Doctor Who spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea release update delivered by BBC
Kate Phillips, the BBC's director of content, spoke about Doctor Who's future.
Doctor Who's upcoming spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea is confirmed to air in 2026.
Speaking at Edinburgh TV Festival, Kate Phillips, the BBC's director of content, reassured Doctor Who fans about the main show's future, while mentioning that the spin-off will air "next year".
She said: "Rest assured Doctor Who is going nowhere. Disney has been a great partnership and it continues with The War Between The Land and the Sea next year."
The upcoming spin-off is set to focus on Russell Tovey's Barclay, a normal man who is drawn into a mission to prevent a world-threatening conflict between humans and the iconic Doctor Who monsters the Sea Devils.
Tovey recently teased what's to come from the series, saying: "It's set in our world. Climate change is a huge factor. Again, it needs to be factored more into art so we really get an understanding of it."
Tovey added of his character: "It's this narrative of this guy who, basically, as Jane [Tranter, executive producer] said in the introduction, he's someone who works in the offices and books people's taxis, but by some series of events, he ends up becoming a very important figure in the world, and having to understand that role and what that entails.
"And, in true Doctor Who [fashion, he's] saving the planet. It was just a total joy to play this everyman who's the sort of a guy that's drifted into his late 30s, early 40s and, unbeknownst to him, just thought, 'This is what life was going to be.'
"I love that, hopefully, it's inspiring and people feel like it's not over, that things can shift any moment. I'm really proud of it, and I'm terrified of it and excited by it – all of those things. But working on it was brilliant, and the scripts were fab."
Alongside Tovey, the series will star Gugu Mbatha Raw as Salt, with Doctor Who stars including Jemma Redgrave (Kate Stewart) and Ruth Madeley (Shirley Bingham) reprising their roles.
The War Between the Land and the Sea will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in 2026.
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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.
