BBC responds to Doctor Who fan complaints about spoilers

"Some people contacted us to complain that the headline gave away the ending, spoiling this Doctor Who episode for them," the BBC said in a statement.

"Others requested that the BBC be more conscious of spoilers going forward, particularly in the use of headlines."

It continued: "The headline on the news homepage that evening referred to Ncuti Gatwa’s departure because this was a legitimate entertainment news story in its own right, and it is not unusual that we would carry this type of story once a programme has been broadcast and the details in the public domain."

The corporation noted that the story featured a spoiler alert and that the original headline only referenced Gatwa stepping down as the Doctor, adding that it was updated to include Billie Piper's return to the story.

The statement added: "BBC journalists are of course entitled to use their judgement to decide which stories to cover and the manner in which they are reported. We also want our headlines to be as informative as possible.

"Although every story is different, we have discussed your concerns on this occasion with senior editors and we will be mindful of your views for future coverage."

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The regeneration in question happened in the season finale, The Reality War, saw Gatwa's Doctor regenerate into Piper, who said of her return: "It's no secret how much I love this show, and I have always said I would love to return to the Whoniverse as I have some of my best memories there, so to be given the opportunity to step back on that TARDIS one more time was just something I couldn't refuse, but who, how, why and when, you'll just have to wait and see."

However, confirmation of a future season after this moment is still to be announced, with season 16 yet to be greenlit.

Showrunner Russell T Davies previously said: "There's no decision until after season 2.

"It's funny, because even people who work on the show think that means we're having secret meetings about it. People I work with every year say, 'What's really happening?' and I'm going, 'Nothing! No meetings, nothing.'"

Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.

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