Doctor Who: Steven Moffat is Hanging Up His Sonic Pen
By David Hill
When Steven Moffat walks away from Doctor Who at the end of Series Ten, it may be the end of an era in more than one way. A fixture on the show since 2005, Moffat does not plan on writing another episode once he steps down as showrunner.
Steven Moffat is a tie in to the early days of the revival of Doctor Who. A fan of the show, who began writing short stories involving the Doctor back in 1995, he made his presence felt early on. Indeed, with his epic two-parter ‘The Empty Child’/’The Doctor Dances,’ Moffat placed himself into the forefront as one of the bright stars of the show.
And now, after ten seasons on Doctor Who, including the past six as the showrunner, Moffat is ready to walk away. Following Russell T Davies, Moffat remade the show in his image, filled with little nods to the past glory of the program. It has been an interesting run, even if his legacy is a bit mixed, depending with whom one speaks.
There was some hope, however, that Moffat would continue writing for Doctor Who once he handed the reins over to Chris Chibnall. With more time on his hands, Moffat would seemingly be able to continue forth, contributing an episode each season. Well, not so fast.
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Instead, when Moffat walks away from his position as showrunner, he is walking away from Doctor Who as a whole. Expressing a desire to do something else with his life after devoting over a decade of it to the Whoniverse, he does not plan on penning another episode for the show. I can certainly understand that desire to focus on something different…
In a way, this is similar to how Moffat kept asking Davies to return to write another episode. Davies kept turning down the requests, focusing on his other projects. Now, the shoe may be on the other foot. Chibnall could find himself asking Moffat to return to write a future episode, while the latter is the one declining the offer. It all comes full circle.
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