Doctor Who writer responds to question of whether he would take over as showrunner
Pete McTighe co-wrote the recent spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea.
With fans waiting news on Doctor Who's future, writer Pete McTighe has addressed speculation about whether he could potentially take charge of the sci-fi in the future.
Showrunner Russell T Davies returned in 2023 to steer the show through its 60th anniversary celebrations, and through Ncuti Gatwa's two seasons, as well as spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea and the upcoming 2026 Christmas special.
Of course, there's nothing to suggest he'll be going anywhere anytime soon, but fans can't help to look to the future, with Lucky Day writer McTighe recently being asked whether he could take over at some point.
According to CultBox, he responded: “It’s not for me to say.
"It’s not my decision. I will give you my party line, which is that position is not vacant. Russell is the showrunner and he’s a friend of mine and whenever he calls, I will come running, but he’s the showrunner and I’m fine with that.”
McTighe has written various episodes of the show, including Lucky Day, Praxeus, and Kerblam!, as well as co-writing spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea.
He has also written a fair few mini-episodes, celebrating the classic era of the show, to promote Doctor Who: The Collection, the ongoing set of Blu-ray releases.
In 2022, McTighe told Radio Times: "I have dozens – scores – of ideas for Doctor Who episodes. That show is such an important part of my life. It's the reason I'm a writer.
"Aside from the main show, the collection trailers that I write and direct are kind of my favourite thing, they're just such good fun to do. But in terms of that episode, I'm not going to tell you about it."
He added: "I'm really sorry because I do want to keep it up my sleeve along with all the other ideas I have. Should I be lucky enough to work on the show in future, I'll be pitching that and many other things."
Doctor Who will return to BBC One and BBC iPlayer this Christmas.
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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.
