Doctor Who to March On at BBC “With or Without Disney” After Season 15 Ratings Collapse

Doctor Who’s future has been the subject of a lot of speculation lately, but the BBC insists the sci-fi series isn’t going anywhere, even if Disney steps away.

Speaking at the Edinburgh TV Festival, Kate Phillips, chief content officer at the BBC, confirmed that the show will continue regardless of its American partner’s decision. “Any Whovians out there, rest assured – Doctor Who is going nowhere,” she said.

“Disney has been a great partnership and it continues with The War Between The Land And The Sea next year but, going forward, with or without Disney, Doctor Who will still be on the BBC. The TARDIS is going nowhere.”

The comments come at a tricky time for the series. Ncuti Gatwa’s run as the Doctor ended with a shock regeneration into Billie Piper, and while the twist grabbed headlines, the viewership numbers for season 15 haven’t been encouraging.

The first four episodes of the season have averaged 3.1 million viewers. That’s a big drop compared to Gatwa’s debut season, which averaged 3.9 million, and even further behind Jodie Whittaker’s final year, which drew about 5 million viewers for its opening episodes.

For example, the season 15 premiere pulled in 3.6 million viewers. That might sound solid, but season 14’s premiere had 4 million and season 13 opened at 5.8 million. By episode four, viewership this season had fallen to just 2.8 million.

The decline has fueled talk online about whether so-called “woke” storylines are driving people away, though there’s no clear evidence that’s the main reason fans are tuning out. What is clear is that the BBC is standing firm behind the show.

Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama, also reassured audiences, saying the broadcaster will “always stay committed” to Doctor Who.

Showrunner Russell T Davies has admitted that he doesn’t know yet if Disney will stay involved.

He told RadioTimes.com, “We’re ready. We’re ready with different plans – could go this way, could go that way. That’s our job, to be ready… but we’ll find out. Dying to find out! Hope it comes back.”

BBC Studios CEO Tom Fussell also spoke about the franchise earlier this year, telling Deadline, “Fans love the Doctor Who brand. It’s been that way since before I was in short trousers. We’re really committed to Doctor Who and are continuing to look at ways in which we can bring the show to fans.”

For now, the official line from the BBC is that no final decisions will be made until the end of season 15. The broadcaster was willing to confirm Gatwa had not been fired, but it stopped short of denying that he may have chosen to leave on his own. Disney, meanwhile, has not commented at all on its future involvement.

So while questions remain about ratings and partnerships, the BBC’s message to fans is simple: Doctor Who isn’t disappearing anytime soon.

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