Steven Moffat urges Doctor Who fans to keep a 'brave heart' with message of hope
Steven Moffat insists there will "always" be a future for Doctor Who.
Steven Moffat has insisted Doctor Who "always survives" as the show is being put to tender.
The show's former boss has revealed his reaction to the bombshell news the BBC is putting the sci-fi favourite out to tender, with showrunner Russell T Davies stepping down from his role, and a planned Christmas special scrapped.
Moffat told Radio Times magazine: "No clue what’s going on, all news to me. No idea what’s coming either.
"But brave heart everyone. It’s a cliffhanger - the Doctor ALWAYS survives those."
In a statement, the BBC insisted the decisions being made were to ensure the future of Doctor Who.
They said in a statement "As part of securing the next phase of the show for future generations, and in line with the BBC’s Charter and Agreement requirements, the BBC will put Doctor Who out to competitive tender this year.
"Doctor Who remains an important part of the BBC and this tender underpins the BBC’s continued commitment to Doctor Who ensuring audiences will enjoy the show for years to come.
"After careful consideration, the BBC, Russell T Davies and Bad Wolf have collectively decided not to go ahead with the previously announced Doctor Who Christmas episode.
"This decision was not taken lightly, and we know it will be disappointing for fans, but in order to set the show up for future series, it was decided that rather than bridge the gap with a one off special, we are choosing to push forward to invest in the long-term future of the show which ensures that when the TARDIS lands once more, it does so in all its glory."
They noted that the BBC "remains all IP in Doctor Who, and well the animated CBeebies series is "still in production".
Meanwhile, Russell has confirmed his departure while promising a "big new future for the show".
He added: "As a result, there won’t be a Christmas Special – we only cooked that up to guarantee a future when no one knew what would happen, but now we do know, there’s no need for it.
"You’ll have to wait a bit longer for new Doctor Who… but you’ll be waiting for MORE Doctor Who than a one-off.
"So it’s worth it! For the record: there was no script, I never wrote it, and no actor was ever approached to play the next Doctor."
The departing showrunner, who was at the helm from 2005 until 2010 before returning in 2023, is "excited as anyone to see what comes next" for the franchise.
He pondered: "Will they keep the theme tune? Will they lose the blue box? Will they bring back the Drahvin?! It’s all up for grabs, which is so Doctor Who, exciting and unpredictable and new! Here comes the future, vworp vworp. @bbcdoctorwho. (sic)"
