Doctor Who Series 12: the writers

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Some members of the Doctor Who Series 12 Writers Room have been discovered.

So far, including showrunner Chris Chibnall, they are two Doctor Who Series 11 writers set to return, Ed Hime and likely Vinay Patel.

Ed Hime’s online CV lists “DOCTOR WHO (SERIES 12).”

Vinay Patel’s connection to Doctor Who Series 12 is slightly more tenuous and based on this tweet:


Patel’s recent presence at Roath Lock Studios, where they film Casualty and Pobol y Cwm (a Welsh language show) as well as Doctor Who is a very good indication that he is once again involved in the writers room for Doctor Who. Patel has never previously written scripts for Casualty and wouldn’t write for a Welsh language show.

Two new writers, Victoria Asare-Archer and Prasanna Puwanarajah were also discovered.

The Doctor Who Magazine 2019 Yearbook gave some insight from some of the Series 11 writers on how the Writers Room for Doctor Who works.

Ed Hime gave the best description of how the process works:

“Chris [Chibnall] explained why he’d brought us in to help him. People would pitch ideas and he would maybe pick a tiny piece of an idea and encourage us to focus on that. We’d rework that and try to take it to a new place together. But once that idea reached a certain point it would be given to a writer, and then it would be their responsibility to bring it in as script. Along the way the original idea might change a lot.”

“He was very clear about his vision and where he wanted to take the show. Chris told us he wanted Doctor Who to be accessible and inclusive for everyone. He said we should especially remember the eight-year-olds who would be watching, and that we had to bring the next generation of viewers to the show. A big reference point for that was ET-era Spielberg; those stories of wonder and innocence that had scares and real danger. That was the touchstone that really resonated with me.”

Vinay Patel:

“…it was clear to me from the start that Chris [Chibnall] was interested in direct, character-led storytelling and that helped me to adjust my approach. I was also particularly taken by what felt like Chris’ desire to inject hope into this incarnation of Who.”

Joy Wilkinson:

“[Chris Chibnall is] just brilliant and genuinely collegiate. He really wants to empower you as a writer. He wants you to be as involved as you can be. I’ve worked in telly a fair bit but before this I’d never been in the grade for something I’d written, or in the sound mix. The degree to which Chris invites you to be part of the process is unique, in my experience. There was never the sense that your job was done once you delivered the script.”

There is no word yet on whether Malorie Blackman, Joy Wilkinson or Pete McTighe returned to the Doctor Who writers room for Series 12.

Doctor Who Series 12 airs very early in 2020.