Andy Pryor, who’s been responsible for casting the parts of the Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth, and Fifteenth Doctors, has announced that he, too, is leaving Doctor Who.

Pryor is the longest-serving front-line member of the production team, having worked under Russell T Davies, Steven Moffat, and Chris Chibnall during their tenures as showrunner.

Andy announced his departure on Instagram, where he wrote:

“It’s the end of a long, happy and thrilling era. 196 episodes. 8 Doctors. Anything between 10 and 30 companions, depending on your definition. Several thousand cast members (a figure that’s pretty much impossible to be precise about.) Thank you to each and every one of them.

“And the biggest thanks to my colleagues who invited me on board way back when and became my great friends [Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner]. Not to mention the great years with [Steven Moffat and Chris Chibnall]”.

(We’re pretty sure those eight Doctors are: Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, Matt Smith, Peter Capaldi, Jodie Whittaker, Ncuti Gatwa, John Hurt, and Jo Martin.)

This is hardly a shock, given the news that Davies and Bad Wolf have departed the programme and the BBC is now putting it out “for tender”, meaning other production teams will have the opportunity to pitch their vision for the franchise. Nonetheless, it is a sad bit of news as Andy and his team have been responsible for every bit of casting in the show since its return to screens in 2005.

In addition to Doctor Who, he was also casting director on spin-offs, The Sarah Jane Adventures, Class, and Torchwood, as well as the 50th anniversary docudrama, An Adventure in Space and Time.

Pryor has a massive legacy in the franchise, so we’re sad to see him go. Thank you for the good times!