The Future
And so, we arrive at the next transition. The Doctor Who baton is being passed once more, with a changing of the guard both in front of, and behind the camera. Showrunner Steven Moffat – who has shepherded the series for seven years, through the Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors – will hand the TARDIS key to Chris Chibnall, while Peter Capaldi will cede the title of Doctor to Jodie Whittaker. For the first time in the history of television, The Doctor will be a woman.
While the vast majority of fans welcomed this news – since it is 2017, after all – a vocal minority created something of a backlash at this casting, so all eyes will be on the BBC on December 25th, when the latest regeneration is due to be televised. Once the Thirteenth Doctor truly takes charge – with a 10 episode series of Doctor Who in the fall of 2018 – she’ll be joined by a set of new companions, played by Bradley Walsh, Mandip Gill, and Tosin Cole.
What the circumstances of each of these new fellow travellers will be remains unknown for the time being but, if the previous decade is any indication, these new characters are about to have a giant impact on time, space, and the whole of pop culture.