As the BBC looks for a new streaming and potential funding partner for Doctor Who, the corporation’s director of drama has admitted that they still have a lot to figure out, but hints that HBO might chip in to help fund the show.

Lindsay Salt, director of BBC drama, said:

“We’ll wait and see how we figure it out. HBO have been great partners creatively. There’s a lot of stuff that is changing out there… There are different ways of setting up a show. We just need to make sure we do it in the right way and make sure we take the right time to do it. Ultimately, it’s one of the BBC’s most treasured brands, so it’s not going anywhere.”

It’s certainly reassuring to hear another person affirm that Doctor Who is so important to the BBC, though anyone questioned is unlikely to say “it means nothing to us.” And of course, we heard similar things back in 1989 and the early 1990s, when Who experienced its so-called “wilderness years”; that did result in The TV Movie (celebrating its 30th anniversary this year), but then there was a looooong wait until the TV show actually returned in 2005.

The BBC seemed to be in a quandary after Disney+ turned down the opportunity to renew the license following The Reality War. You have to wonder, too, if things are held up by Disney’s apparent reluctance to screen the spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea, which was part of the initial deal.

Could HBO help fund and distribute Doctor Who? Or will another streaming service step in and help bridge numerous gaps? They say no news is good news, but I’m not sure that’s always the case…