BBC confirms future of Doctor Who and a new Christmas Special in 2026

Doctor Who will be back on our screens at Christmas 2026 with a special episode written by Russell T Davies.

With Disney+ confirming they will not be partnering on the next season of the sci-fi show, the BBC remain fully committed to the show and will announce plans for the next series in due course to ensure the Doctor’s adventures continue.

• Watch Doctor Who on BBC iPlayer and add to your Watchlist

Lindsay Salt, Director of Drama, BBC says: “We’d like to thank Disney+ for being terrific global partners and collaborators over the past two seasons, and for the upcoming The War Between the Land and the Sea. The BBC remains fully committed to Doctor Who, which continues to be one of our most loved dramas, and we are delighted that Russell T Davies has agreed to write us another spectacular Christmas special for 2026. We can assure fans, the Doctor is not going anywhere, and we will be announcing plans for the next series in due course which will ensure the TARDIS remains at the heart of the BBC.”

Before next year’s special, fans of the beloved series still have much to enjoy with The War Between the Land and the Sea heading to BBC iPlayer and BBC One later this year, as well as a brand-new animation series for CBeebies which is in development.

• Add The War Between the Land and the Sea to your iPlayer Watchlist

The Doctor Who Christmas special will be produced by Bad Wolf with BBC Studios for the BBC.

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