BBC Three confirms special Doctor Who night to celebrate 20 years of David Tennant in role
Twenty Years of Tennant is upon us!
David Tennant fans, you're in luck! BBC Three has scheduled a special Doctor Who night to celebrate 20 years of Tennant's Doctor, including re-runs of his return for the 60th anniversary specials.
Twenty Years of Tennant is scheduled for Thursday 16 April 2026 and features programming from 7:05pm to 12:30am the following morning.
First up are the three 60th anniversary specials – The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder and The Giggle – which saw Tennant return as the Fourteenth Doctor alongside Catherine Tate's companion Donna Noble.
They're followed by Talking Doctor Who, a documentary that also aired for the sci-fi's 60th anniversary and saw Tennant delving back into the archives to tell the story of the classic era of Doctor Who.
Afterwards, the three episodes of the behind-the-scenes show Doctor Who: Unleashed, with episodes focused on the three 60th anniversary specials, will air.
Tennant's first appearance as the Tenth Doctor technically came in The Parting of the Ways, which saw the Ninth Doctor's (Christopher Eccleston) regeneration, but his first full episode was the 2005 Christmas special, The Christmas Invasion.
The actor has reprised his role multiple times, most prominently for the 60th anniversary specials, but he's also set to return for a series of new Big Finish audio adventures.
While some have called for him to return on-screen again, Tennant previously played down the possibility when speaking to Radio Times.
"The Doctor’s happy. He is in a garden in Chiswick, being made mac and cheese by Bonnie Langford!" he said, referring to the final scenes of The Giggle.
"The door is not any more open than it ever was, because in Doctor Who, if you want to bring someone back, there are endless ways of doing it. It’s very much the end of the story."
The celebrated actor also refused to get drawn into hypotheticals of what would happen if Earth were invaded while the Doctor was exploring elsewhere.
He countered: "You could also say, 'Why has Patrick Troughton not landed here?!' It unpicks if you think about that too much. I’m retired! The Fourteenth Doctor is retired!"
Instead, last season saw Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor regenerate into returning star Billie Piper, with the full nature of her role yet to be revealed.
Doctor Who will return this Christmas and is available to stream on BBC iPlayer. Dive into our Doctor Who story guide: reviews of every episode since 1963, plus cast & crew listings, production trivia, and exclusive material from the Radio Times archive.
Missing Doctor Who? Register now for Radio Times' Doctor Who Insiders club for exclusive interviews with Doctor Who legends every month.
Add Doctor Who to your watchlist on the Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more.
Authors
Louise Griffin is the Sci-Fi & Fantasy Editor for Radio Times, covering everything from Doctor Who, Star Wars and Marvel to House of the Dragon and Good Omens. She previously worked at Metro as a Senior Entertainment Reporter and has a degree in English Literature.
