Doctor Who Showrunner Steven Moffatt will be stepping down after season 10. The Radio times announced that Chris Chibnall will be taking his place. Moffat’s final series will air on BBC One in spring 2017 which means there will be no new Who in 2016 apart from the Christmas Special. WTF!!
According to the BBC, the decision to hold Moffat’s final season until 2017 was made so that the show wouldn’t be overshadowed by much bigger global events in 2016, like the upcoming summer Olympics. Okay, I can see how that would be a concern but not really.
Moffat has been lead writer and executive producer of Doctor Who for six seasons. He is the second showrunner in the show’s history, since the series revamp in 2005, taking over for Russell T Davies back in 2010.
Chris Chibnall is also a lifelong Doctor Who fan and a multi-award-winning writer and executive producer. He has recently achieved huge success with the triple-BAFTA-winning hit ITV series Broadchurch. His other credits include BAFTA-nominated The Great Train Robbery, United, Law & Order: UK, Life On Mars and Torchwood. Chris Chibnall’s debut series will launch in 2018.
Moffat has been responsible for introducing the Eleventh (Matt Smith) and the Twelfth (Peter Capaldi) Doctors as well as two companions Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman). He’s also responsible for fan favourites River Song (Alex Kingston), Missy (Michelle Gomez), Rory Pond (Arthur Darvill) and the terrifying Weeping Angels. Plus, the smash hit 50th Anniversary special in 2013 which saw fans around the world celebrate the world’s longest-running sci-fi series with the Doctors Matt Smith, David Tennant and John Hurt battling the deadly Daleks in a feature-length episode.
Around the world many fans will be rejoicing at this news as they have come to believe that Moffatt has been using the series as self-insertion fanfic, using some characters, especially Clara Oswald, as his Mary Sue or Gary Stu. He’s also been slated for his inability to write good women characters.
Steven Moffat says: “Feels odd to be talking about leaving when I’m just starting work on the scripts for season 10, but the fact is my timey-wimey is running out. While Chris is doing his last run of Broadchurch, I’ll be finishing up on the best job in the universe and keeping the TARDIS warm for him. It took a lot of gin and tonic to talk him into this, but I am beyond delighted that one of the true stars of British Television drama will be taking the Time Lord even further into the future. At the start of season 11, Chris Chibnall will become the new showrunner of Doctor Who. And I will be thrown in a skip.”
Chris Chibnall, new Head Writer and Executive Producer, says: “Doctor Who is the ultimate BBC programme: bold, unique, vastly entertaining, and adored all around the world. So it’s a privilege and a joy to be the next curator of this funny, scary and emotional family drama. I’ve loved Doctor Who since I was four years old, and I’m relishing the thought of working with the exceptional team at BBC Wales to create new characters, creatures and worlds for the Doctor to explore. Steven’s achieved the impossible by continually expanding Doctor Who’s creative ambition, while growing its global popularity. He’s been a dazzling and daring showrunner, and hearing his plans and stories for 2017, it’s clear he’ll be going out with a bang. Just to make my life difficult.”
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