Yep, you’ve read that right. Doctor Who will get a 2026 Christmas special, the episode will be broadcast, and it will feature the Ninth Doctor and Susan.
Big Finish Productions has announced that the fourth series of its Ninth Doctor Adventures series will continue in December with two episodes rather than one (since it usually follows a bi-monthly release schedule).
On December 22 a special episode featuring the return of Carole Ann Ford as the Doctor’s granddaughter Susan will be available to buy, and will be streamed live on Doctor Who‘s YouTube channel.
The Wash is written by Robert Valentine, and continues the trend of Powell Estate-set adventures that have been a staple of the latest 9DA series. It will be the ninth release in this run but designated as a separate Christmas special to the series’ 12-episode structure.
When Rose and Jackie start early Christmas prep, the Doctor opts to do the laundry. The Wash Inn is a hub and haven for lonely souls, and who is more lonely than the last of the Time Lords?
But why has the memory of his granddaughter, Susan, begun to trouble him? What terrible force lurks in an innocent washing machine? And is there enough Brite White in the world to deal with it? It will all come out in The Wash.
The broadcasting of the episode is part of a wider collaboration between Big Finish and the BBC to fill the festive schedule after Russell T Davies’ previously announced for-television Christmas special was scrapped before even entering pre-production. Following December 22, The Wash will “remain free to stream for one month afterwards – part of a selection box of Doctor Who treats from Big Finish arriving over the Christmas period, with further announcements to come”.
Susan appeared in the form of visions for the Fifteenth Doctor during the latest series on television, and it was expected that an in-person reunion would occur. However major revisions to the end of the series meant previously planned storylines were not used and some of Carole Ann Ford’s filmed content went unused.
Following the disappointment of that, she was thrilled to meet one of the modern incarnations of the Doctor — played by Christopher Eccleston — through Big Finish.
“Acting opposite Chris was wonderful, marvellous. It’s such a strong story. Susan pushes this Doctor to try and sort himself out and not be so touchy with people. I think listeners will be cheering Susan on!” said Ford.
Eccleston added: “This was a brilliant, really outstanding script, I thought. I love that notion that as we go through our lives, particularly if you’re a Time Lord, everybody you meet remains with you.
“And working with Carole was really exciting. I’d been looking forward to it. I think that An Unearthly Child is the greatest episode ever made – when I made the TV series, that was the one I watched as inspiration. And she’s a pro, she was absolutely brilliant – a real honour.”
The Wash is available to pre-order on Big Finish’s website.
