Doctor Who writer opens up about the Yaz-Doctor romance

The next Doctor Who special, “Legend of the Sea Devils” will premiere in just a few days. It will mark the second to last episode of Jodie Whittaker as the titular Doctor. There’s a lot to look forward to as this chapter ends and the next one begins, including more of the relationship between the Doctor and Yaz (Mandip Gill).

We saw some romantic tension between the two in the New Year’s Day special, “Eve of the Daleks.” If you thought that would be the end of it, then you’d be completely wrong! In fact, this same-sex storyline (a first for Doctor Who) is going to be further explored in this next special.

The special’s cowriter, Ella Road, spoke to Radio Times about fleshing out this storyline. “I mean, I guess once those conversations had been opened up, they need to be continued,” she said. “I think that we were all keen to make sure that we were handling all of that stuff delicately. Basically, there were conversations that needed to be had based on what was happening in the episode before. And so we continued to have them. But, yeah, that’s all I can say.”

It can’t have been easy to balance this new romance with the rest of the episode, which involves a pirate captain awakening a hostile alien race from the depths of the ocean, but Road hopes they pulled it off without losing the human element.

Doctor Who showrunner expects Russell T Davies to “ignore” Jodie Whittaker’s run on the show

Speaking of new stories, current showrunner Chris Chibnall will be on his way out after the final Whittaker special airs later this year, making way for original revival showrunner Russell T Davies to return. “[Doctor Who is] one of the few drama series without a written bible, and every era contains a contradiction or left-turn from what has come before,” Chibnall told Radio Times. “Any future showrunner will ignore it or run with it.”

And what does Chibnall think Davies will do with the Whittaker run of Doctor Who when he takes over? “Oh, I fully expect Russell to ignore it!” he laughed. “Everybody should have a big smile on their face. Russell is one of the elite showrunners and Who is very lucky to have him, especially off the back of It’s a Sin, one of the greatest shows of all time.”

Davies did originally pave the way for future showrunners to take Doctor Who in new directions, so it’s only natural that he mixes things up all over again! There is still a bit of time before we see another Davies-led Doctor Who episode, but rest assured he’s been busy at work!

In the meantime, get ready to watch Jodie Whittaker’s penultimate episode as the Doctor this Sunday, April 17. It’s going to be a doozy, folks!

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