As the world awaits the arrival of the 14th iteration of Doctor Who, it appears some returning Time Lords — specifically David Tennant and Matt Smith — might be gracing our screens once again for the series’ 60th anniversary special.
The series will return under new management for a 60th anniversary special in fall 2023, after current Doctor Jodie Whittaker departs the role after four years this summer.
The Sun is reporting that, according to inside sources, showrunner Russell T. Davies — who is returning to the series to take over the reins again once current EP Chris Chibnall leaves with Whittaker — is looking to get both Tennant and Smith back on board for the special.
What’s more, he’s got an eye on convincing Christopher Eccleston and Peter Capaldi to return, as well. None of the actors are said to have publicly greed to come back as yet, but Davies is apparently keen to pull out all the stops for this landmark celebration.
“The BBC wanted something unique to mark six decades of Doctor Who and while getting all the former time lords together will be a challenge, it’s one Russell might just achieve.
“After all, he was the man responsible for signing up Christopher and David back in 2005, and he is one of the few people who might convince them to be a part of the show again.”
The source goes on to compare Davies’ plans to 1983’s “The Five Doctors”, a feature-length special marking the show’s 20th birthday that brought Peter Davison’s Fifth Doctor together with his predecessors.
“It remains to be seen if he can achieve an exact copy of The Five Doctors, but he will certainly want to capture some of the spirit of that landmark episode in these specials.”
While nothing has been confirmed just yet, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard that Tennant could return for the 60th celebrations. A previous report claimed that the Tenth Doctor could actually be the next incarnation of the hero, with Whittaker regenerating back into Tennant.
A more straightforward past Doctor comeback would be a lot more feasible, though, as the Good Omens vet already featured in the 50th anniversary bash “The Day of the Doctor”, opposite Smith’s Eleventh Doctor, in 2013.
While the future of Doctor Who remains a mystery, we know that Jodie Whittaker’s penultimate journey in the TARDIS arrives sometime this spring in the form of Easter special “Legend of the Sea Devils”.
