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Steven Moffat Expertly Swerves Question About His Potential Return to Doctor Who

Would former showrunner, Steven Moffat, return to Doctor Who? In the past, he’s scoffed at the very suggestion, but the Sherlock co-creator swerved the question when asked about coming back on Newsnight, jokingly responding “Am I a politician? Do I have to answer your questions?”

When pressed by presenter, Kirsty Wark, Moffat said:

“It’s really very recent that I quit Doctor Who… Look, I love, I absolutely adore Doctor Who; it’s the most wonderful show. But it’s in very safe hands with Russell [T Davies, new/old showrunner].”

Moffat was showrunner on Doctor Who from Series 5 in 2010 to Twice Upon a Time in 2017, so after such a long spell, we’re sure it still feels very fresh for him. Nonetheless, he contributed to the series quite a few times under Davis’ previous stewardship, delivering such phenomenal scripts as The Empty Child/ The Doctor Dances, The Girl in the Fireplace, Blink, and Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead.

So he admits to trying to find out what’s coming up for Doctor Who from Davies:

“I always stay in touch with Russell and ask him what he’s up to and so on, of course I do.

“That doesn’t mean I’m dashing off to Cardiff on the train tomorrow – unless I am…”

Moffat is one of my favourite writers, so to have him writing for the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) would be a dream. Nonetheless, you can see his point, and Doctor Who is a show that needs to look forwards, not back.

Would you like to see Steven come back? Which other writers would you like to write for the show again?

Philip Bates

Editor and co-founder of the Doctor Who Companion. When he’s not watching television, reading books ‘n’ Marvel comics, listening to The Killers, and obsessing over script ideas, Philip Bates pretends to be a freelance writer. He enjoys collecting everything. Writer of The Black Archive: The Pandorica Opens/ The Big Bang, The Silver Archive: The Stone Tape, and 100 Objects of Doctor Who.

Steven Moffat Expertly Swerves Question About His Potential Return to Doctor Who

by Philip Bates time to read: 1 min
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