Doctor Who: John Hurt Returns as the War Doctor!

Brace yourselves: we have huge Doctor Who news from Big Finish this morning. The audio company has announced that legendary actor Sir John Hurt will return as the War Doctor in twelve full-cast productions!

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Hurt played the role only once, in the 50th anniversary special, ‘The Day of the Doctor’ (well, except for a wordless cameo at the very end of ‘The Day of the Doctor’ and a CGI cameo in the mini-episode ‘The Night of the Doctor’), and fans have been left hungry for more from the War Doctor ever since. So far the only offering we’ve had is George Mann’s novel, The Engines of War, and a brief appearance in the comic book crossover, Four Doctors. This December, that will all change.

Here’s Big Finish executive producer Jason Haigh-Ellery on the War Doctor’s return:

"“I have been a huge fan of John since first seeing him in the repeats of I, Claudius in the 1980s and in his Oscar-nominated role as the eponymous The Elephant Man. Watching his performance in The Day of the Doctor I did find myself fantasising that some far off day we might have the chance to work with him on the audio adventures of Doctor Who and now two short years later it’s happened! John wove a fantastic character together from a great script by Steven Moffat. Now we have the chance to get to know that character more and hear John stretch in the role. We’re all in for a hell of a ride as the War Doctor engages in battle. But who are the greater threat – the Daleks or the Time Lords?”"

The new War Doctor series will consist of four box sets, each comprised of three hour-long stories. Big Finish mainstay Nicholas Briggs wrote and directed the first release, Only the Monstrous, scheduled for release in December 2015. Briggs is honored to take on the task:

"“The story of the Doctor who refuses to call himself the Doctor in order to do the unthinkable upon the ultimate battlefield — all of space and time — was irresistible to me. Such a deeply disturbing and engaging character created by the formidable talents of writer Steven Moffat and actor John Hurt. It’s such a privilege to be working on this.”"

Sir John Hurt returns as the War Doctor in ‘Only the Monstrous,’ coming in December 2015 from Big Finish Productions. (Credit: Big Finish)

In February 2016, the second set, Infernal Devices will be released, with a script by John Dorney, Phil Mulryne and Matt Fitton. The third and fourth releases are in pre-production, with no announced release dates.

Tucked into the bottom of the announcement is news that may even be bigger than the War Doctor to a lot of fans. For years, Whovians have been asking for adventure that finally brings the Eighth Doctor into the Time War and connects to his final onscreen appearance in ‘The Night of the Doctor.’ In November 2017, our prayers will be answered with the release of Doctor Who: The Eighth Doctor – The Time War. It’s described as a prequel to the War Doctor sets, featuring the same new characters from the War Doctor’s new series.

Once you’ve picked your jaw up off the floor, you can head over to the Big Finish website to pre-order The War Doctor and Time War sets right now.

What say you, Doctor Who Watchers? Are you excited for the return of John Hurt and the War Doctor? How about the Eighth Doctor finally entering the Time War? Sound off in the comments below!

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Doctor Who: John Hurt Returns as the War Doctor in New Big Finish Series!

By Barry Rice | Oct 5, 2015

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