Doctor Who boss says new season not getting "the ratings we’d love," future seasons “up in the air"

The new season of Doctor Who is a fresh jumping-on point for new viewers. The sci-fi series has been on our screens for over 60 years, but with Ncuti Gatwa's Fifthteenth Doctor, returning showrunner Russell T. Davies has created an all-new show that's welcoming to new Whovians. And with a hefty budget increase from Disney, the show has never looked better and felt more ambitious.

However, despite all of the positives, the new episodes haven't been as successful as everyone had hoped. In terms of audience reviews, the new season currently stands at a mediocre 6/10 on IMDb. The episodes themselves have been rather hit and miss. "74 Yards" was a high point; "The Devil's Chord" was a distinct low. All of the other episodes fit somewhere in between. As for viewership, Russell T. Davies admits that ratings aren't as high as they'd like.

Davies, who oversaw the hugely successful revival of the franchise in 2005, isn't put off by this news. He's not delighted, of course, but insists that it's no disaster. “I’m very proud of it! You know, they might not be the ratings we’d love. We always want higher," he told Radio Times. "But they are building over the 28-day period. Episode 1, Space Babies, is already up to 5.6 million and counting. So it is getting there.”

The good news? Doctor Who is finding a renewed interest among younger audiences. “I was brought back in to bring in a youthful audience. That’s been massively successful," Davies said. “The audience no one ever gets are the under-30s. They just don’t watch television anymore. But those figures are astronomic for Doctor Who, it’s their top programme in that bracket.”

As a result, BBC executives are thrilled. "According to the people who juggle the numbers, all targets have been reached and exceeded. The BBC are running around like mad things.”

We already know that Doctor Who is returning for another season. It's easy to presume that the show will continue forever, but Davies isn't getting complacent. When asked about future seasons, he insists that renewals are “still up in the air,“ adding that “I’m working on the fourth script now for [Series 16]. It’s not actually commissioned."

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