Swansea-born screenwriter Russell T Davies is leaving Doctor Who, as the BBC cancelled this year’s Christmas special and announced the show will be put out to competitive tender.
Wednesday morning’s announcement ends the second stint in charge for Davies, who grew up in Sketty, attended Olchfa School, and famously revived the series in 2005 after 16 years off air.
Cardiff-based production company Bad Wolf, which has made the show since 2023, also bid farewell to the series in its own statement — raising questions over where Doctor Who will be made in its next era.
The BBC said the tender was in line with its Charter requirements and was “part of securing the next phase of the show for future generations”.
The previously announced Christmas episode will no longer go ahead — a decision the BBC said was made collectively with Davies and Bad Wolf.
“This decision was not taken lightly, and we know it will be disappointing for fans,” the corporation said, adding that it chose to invest in future series rather than “bridge the gap” with a one-off.
Davies announced his departure on Instagram, writing: “GOODBYE from me to Doctor Who but HELLO to a big new future for the show.”
He revealed the festive special had only been announced “to guarantee a future when no one knew what would happen” — and that it never got further than the idea.
There was no script, he said, and no actor was ever approached to play the next Doctor — adding, in typical style, that anyone who disagreed could “sit in that chair and wait to be proved right. You’ll wait a lonnng time.”
Bad Wolf said it had been “a joy and a privilege” to be at the helm of the Tardis alongside Davies, describing Doctor Who as “a show that shines light into the darkness”.
The company said it had been “an absolute honour to have been its torch bearer for 26 episodes with the BBC and Disney+” — signing off with “Allons-y, Alonso!”, a catchphrase from David Tennant’s Doctor.
The show’s most recent series aired in May 2025 and was the last to star Ncuti Gatwa, whose Doctor regenerated in the finale — followed by the surprise return of Billie Piper, who played companion Rose Tyler in the Davies era.
Whether Piper is the next Doctor has never been confirmed, with the BBC saying at the time that “just how and why she is back remains to be seen”.
Doctor Who has been made in Wales since the 2005 revival, and the tender announcement does not say where the show will be produced next — leaving a question mark over a programme that has anchored the Welsh television industry for two decades.
The BBC said it retains all rights to Doctor Who, with BBC Studios continuing to handle global distribution, licensing and merchandise. A new animated Doctor Who series for CBeebies remains in production.
Davies, who grew up in Swansea before studying at Oxford, is one of British television’s most celebrated writers, with credits including Queer as Folk, Years and Years and the Bafta-winning It’s a Sin.
Doctor Who first aired in 1963 and ran until 1989, before Davies brought it back in 2005 with Christopher Eccleston in the lead role. David Tennant, Matt Smith, Peter Capaldi, Jodie Whittaker and Gatwa have since piloted the Tardis.
Davies said he was as excited as anyone to see what comes next: “Will they keep the theme tune? Will they lose the blue box?… It’s all up for grabs, which is so Doctor Who. Here comes the future, vworp vworp.”
