Could JK Rowling write for Doctor Who? Chris Chibnall REALLY wants to make it happen
Could two of the biggest fandoms in the world be set to join forces?
The new-look Doctor Who, headed up by the first female Doctor Jodie Whittaker and writer Chris Chibnall, has seen record ratings for the popular sci-fi programme – with a stellar 8.2 million tuning into BBC1 for the opening episode.
But those figures would surely be dwarfed if Chibnall managed to get Harry Potter author JK Rowling onboard to write an episode.
The Broadchurch writer confirmed reports at New York Comic Con that Rowling was previously in talks with former Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies and David Tennant to collaborate on an episode, with plans eventually scrapped.
But Chibnall is clearly still keen to have the prolific writer on board, telling journalists at the event, “If JK Rowling wants to have anything to do with Doctor Who, please give her my phone number.
“I think she is one of our greatest living writers.
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“I think Harry Potter is an absolute transcendent piece of work and continues to be with the theatre play and with Fantastic Beasts. JK Rowling is a genius and if she ever even wants to see what we do on Doctor Who, you tell her from me, the doors are open.”
Although Rowling may not have been on board for the eleventh series of Doctor Who, Chibnall has assembled a crack team of writers observing a multitude of eras and dilemmas the Doctor and her team will face.
In Sunday’s forthcoming episode, the Doctor will meet with black civil rights campaigner Rosa Parks when the team are transported to 1950’s Alabama.
The Doctor and her companions are faced with the dangers of racial segregation in volatile 20th century America in the episode penned by Noughts and Crosses writer Malorie Blackman.
Another episode in the new series, written by Murdered By My Father creator Vinay Patel, sees the Doctor and her companions visiting the Punjab in 1948 – a region hit by widespread violence and terrorised by demons haunting the land.
Doctor Who continues Sundays, 6.45pm on BBC1
