Fortnite Doctor Who event: Rumours debunked as Russell T Davies replies online

Fortnite continuously collaborates with pop culture brands, from the likes of Star Wars and TMNT to Stranger Things and even standalone figures like Lewis Hamilton.

So, why is Doctor Who any different? Surely as the biggest sci-fi show in the galaxy, it's an obvious choice – especially with the 60th anniversary recently being celebrated. Well, not quite.

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Rumours of the Time Lord popping up in Fortnite have been making the rounds since early last year – including the likes of what the skins, weapons, sprays and more could arrive – so there's a lot to go wade through.

We do have some concrete details too, with the current showrunner of Doctor Who providing some details as to whether it's actually happening or not.

Read on for all the latest Doctor Who Fortnite news, rumours, leaks and everything else that has appeared across time and space since the idea of the crossover materialised.

How did rumours start about a Fortnite Doctor Who event?

The rumours about Fortnite and Doctor Who teaming up seem to have stemmed from Twitter, now X, where a 'leaker' called iFireMonkey claims to have insider knowledge of the goings-on between the BBC and Epic Games.

This goes back to April 2023, when iFireMonkey first brought attention to the possibility of a two-week event. Check out that first tweet below:

That post encouraged fans to expect a "two week long event in game" that would feature "a set of free rewards for completing challenges" as well as paid cosmetics in the Item Shop.

The tweet suggests that there could be two Doctor Who skins, two pickaxes, one glider and one emote in the Item Shop for the duration of the event.

The tweet also made this claim: "There would also be a free Beep the Meep Spray as some sort of incentive for checking out the Creative map associated with this collaboration."

What did the latest leaks add about the rumoured Fortnite Doctor Who event?

iFireMonkey then tweeted on 31st July 2023 with details about when the event might happen, as well as other insider details. Check it out:

Another Twitter user, a prolific 'leaker' named FNBRintel, posted back in April 2023 about a number of claims about the rumoured Doctor Who event. And this account even seemed to have some realistic-looking imagery to back up their statements.

FNBRintel claimed to have "received information about a Doctor Who collaboration coming to Fortnite", adding immediately that this collab "will feature cosmetics alongside a Creative Event with its own tab in the lobby".

That Creative mode event was said to "take players between several planets" via the TARDIS, and it will also allegedly feature "a voice acted narrative".

At the time, the story was involving working for UNIT (United Nations Intelligence Taskforce), collecting leads and detecting some sort of residual energy.

FNBRintel also reiterated that players who take part will be rewarded with a Beep the Meep spray in the game. They even seemed to have a screenshot of the spray and a menu page, which teased loads of other collectables - including the Tenth Doctor's 3D glasses!

In terms of weapons, FNBRintel believed there would be a "UNIT Advanced Rifle that'll have a player tracking feature", as well as a "Wrarth Warrior Cannon that'll have a 'Hold to Hurt' mechanic".

The image above appeared to show Fortnite character Peely on the Doctor's Psychic Paper, alongside some detached Dalek arms (which could perhaps double up as pickaxes for players to use).

Looking at all of that, it's hard to believe that someone would make it up and go to the effort of making all the visuals - but amazingly none of it is real, according to Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies.

Are the Doctor Who Fortnite rumours true?

No, the rumours of a Doctor Who Fortnite collaboration are not true whatsoever, according to showrunner Russell T Davies.

Replying to a fan who asked for information about the rumoured Doctor Who Fortnite collaboration (via Instagram), Davies said: "There isn't one! It's a complete myth, I'm afraid."

Doctor Who has embraced the gaming world plenty of times over the years, after all, with a Fortnite Creative map in 2022 being the closest thing yet to an all-out event in Fortnite. That marketing event did not touch the main battle royale mode in Fortnite, though.

Very recently, a mobile game called Doctor Who: An Unlikely Heist came to Apple Arcade, and there are other games like The Lonely Assassins and The Edge of Reality in recent memory, as well.

So, it does seem like the current BBC bosses have nothing against the gaming scene.

When you combine that with the very realistic-looking imagery that's been flying around social media, it's quite a surprise that this doesn't appear to be happening. Even more so considering Disney just invested in Fortnite-maker Epic Games and Disney Plus is now the exclusive home of Doctor Who outside of Britain.

Of course, there's always the chance Davies is deliberately protecting the announcement, but we have to take his word at face value, so don't expect a Doctor Who Fortnite collaboration in the near future.

Fortnite is available across PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC.

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