Whovians all around the globe are ecstatic for the return of Doctor Who to commemorate its 60th anniversary, with David Tennant making a big reappearance before Ncuti Gatwa’s debut.
The BBC stated that a massive collection of previous episodes spanning back decades will be made accessible for fans to view on iPlayer ahead of the debut of the new season of the sci-fi adventure show.
However, the broadcaster suffered a setback when William Hartnell led the cast as the First Doctor in season one.
The first Doctor Who serial, titled An Unearthly Child and also known as 100,000 BC, aired in 1963 and was issued in four parts.
It was written by Anthony Coburn and shown on BBC TV at the time, with Carole Anne Ford, Jacqueline Hill, and William Russell starring as the Doctor’s first companions.
While fans may have hoped to be able to go all the way back to the beginning when starting their Doctor Who rewatches – or catching up on the full series for the first time – the BBC has informed that this will not be feasible.
‘This massive iPlayer back catalogue will be home to over 800 hours of Doctor Who content, making it the biggest ever collection of Doctor Who programming in one place but will not include the first four episodes as we do not have all the rights to those,’ a spokesperson old RadioTimes.com.
The announcement that Doctor Who episodes would be uploaded to BBC iPlayer was announced earlier this month, with returning showrunner Russell T Davies remarking how ‘happy’ fans of all ages will be.
‘I’m so excited for new viewers – imagine being eight years old, spending winter afternoons exploring the 60s, 70s, 80s and beyond,’ he said.
‘And we’re determined this won’t be a dusty museum – we have exciting plans to bring the back catalogue to life, with much more to be revealed!’
When are the episodes arriving on BBC iPlayer?
More than 800 episodes from Doctor Who’s 60-year existence will be accessible to watch on BBC iPlayer from Wednesday, November 1.
Furthermore, all episodes made accessible for viewing will have several accessibility choices, such as subtitles, audio description, and sign language.
When could the 60th anniversary episodes air?
Doctor Who returns in November for its 60th anniversary specials, with David, 52, playing the starring role as the Fourteenth Doctor with his old companion Donna Noble (Catherine Tate).
Ncuti, 31, will then make his highly awaited debut as the Fifteenth Doctor during the holidays.
‘This is just the start, as the fever starts to burn. We’re heading for a November full of Doctor Who surprises, for fans and new viewers alike. Stay alert!’ showrunner Russell said.
Doctor Who is set to return to BBC later this year.
