Russell T. Davies is on a mission to make Doctor Who great again, and one of the ways to do that is to expand the franchise through spinoffs.
After successfully spearheading such a venture in the form of Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures, it seems the returning showrunner is really adamant to continue this tradition with his hotly anticipated return.
Now, the first spinoff in Doctor Who‘s new cinematic universe has been announced, and it involves a fan-favorite supporting character from the Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi era.
Earlier yesterday, Mirror reported that Jemma Redgrave is officially headlining a television series of her own in Whoniverse, dealing with UNIT’s exploits against extra-terrestrial threats when the Doctor is away. Her character Kate Lethbridge-Stewart is also likely to make an appearance in the upcoming 60th anniversary special, per Deadline.
Kate Stewart carries the legacy of Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart aka the Brigadier in Doctor Who, so many Whovians would definitely enjoy seeing more of her on the screen. That being said, some might be on the fence about a pro-military television show being associated with the long-running sci-fi series, since, at its heart, UNIT (Unified Intelligence Taskforce) is a branch of the armed forces.
Then again, it seems to us that Doctor Who runs take forever to arrive nowadays, so these new spinoffs will help fans get through the drought of Who content between seasons.
With the new Disney Plus deal, the show is expanding its reach toward a global audience again, and it’s probably safe to say that this new series, which Russell T. Davies is hyping up as “one of the greatest things I’ve ever made in my life,” is only the beginning of a deluge of upcoming Doctor Who spinoffs.