Doctor Who showrunner, Russell T Davies, has admitted that the ratings for Series 14 haven’t been as great as he’d wish they were, but is especially happy that the show is being watched by more people aged under 35.

He began by noting that Space Babies, the first episode of Series 14, has been watched by nearly 6 million people via BBC iPlayer:

“I’m very proud of it! You know, they might not be the ratings we’d love. We always want higher. But they are building over the 28-day period. Episode 1, Space Babies, is already up to 5.6 million and counting. So it is getting there.”

He then turns his gaze to further positives, namely that younger viewers are watching. He said:

“The audience no one ever gets are the under-30s. They just don’t watch television anymore. But those figures are astronomic for Doctor Who; it’s [the BBC’s] top programme in that bracket. I never thought it was possible, to be honest. But according to the people who juggle the numbers, all targets have been reached and exceeded. The BBC are running around like mad things.”

Yes, the under 35s hold a lot of sway, likely due to that mythical thing called “disposable income”, but as someone who is in that demographic, I want to say that actually, people my age do still watch TV. Okay, viewing figures have shifted, but I’m not sure we can call Doctor Who‘s midnight release schedule a hit based on this.

It’s great that Doctor Who is winning over the next generation. We want to keep all generations tuning in, though!