Doctor Who fans have criticized the BBC after a huge change to the sci-fi show was announced ahead of the highly anticipated new series.
After the Ncuti Gatwa was unveiled‘s first full run in the TARDIS was due to hit screens on May 11, it has now been confirmed that the show will no longer air in its usual family-friendly Saturday evening slot.
Instead, the show will now be released on BBC iPlayer at midnight, presumably in the afternoon and evening in the US, after the show partnered with Disney+.
But fans have slammed the ‘shameful’ decision, claiming show bosses had ‘contempt’ for British viewers and ‘prioritised’ those on the other side of the Atlantic.
On X, formerly Twitter, someone wrote angrily: ‘So the UK fans are now second rate to the US. The US gets to watch in the late afternoon/early evening, while UK fans have to stay up late to avoid spoilers?! That’s really bad’.
Doctor Who fans have criticized the BBC after a huge change to the sci-fi show was announced ahead of the highly anticipated new series (Ncuti Gatwa pictured with co-star Millie Gibson)
After it was revealed that Ncuti Gatwa’s first full run in the TARDIS would hit screens on May 11, it has now been confirmed that the show will no longer air in its usual family-friendly Saturday evening slot
Instead, the show will now be released on BBC iPlayer at midnight, likely in the afternoon and evening in the US, after the show teamed up with streaming service Disney+.
While a second said: ‘I love pandering to the American public, I love Disney taking over (this is a lie, I hate it)’.
And someone else commented: ‘I’m an American and I think it’s insane and disrespectful that Doctor being broadcast at midnight in the UK.’
While another asked: ‘You don’t want British viewers??? Soon you will realize that this is a big mistake.’
As another fan typed, “As an American I hate this. Doctor Who is a British show and Britain should have the best timeslot. This midnight thing is bullshit.”
A sixth said: ‘Midnight really? What happened to Doctor Who on a Saturday night? This is just pandering to the American public.”
Disney Plus now has international distribution rights to the show, while it remains exclusive to the BBC in the UK.
And last year, showrunner Russell T. Davies assured fans that Doctor Who would still remain the same show and that nothing would change after it became a co-production.
Russell, 60, explained in an issue of Doctor Who magazine: ‘I know people are naturally concerned about American producers having notes on things.’
But fans have slammed the ‘shameful’ decision, claiming show bosses had ‘contempt’ for British viewers and gave ‘priority’ to people on the other side of the Atlantic.
Sci-Fi fans flocked to X after the announcement
‘Well, you don’t have to. They give excellent notes.”
Russell added: “And I’m here to tell you that you haven’t seen a drama on British television that didn’t have American endorsements in 20 years. Everything is a co-production… it’s really normal.’
TThe highly anticipated series will release the first two episodes at midnight on BBC iPlayer before arriving on BBC One later that day ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest grand final.
The new season of Doctor Who sees Ncuti Gatwa return as the Fifteenth Doctor, alongside Millie Gibson as Ruby Sunday, after making their debut in The Church on Ruby Road on Christmas Day.
In the upcoming series, audiences will see the Doctor and Ruby travel through time and space on adventures to lands unknown, to Regency-era England, to space worlds and the 1960s.
This season also sees the return of Michelle Greenidge as Carla Sunday, Angela Wynter as Cherry Sunday and Anita Dobson as Mrs Flood.
The eight-episode series will also feature a range of special guest stars including Jinkx Monsoon, Aneurin Barnard, Yasmin Finney, Jonathan Groff, Bonnie Langford, Jemma Redgrave, Lenny Rush and Indira Varma. More will be announced soon.
Last year, showrunner Russell T. Davies assured fans that Doctor Who would still remain the same show and that nothing would change after it became a co-production
