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Doctor Who will continue in 2026, but so far only in the UK
The BBC has announced a return for Doctor Who in 2026, but Disney isn't involved - leaving the show without a home outside its home country
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As if there was truly any doubt, the BBC has announced that Doctor Who will continue to travel through time and space — but that Disney will not be part of the journey anymore.
A statement from the BBC director of drama Lindsay Salt offered, "The BBC remains fully committed to Doctor Who, which continues to be one of our most loved dramas, and we are delighted that Russell T Davies has agreed to write us another spectacular Christmas special for 2026. We can assure fans, the Doctor is not going anywhere, and we will be announcing plans for the next series in due course which will ensure the TARDIS remains at the heart of the BBC.”
As for the involvement of Disney Branded Television, which had been announced as a “global partner” with the BBC in terms of distribution and funding for the series for the 2023 anniversary specials, 2024 and 2025 seasons, and the upcoming spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea, Salt said simply, “We’d like to thank Disney+ for being terrific global partners and collaborators over the past two seasons, and for fhe upcoming The War Between the Land and the Sea.”
The announcement that the show will continue with a Christmas episode next year finally ends the uncertainty surrounding the show’s future following the cliffhanger conclusion of the previous season back in May. It’s currently unknown where future episodes will be made available outside of the U.K., as international distribution had previously been controlled by Disney and limited to Disney+.
Also unclear is just who will play the Doctor in any new episodes: the cliffhanger of the 2025 season appeared to show Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor regenerate into Billie Piper, but it’s worth noting that the BBC had strenuously not referred to Piper as playing the Doctor at any point, hinting instead that there’s more to the story than meets the eye.
Doctor Who is currently streaming on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Disney+ internationally; the show will return in December 2026.
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