‘Doctor Who’ Franchise Writer Thinks Billie Piper Regeneration Left Series “As Dead As We’ve Ever Known It”
In the opinion of Doctor Who franchise writer Robert Shearman, the season-ending regeneration of the 15th Doctor into actress Billie Piper, who herself previously played fan favorite companion Rose Tyler, has effectively “put a full stop” on the series’ long-running narrative.
Shearman, whose Who writing credits include a number of Big Finish’s audio dramas, The Frozen Wastes novel, and the 2005 reboot episode Dalek, wherein he reintroduced the public to the titular metal terrors, offered his thoughts on the Time Lord’s current state of suspension while being interviewed for Doctor Who Magazine #622, the publication’s most recent issue.
Per transcripts of the interview provided separately by Radio Times‘ Morgan Cormack and Bleeding Cool‘s Adi Tantimedh, when asked about the aforementioned regeneration, the writer opined, “At the moment I’m in a ‘pull’ phase. It’s weird because the show is probably as dead as we’ve ever known it.”
“After 1989, we had, for years, a current Doctor. Now, everything that is ever going to be produced in Doctor Who terms is going to feel retrogressive. At least with the New Adventures [novels] and then the BBC Books, you thought, ‘It’s the current Doctor – McCoy or McGann.'”
Drawing his thoughts to a close, Shearman ultimately declared, “No one’s going to start writing Doctor Who books with a Billie Piper Doctor, because no one knows what that means.
“In a funny way, the closing moments of The Reality War seem to put a full stop on things. We didn’t have that before.”
Pressed by Radio Times for comment on Shearman’s read of The Doctor’s current situation, a BBC spokesperson responded via written statement, telling them “”As we have previously stated, the decision on Season 3 will be made after Season 2 airs, and any other claims are just pure speculation.
“The deal with Disney Plus was for 26 episodes – and we still have an entire spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea, to air.”
And although concrete word on Doctor Who‘s future has yet to be given by either the BBC or the series’ international distributor Disney, the fact that it remains in ‘cancellation limbo’ five years after its last season finale speaks volumes to just how far the iconic sci-fi series has fallen out of favor with the general public.
For proof, look no further than the ratings for The 15th Doctor’s two season-long run, which were so bad even halfway through the airing of actor Ncuti Gatwa’s first season that current series boss Russell T Davies was forced to admit as much during a June 2024 interview given to the print version of Radio Times.
“I’m very proud of it! You know, they might not be the ratings we’d love. We always want higher. But they are building over the 28-day period. Episode 1, Space Babies, is already up to 5.6 million and counting. So it is getting there.
“I was brought back in to bring in a youthful audience. That’s been massively successful. The audience no one ever gets are the under-30s. They just don’t watch television anymore. But those figures are astronomic for Doctor Who, it’s their top programme in that bracket.”
While only time will tell what will happen with Piper’s new leading role – as well as whether The Doctor’s new form is related to the actual Rose Tyler, The Moment’s projection of her (as seen in The Day of the Doctor), or something else all together – the full five-episode run of The War Between the Land and the Sea is set to release sometime in 2026.
