Doctor Who: Chris Chibnall unveils new Executioner Daleks for New Year’s Special

“I think it’s always good to delineate and make specific the Daleks we meet at any point,” series showrunner Chris Chibnall told Doctor Who Magazine. “These are the bronze Daleks, which we’ve only really glimpsed in recent years.

“But in this episode we have an execution squad, armed with rapid-fire, multi-blast weapons that make them even deadlier than standard Daleks.

“This is the ultimate New Year’s countdown – while you’re stuck somewhere, with Daleks coming for you…”

Executioner Daleks are, presumably, separate to the Death Squad Daleks seen in the last festive special, and their arrival begs an obvious question – who are they coming to execute?

The obvious candidate would be Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor, their longstanding foe, and who was also slightly responsible for the destruction of the Dalek fleet in Doctor Who: Flux finale The Vanquishers. Still, we can’t help but think this might be a little too obvious.

Perhaps instead, they’re after one of the episode’s guest stars? Adjani Salmon’s Nick in particular seems a little suspicious – he doesn’t seem overly surprised to be hunted by Daleks in the festive special trailer, and he has an odd habit of checking on his storage unit shortly before midnight every New Year’s Eve. Could he be some sort of fugitive in disguise? Or is he hiding one in his storage unit?

Still, whoever these Executioner Daleks are after, they certainly seem like a significant threat to the entire TARDIS team. And in a time loop, they’ll be even harder to escape...

Doctor Who: Eve of the Daleks comes to BBC One on New Year’s Day. For more, check out our dedicated Sci-Fi page or our full TV Guide.