moments we've come to associate with the show.
And who knows, maybe it can bring back the fish fingers and custard too?
Doctor Who is available on BBC iPlayer now
