Doctor Who Fallout: Was Lying About The Show's Future a Smart Move?
· BCPosted in: BBC, Opinion, TV, TV | Tagged: doctor who, opinion
Doctor Who Fallout: Was Lying About The Show's Future a Smart Move?
Whatever the future holds for Doctor Who, today's news was a mess - and Russell T. Davies, Bad Wolf, and the BBC carry a lot of the blame.
Published Wed, 10 Jun 2026 10:37:10 -0500
by Ray Flook
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Article Summary
- Doctor Who 2026 Christmas Special is off, Russell T. Davies is exiting, and the BBC is shelving the series for now.
- Davies admitted the Doctor Who Christmas Special was used to secure the show's future, fueling claims fans were misled.
- A timeline of BBC, Doctor Who Magazine, Zai Bennett, and Murray Gold comments raises major questions over who knew what.
- How the BBC, Bad Wolf, and Russell T. Davies handled Doctor Who news may deepen fan speculation and backlash.
Doctor Who fans wanted answers, and they got those answers on Wednesday – unfortunately. Eight months after news of a 2026 Christmas Special hit, the BBC and Showrunner Russell T. Davies announced that there wouldn't be a special this year – and that was far from all. Davies and producer Bad Wolf are also parting ways with the long-running series, which the BBC is shelving until a new creative/production team is in place. Yeah, that's a lot to process. But what's not sitting right with us is how the whole thing was handled. In his Instagram post, Davies wrote, "As a result, there won't be a Christmas Special – we only cooked that up to guarantee a future when no one knew what would happen, but now we do know, there's no need for it." Later in his post, he adds, "For the record: there was no script, I never wrote it, and no actor was ever approached to play the next Doctor. You may disagree; fine, sit in that chair and wait to be proved right. You'll wait a lonnng time." And that's the part that's kind of pissing us off a bit, because it raises a lot of questions that seem to default to the same thing: the fans were lied to.
We've included a timeline below of some key moments from over the past eight months involving the Christmas Special. Things were looking great in October 2025, followed by another update in Doctor Who Magazine. At one point, Davies even teased that his pitch for the Christmas Special left BBC executives "with jaws agape, loving it." In early February, Zai Bennett, CEO and Chief Creative Officer of BBC Studios Global Content, was still referring to the special. Shortly after, composer Murray Gold shared that he knew "Russell's written, I think, multiple versions depending on certain outcomes… So that's all I really know, and I'm not sure I'm even supposed to know that." Davies was even referencing the Christmas Special during a special screening event for the recently recovered episodes, "The Nightmare Begins" and "Devil's Planet."
At this point, some clarity on the timeline and on who knew what and when would be appreciated – and necessary. We've never hesitated to call out Doctor Who fans for their toxicity, but we can't help but feel like they got played in all of this. Was the Christmas Special just a bookmark from the start, and never seriously in play? If not, when was the decision made? When was AMC Global Media given the heads-up? For now, all this move did was empower Doctor Who fans to lean even harder into rumors and speculation. If the new team coming in takes issue with that, then they're going to have to point some of that blame at Davies, Bad Wolf, and the BBC.
Doctor Who Christmas Special 2026: What Was The Truth?
In October 2025, we learned that Davies would be writing the Christmas Special, with Davies sharing, "Here we go. Away in Danger? Jingle Hells? Silent Blight? Hark the Weeping Angels Sing..? O Come All Ye… um, Nimon?" A month later, during an interview with RadioTimes.com, Davies revealed that his current commitments were preventing him from writing the special. "Not at the moment because I'm busy on [The War Between the Land and the Sea]. I'm also shooting a show in Manchester [Tip Toe], so next year my plate clears, and we'll get to work on that." However, Davies made it clear that he's not going to be writing the special cold, adding, "I know exactly what happens in it, don't worry about that."
In Doctor Who Magazine #624, Davies dropped a tease about the special in his Doctor Who-themed "12 Days of Christmas" column. "Twelve months-a-waiting! Next December, I'll be here to trumpet and toot about the 2026 Christmas Special. It contains these three words. 'Bafflers,' 'Winternox' and 'village.'" Shortly after, Davies shared that the bigwigs over at the BBC liked what Davies had planned for the special. "We haven't even started work on it yet," Davies revealed to BBC Newsbeat regarding next year's Christmas special. "I know what happens, but I better write it down soon in case I get run over by a bus." Understandably, Davies didn't get into details, but it seemed like the folks over at the BBC knew what Davies was up to, and it left them "with jaws agape, loving it."
During an interview with Deadline Hollywood in early February, Zai Bennett, CEO and Chief Creative Officer of BBC Studios Global Content, addressed funding and the show's future. While noting that "we're all in it together" when it comes to the future of Doctor Who, Bennett didn't offer a direct response when asked whether BBC Studios would cover some of the funding lost after the Disney deal ended. "We're a big important part of 'Doctor Who' and are all motivated to make sure 'Doctor Who' has a long and flourishing life. We've got the Christmas special coming. After that, it's time for us all to work on it," Bennett noted, adding that he "won't speak for the BBC" or to its plans. In terms of the BBC, BBC Studios is the company's commercial production and distribution arm and is responsible for shows like Strictly Come Dancing and Bluey.
Speaking with Billy Barnell during an episode of the Half the Picture podcast, composer Murray Gold offered a fascinating insight into Davies and how he's approaching the scripts for the Christmas Special. "I know that Russell's written, I think, multiple versions depending on certain outcomes… So that's all I really know, and I'm not sure I'm even supposed to know that," he shared. Despite the rollercoaster ride that the long-running series has been on over the past few years, Gold was hopeful that Doctor Who would be back in fine form before we knew it. "I think we're at a precarious point for 'Doctor Who.' I am hopeful that it's all going to be the start of a wonderful new era. So I really hope that that's what happens," he added. "If someone asks me and says, 'Would you? Do you want to do it?' Of course, I would always say, 'Yes.' I don't think I'd ever say, 'No' to Russell anyway. It's fun, even when it's hard!" the composer shared.
Discussing the recently recovered episodes – "The Nightmare Begins" and "Devil's Planet," from the 1965 serial The Daleks' Master Plan – with Doctor Who Magazine at a special screening event in May, Davies touched on the bigger issue of how television was experienced back then, as opposed to today. Specifically, how the lack of avenues for previews and spoilers added to the live viewing experience. At one point, he noted, "Everything we think of as 'publicity' you'd do in your own head. 'Oh, there's a new companion, and she's from back in time? The way that Vicki was from the future, now they're taking someone from the past, that's interesting… She's going to travel with the Doctor… Oh, she thinks it's the Place of Perfection. Oh my God. She's dead.' It's not that you read about this stuff; you saw it and experienced it. That's the way I wish all television could be made. Every time I pick up a copy of 'Inside Soap' – which is often, because I do buy 'Inside Soap' – I just think, you're so mad to give away all the storylines every week. Let people experience it fresh on television! Wouldn't it be great if we got to this year's 'Doctor Who Christmas Special' and nothing had been spoiled and everything was new? Why do we do it any other way?"
Beginning at the 58:31 mark during a late May 2026 episode of the Full Disclosure podcast (also reported by CultBox), Davies was asked by host James O'Brien about his future plans. "I don't actually know," Davies responded, before discussing his and the Pet Shop Boys' upcoming adaptation of Davies's hit Channel 4 drama It's A Sin for a dance production that's set to premiere in Manchester. From there, Davies shifted back to what 2026 and 2027 are looking for him.
"I'm having a nice time. I'm kind of not rushing to write the next thing. I'm going to start now. The 'Tip Toe,' we finished work on that next week, and I'll start right on the next one. So, that will take a few months. Then, we'll start talking to people about it. So, I won't be back filming anything until next year," Davies shared, adding that Tip Toe is a production that comes down to the wire in terms of when it wrapped and when it premiered. At no point during the wrap-up did Davies mention the upcoming Doctor Who holiday adventure, though there are some questions regarding when the interview was originally conducted. As much as we would like to argue that he was looking to keep the focus on Tip Toe, the question was about his future, and he did discuss the It's a Sin live production, which was first announced in March 2026.
While speaking with BBC Radio 2 at the start of June, Davies avoided addressing the rumblings, but did reveal to DJ Gary Davies that some additional info about what's going on should hit by the end of this month at the latest. "You will get an announcement. There is a press release lumbering through the BBC, which, as you know, is like the Jurassic period and 57 people have to sign off on every single word," Davies responded when asked by the host when fans will get news "about a new Doctor." Davies continued, "I promise you in about a week, two weeks, there will be some sort of press release, and yet I can hear the gears slowing down even as I say that. You know this place!"
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