Doctor Who Season 12 Has Been Delayed To 2020

Season 11 of Doctor Who – which was also Jodie Whittaker’s first run in the lead role – came to a close tonight. And while it was a season of highs and lows, overall, it’s been a pretty enjoyable few months with this revamped version of the show. That’s why it comes as such a shame to hear that the next season has now been delayed.

Granted, we’ve heard whispers that season 12 wouldn’t be ready on time for a 2019 premiere, but without any official word from the BBC, we remained hopeful that maybe it’d be here by the fall of next year. Now, however, it seems that we’ll be waiting a while longer, as the network’s announced that the series won’t be returning until 2020.

“We’re delighted that the Doctor and her friends will be returning to thrill audiences in 2020,” Charlotte Moore, BBC director of content. “I know Chris and the whole team are already working on a whole new set of exciting adventures. In the meantime we’ve got a very special episode on New Year’s Day for everyone to enjoy.”

Showrunner Chris Chibnall, meanwhile, had the following to add:

 “We’re off again! Well we never actually stopped – as Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor and friends have been winning the hearts of families across the nation this autumn, we’ve been busy with a whole new set of action packed adventures for the Thirteenth Doctor. We adore making this show and have been blown away by the response from audiences, so we can’t wait to bring more scares, more monsters and more Bradley Walsh, Mandip Gill and Tosin Cole to BBC One. Brilliant!”

As Moore said in her statement above, we’ve still got that New Year’s Day special to look forward to – which actually premiered its first trailer earlier today – but as for proper seasons, it won’t be until 2020 that we get the next one. And though that’ll certainly put a frown on the face of many Whovians, we suppose it’s better that Chibnall and his team take their time in crafting another solid run instead of just rushing something out to meet a certain date.

Still, it’ll be a long wait for more Who after January 1st comes and goes, but we can at least rest easy knowing Doctor Who season 11 will be arriving on Blu-ray early in the new year, allowing us to relive all the many highlights of Jodie Whittaker’s first run as the Doctor.