Russell T Davies Talks Shorter Series of “Doctor Who”

Doctor Who‘s shorter series has been a topic of some discussion as the show gears up for its return. With showrunner and writer Russell T Davies at the helm, I got the chance to ask about the new episode count during a virtual press conference.

When Doctor Who came back in 2005, a series (or season) of the show consisted of thirteen episodes plus the Christmas Special. In 2014, it went down to twelve plus the special. Then, starting with the Thirteenth Doctor, two of her three series consisted of ten episodes and a special. The “Flux” storyline in 2021 had six parts followed by three specials to wrap up that Doctor’s run.

Now, starting with Ncuti Gatwa’s first series as the Doctor, fans will get eight episodes and the Christmas Special. Does this present a challenge or a benefit to the show? Russell T Davies explained:

“Oh, no. Can you believe we used to make fourteen a year? Blimey, we were dying… It’s actually a more complicated show to make now, so it takes us as long to make the nine now as it did to make the original fourteen.”

Fans of the show may be a little sad to have fewer stories per season with the Doctor. Of course, that does mean higher-quality and more polished episodes overall. In addition, Davies promised that the season is filled with excitement and adventures for the Doctor and new companion Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson).

“I mean you cut your cloth to fit so it’s jam packed. I couldn’t think of an extra episode you could possibly squeeze into this!”

My Thoughts on Doctor Who‘s Shorter Series

Having seen the first two episodes of the series? RTD is right. This series promises to be filled with the action and humor that fans of the show love. Yes, this will be a shorter series of Doctor Who than maybe we were hoping for. But the heart of the show is still there, even if there will be fewer stories. The Doctor and Ruby are, as the tagline says, in for a “cosmic joyride”!

Doctor Who returns  on Disney+ Friday, May 10 at 7pm ET and concurrently on Saturday May 11 at midnight on BBC iPlayer in the UK.

(Oh and a PS to Russell- “Temple of Geek- that’s my temple!”? Any time you’d like to drop in, we’d love to have you! 💕)

Shop Doctor Who picks on Amazon– including the novelization of “The Church on Ruby Road”!