"Never seen a TARDIS before?" Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson first appeared together in the 2023 Christmas special THE CHURCH ON RUBY ROAD. Fighting a flying ship of baby-eating goblins, the Time Lord was now in a God-fuelled meta-fantasy. Two years later, DOCTOR WHO redefined the meaning of Shitshow.
RUSSELL T. Davies' second stint as show-runner for New WHO began with three 60th Anniversary shows, and continued with two eight-episode seasons and a couple of Christmas specials. Unaffectionately known as the RTD2 phase, everything felt immediately wrong. The DEI hiring in front and behind the camera was dutifully delivered, but there was something else; we had musical numbers, breaking of the fourth wall, and literal flashbacks to the classic series. In LUX, The Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and companion Belinda (Varada Sethu) climb out of a television and discuss the show with three gobsmacked fans. It brought self-awareness to new levels, creating a sense that RTD2 itself was a simulation.
Chris Chibnall and Jodie Whittaker altered WHO DNA in a number of ways. There was the mix of fan fiction-level stories, change to lore and leveling of "The White Male Gaze," but it became impossible to discuss without being perceived as a misogynistic troll. Yet the second Davies period broke it as an IP. What is most perplexing is how gleefully destructive Russell treated his own cherished childhood favourite, especially with an alleged £80m budget boost from Disney. Equally unfathomable is how an entertainment can be bankrolled to a designated, minority target audience (as an approximation, a 2023 global survey found that only 9% of adults identify as LGBTQ+). For any franchise it is a marriage made in hell, with obvious results: stories written by unqualified individuals forever the victim, sledgehammer allegories, and falling ratings.
For the RTD2 writing pool, we had transgender author Juno Dawson, Nigerian poet Inua Ellams and bisexual television director Kate Herron in the mix. The inclusion of Dawson was particularly controversial, having written This Book is Gay, a 2014 LGBTQ+ manual for "ages 0-18."
Science fantasy/horror communities have always been particularly rabid, linking everyday happiness to beloved shows similar to sport-team worship. When a long-standing programme evolves as a specific moral, it is probably best not for the stars to tell them to "go and touch grass" if you don't like the direction (Gatwa) or "just watch it and get over it" (Gibson). It is this dismissive reaction that underpins the modern zeitgeist, that viewers should not voice any opinion unless it aligns with theirs. Even with the worst viewing figures in the shows history - albeit hindered by the streaming policy - DEI WHO rejoiced not only because the fringe were the centre of the conversation, but that unhappy fans - particularly from the classic age - were leaving their playpen.
Modern WHO acolytes' simple appeal for any disgruntled Classic followers is to just stop watching. A bold request, which would be easier if from 2005 it had been revamped to an unrecognisable degree. But it is more than nostalgia, rather a national institution with a rich history. Chibnall/RTD2 has not been about world-building, more going back to a box of toys and distorting concepts to their agenda because they can. The liberal use of actual footage from yesteryear - and general character heritage - best illustrates this double standard. For example, in ROGUE, Gatwa's instant infatuation with Jonathan Groff is fleetingly interrupted by showing him his previous incarnations. This even included Richard E. Grant's Doctor from the 2003 webcast SCREAM OF THE SHALKA.
Russell T. Davies returned "to protect [DOCTOR WHO]" from Disney. Unfortunately, his flair for emotional clout was thrown out the window, replaced by nonsensical cartoon versions of legacy characters. Russell has an increasing habit of writing himself into a corner, then pulling a deus ex machina to get out of it.
Politics have always been evident in Classic WHO: the Galactic Federation in THE CURSE OF PELADON; decrepit bureaucracy within THE DEADLY ASSASSIN; the dystopia of THE HAPPINESS PATROL et al. But Davies deals with affairs of state with all the gravitas of buzzwords, whirlwind subtexts without any time or need for reflection. It is always just an angle: the villain of THE ROBOT REVOLUTION is Incel Alan Budd (Jonny Green), a one-dimensional representation set up for ridicule. In a world gone mad, Juno Dawson's pro-Palestine THE INTERSTELLAR SONG CONTEST was paradoxically screened the same week the BBC finally sacked Gary Lineker over sharing an anti-Semitic tweet. It's all one checklist after another, superficial and non-nuanced. There is no space to discuss or educate, just to tell people to fuck off.
Filmed back-to-back, the double eight-episode runs are clearly not enough time for any endeavour to breath, let alone one which attempted to bring back past glories leading up to two finales. In the end of the first block we had "God of Death" Sutekh - who had hitched a lift on the TARDIS since PYRAMIDS OF MARS - banished by a dog whistle and leash; and the whole Whoniverse waited with baited breath for the second conclusion, where The Rani (Anita Dobson/Archie Panjabi) resurrected Omega to start a rebirth of The Time Lords. The internet went into meltdown with theories and leaks: would Gatwa regenerate into Billie Piper - with the aid of Whittaker - providing Davies with a perfect symmetry?
Two-time RuPAUL'S DRAG RACE winner Jinkx Monsoon as Maestro from THE DEVIL'S CHORD. Whovians still watched the show akin to a disastrously failing relationship: they know they should let go, but hold on in the vain hope of past glories.
And the answer was yes. DOCTOR WHO was now a gimmick, with Piper not even listed as The Doctor in the end credits ("and introducing Billie Piper" is suitably open-ended, and the regeneration on screen didn't actually finish). Was this actually Bad Wolf, kick-started by The Doctor shooting regeneration beams into the TARDIS, or Rose from the parallel dimension? Obviously affected by re-shoots due to Disney's baulking and Gatwa's itchy feet, THE REALITY WAR nonetheless was as underwhelming as the EMPIRE OF DEATH, failing to tie up many loose ends (Susan (Carole Ann Ford)?) and changing its own narrative (Belinda seemed to be another character all together, enthusiastically wanting to go on more travels, but most jarringly this career-minded individual was now a gushing parent). And Omega was reduced to a giant zombie that just has the time to eat a Rani before being dispatched back to the Under-verse.
In a July 2025 interview on the My Manchester podcast - a concern "focusing on the arts, social and charitable scene" - Davies revealed that one of his driving goals since taking the reins again was to steer the show away from what he called “very straight, very masculine, very testosterone-y” science fiction, and that DOCTOR WHO needed to "fill a space." This is so off the mark to be insulting, creating an issue that simply isn't there. The Doctor has never been macho-SF, rather a character that uses compassion and intelligence over physical force. The Time Lord's curiosities and eccentricities made him a beloved and unique creation, standing apart from the laser-blasting antics of other major franchises. It was another jaw-dropping quotation from the show-runner, particularly as it was Davies himself that shifted the dynamic in the 2005 reboot with the Tenth Doctor and Rose. So it was hypocritical to hear him talking about moving the show away from being too straight when he was the one who made The Doctor heterosexual to begin with.
"Oh, hello!" When Classic WHO stumbled towards a hiatus and cancellation in the 1980s, it suffered from an egotistical pantomime producer and camp light entertainment. RTD2 became a duplication of the earlier pause, with Billie Piper - like the show - literally hanging in the balance.
And in the same month, when you thought things couldn't get any more unhinged, Gatwa appeared on SUNDAY WITH LAURA KUENSSBERG to promote his play Born With Teeth. In a truly bizarre interview, the 32-year-old, wearing a Ballet Black promotional shirt, said that he walked away from DOCTOR WHO "because I’m getting old. My body was tired. My body, my knee. And I’ve now just started doing some ballet. So I’m making really great decisions here." He added, "[being The Doctor is] the most amazing job in the world, a job that any actor would dream of. And because it’s so good, it’s strenuous. Takes a lot out of you physically, emotionally, mentally. So, it was time." It remains to be seen how the geriatric actor gets on with his ballet adventures, a pursuit that requires stamina and flexibility whatever the level. It is also particularly strange for Gatwa to claim playing The Doctor was draining, as he was only playing himself.
Things became even more uncomfortable when Kuenssberg asked him about his withdrawal from being the UK’s Eurovision spokesperson, an appearance that formed part of a WHO crossover for Juno Dawson's episode. When Kuenssberg asked if Gatwa had pulled out due to the involvement of Israeli contestant Yuval Raphael, the actor, who has openly expressed pro-Palestine views, replied: "no, I was just very busy." It must be difficult to be such a prima donna, especially for the time it would take to read out a few jury scores. Gatwa claims he withdrew a long time before it was actually announced - which he states was "interesting."