In Doctor Who Magazine 596, Russell T Davies supplied a few hints regarding upcoming Doctor Who episodes.
Davies shared specific dates relevant to anticipating fans.
“November 1 [when all Doctor Who content is available on iPlayer], November 17 [Children in Need], November 23 [60th anniversary of the first Doctor Who broadcast]. And none of those is the date of the Specials’ transmission!”
Since there is a Doctor Who watch-along announced for Saturday, November 4 and the 60th anniversary falls on Thursday, November 23, we speculate the transmission date of the first anniversary special, The Star Beast will be on a Saturday in November.
The anniversary specials will feature “two celebrity historical figures” and a “genuine in-universe crossover” with Davies’ biographical miniseries on Noele Gordon Nolly. One of the historical figures is rumoured to be Scottish television pioneer John Logie Baird.
Davies also hinted that a special brief episode of Doctor Who: Unleashed will be shared before the first 60th anniversary special airs.
He revealed that some exciting additional 60th anniversary content was recently filmed at Wolf Studios Wales.
“…as the summer began, I was thinking about the 60th and wondered, have we done enough? So I had an idea on July 5, sent a formal proposal to the team on July 20, then three scriptwriters got to work, and now, just two months later, in the second half of September, we’re about to embark on a 6-day studio shoot of brand new material that will make you FIZZ! I promise!”
Davies shared news for people unable to travel to celebrate the 60th anniversary.
“…we don’t have any live events planned. Sorry! We concentrated our fire on things everyone can see.”
With the 2024 series already filmed, Davies shared some 2025 series news, vowing to produce Doctor Who “annually”. 2025 will again feature eight episodes plus a Christmas special.
“…meanwhile, we’re filming the actual show! Back on the streets of Cardiff, to shoot the NEXT series. Five of the next nine scripts, finished and planned.”
In another DWM column, some 2025 series directors were announced. Alex Pillai directs of Block One and Peter Hoar (who has already directed a scene with Daleks in Davies’ It’s a Sin) directs Block Two.
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Doctor Who will return in November 2023 with three 60th anniversary specials starring David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as companion Donna Noble titled The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder and The Giggle.
Ncuti Gatwa will star in his first full Doctor Who episode as the Fifteenth Doctor in the Doctor Who Christmas special alongside Millie Gibson as companion Ruby Sunday in December 2023.
A new 8-episode Doctor Who series starring Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor and Millie Gibson as Ruby will debut in Spring of 2024.
Doctor Who Magazine 596 is available from Panini and WH Smith and as a digital edition from Pocketmags.