Doctor Who EP Says Season 12 Is A Step Up From Season 11

Doctor Who is finally set to return in the new year for its twelfth season, after fans have been starved for new travels in the TARDIS since the winter special titled “Resolution” aired back in January. As you’d hope, then, showrunner Chris Chibnall is promising that the wait will have been worth it, with season 12 described as “different” from 2018’s season 11 and “probably a step up.”

While speaking to Radio Times, the EP touched on his intentions to make his second year in charge of the show – also Jodie Whittaker’s second year as the Thirteenth Doctor – stand apart from his first. Chibnall promised very different stories and hinted at a different structure to the season, too.

“There is a difference between the first year of a Doctor and the second. There are different types of stories you want to tell, different rhythms and structures.”

Speaking more generally about what we can expect from season 12, Chibnall described a check-list of things we can look forward to in the latest set of adventures for the Time Lord, Yaz (Mandip Gill), Ryan (Tosin Cole) and Graham (Bradley Walsh).

“This series is action-packed. It’s probably a step up from last year. It’s got scale, it’s got fun. It’s got some old monsters, it’s got some new monsters. It’s an incredible variety of stories and locations. We’ve got the historical episodes, we’ve got the big space stories, we’ve got some Earth stories and some big guest stars as well.”

We’ve already got a good sense of the flavor of season 12 from the two trailers that have been released so far. Something that fans have immediately latched on to though are the hints at some dark turns on the way, with the Doctor mentioning that something’s coming for her. This suggests a story arc this time around, unlike the standalone set of episodes that made up season 11. Will it tie back to that mysterious mention of a “Timeless Child” last year, though? Who knows?

Doctor Who returns with an epic Bond-themed two-parter titled “Spyfall,” featuring Stephen Fry and Sir Lenny Henry, this New Year’s Day. Regular episodes will then continue weekly on Sundays.