When Is The Next Episode Of Doctor Who?

Season 14 of Doctor Who has officially come to a close, ending the BBC’s first collaboration with Disney with a bang. It was a very emotional two-episode finale – perhaps too emotional, according to some critics – which delved into the origin story of the Doctor’s (Ncuti Gatwa) companion, Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson). So when can we expect the next episode of Doctor Who? Here’s everything you need to know – but beware of spoilers for Season 14.

When Is The Next Episode Of Doctor Who?

Doctor Who will next air around Christmas 2024 with a festive special. While we don’t know the exact date or time yet, if 2023 is anything to go by, it’ll air on the evening of Christmas Day.

The Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) in the Doctor Who Christmas Special 2023. ©BBC STUDIOS 2023/James Pardon

Doctor Who Christmas Special: Everything We Know So Far

It’s Called ‘Joy To The World’

And, as the title suggests, it’ll take place at Christmastime, like most Doctor Who Christmas Specials. Speaking in a behind the scenes video, Russell T Davies said: ‘Now the Doctor voyages forward, and guess what always happens to the Doctor every so often – Christmas! Here comes Christmas.

‘I can’t give away much more but work has begun on it already, and it’s mad,’ he added. ‘It’s one of the maddest Christmas specials you’ll ever see. It’s epic, it goes to so many different places. And it’s a great story of who the Doctor is when he’s alone.’

It Was Written By Steven Moffat

The man behind much of 2010–17 Doctor Who is back for Christmas, having penned ‘Joy to the World’ – his fiftieth ever episode. He also wrote ‘Boom’, the high-intensity third episode of Season 14, in which the Doctor lands on an alien planet and accidentally steps on a landmine. However, Moffat has shared he is unlikely to write for the Doctor Who franchise again after this festive episode: ‘I’m not involved in next year’s series [series 15],’ he told TV Choice. ‘There are other things coming for me, so I might never write for Doctor Who again. As I got to the end of “Joy to the World”, I did think, “Is that it? My final moment?” So that could be my goodbye. Number 50? I’ll take that.’

NICOLA COUGHLAN in the Doctor Who Christmas Special 2024. © BBC Studios 2023/James Pardon

Nicola Coughlan Will Star

Before Season 14 even aired, details regarding the follow-up Christmas Special were revealed, including a first look at Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan who will guest star in the episode.

Ncuti Gatwa Will Return As The Doctor

Naturally, Ncuti Gatwa will return as the Doctor – though it’s unclear whether Millie Gibson will return as Ruby Sunday. As Davies commented, ‘Joy to the World’ is ‘a great story of who the Doctor is when he’s alone’. Plus, the Season 14 finale functioned much like a goodbye to Ruby, who finally met her birth mother and was also about to meet her birth father for the first time.

The episode might not feature a companion at all, then, much like ‘Voyage of the Damned’, ‘The Next Doctor’, ‘The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe’, ‘The Snowmen’, and ‘The Runaway Bride’ – though Donna Noble (Catherine Tate), who is introduced in that episode, obviously returns at a later date.

Even if Ruby doesn’t appear in the Christmas Special, we expect to see her again at some point in Season 15. The BBC previously confirmed the Doctor will have two companions in 2025, plus Gibson herself has spoken about filming new episodes during interviews. She might appear in a different or inconsistent capacity, however, with Jonah Hauer-King reportedly cast as her boyfriend. Let’s see…

Mundy (VARADA SETHU) in Doctor Who, ‘Boom’. © BBC Studios/Bad Wolf/James Pardon

It Could Introduce Varada Sethu

Doctor Who Christmas Specials often serve to introduce new characters and companions, and we already know that Varada Sethu has been tapped as the next in line – so she could be introduced in the 2024 Christmas Special.

Interestingly, Sethu has already appeared in Doctor Who – in Moffat’s episode, ‘Boom’. In that episode, she played Mundy Flynn, a soldier on an alien planet in the depths of war. Mundy survived the episode, but it’s thought Sethu will return as someone else – and Moffat has teased a ‘plan’ regarding her strange double appearance. It makes total sense, then, that we will be re-introduced to Sethu in the upcoming Christmas Special.

It’ll Air On Or Around Christmas Day

While we don’t know the exact date or time yet, if 2023 is anything to go by, the 2024 Doctor Who Christmas Special will air on BBC One on the evening of Christmas Day. In line with the new Disney partnership, we anticipate the episode will stream from midnight on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Disney+ internationally.

Millie Gibson, Ncuti Gatwa and Varada Sethu will all star in Doctor Who Season 15. © BBC STUDIOS/James Pardon

It Will Give Us A Taste Of Season 15

After the Christmas Special has aired, we’re certain we will get a glimpse of Season 15 in the form of a teaser trailer. If Doctor Who follows the release pattern set by Season 14, we then expect the new season to kick off in May 2025.

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All episodes of Doctor Who are streaming now on BBC iPlayer. bbc.co.uk