Doctor Who confirms air dates for 3 specials with David Tennant
It's been a long wait, but we finally know when the TARDIS will be back on our screens.
Fans of Doctor Who have been very patient – despite plenty of teases, images and trailers, there hasn't been a brand new episode of the long-running sci-fi show on our screens for a year.
Finally, though, we know exactly when that will change, as the dates for this year's 60th-anniversary specials have been unveiled.
The BBC has announced that David Tennant's Fourteenth Doctor will officially be bursting back onto our screens on Saturday 25th November, with the second and third specials following on Saturday 2nd December and Saturday 9th December respectively.
Three posters have also been released for the episodes, with the poster for The Star Beast viewable at the top of this article and featuring The Doctor, Donna (Catherine Tate) and her daughter Rose (Yasmin Finney), while the other two posters are available below.
The first episode of Doctor Who: Unleashed will follow The Star Beast on Saturday 25 November. After every new episode of Doctor Who, viewers can switch over to BBC Three or BBC iPlayer to watch the access all areas show gives viewers an unmissable insight into the creation of Doctor Who.
It is then expected that these specials will be followed up with a Christmas special starring Ncuti Gatwa's Fifteenth Doctor over the festive period, before his first full season arrives next year.
The release dates mean that the first special starring Tennant and Catherine Tate (who plays companion Donna Noble) will be airing two days after the show's official anniversary on Thursday 23rd November.
The anniversary specials – which are titled The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder and The Giggle – will see the newly regenerated Fourteenth Doctor coming back into contact with his old friend Donna, despite the warning that if she ever remembers him, she will die.
The duo will come up against The Toymaker, with Neil Patrick Harris playing the villain – who last appeared in the series back in 1966.
Read more:
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- Doctor Who confirms filming has begun on Ncuti Gatwa's second season
Tennant recently said that the second of the new episodes is "unlike any Doctor Who episode ever", saying that the new specials are "Russell [T Davies, showrunner] off the leash."
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The specials will also kick off Davies's new era of the show, after the previous showrunner Chris Chibnall left alongside Jodie Whittaker.
The new era is expected to include spin-off shows, just as Davies's previous era saw the debut of both Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures, with one of these new series heavily rumoured to centre around UNIT.
Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer. Classic episodes are available on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial here.
Check out more of our Sci-Fi coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
