The future of Doctor Who is a bit wibbly-wobbly at the moment. The show’s partnership with Disney is over, but it’s set to return an entire year from now with a new Christmas special. There is some confusion and/or denial about who exactly is the Doctor after the last season’s finale, which saw Ncuti Gatwa regenerate into Billie Piper.
But there is one certainty: The next bit of Who to hit screens is the baffling miniseries The War Between the Land and the Sea, which turns back to the Sea Devils, and to two previous Who actors in new roles. Russell Tovey (previously seen as Midshipman Frame in “Voyage of the Damned”) and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (previously seen as Martha Jones’ sister, Tish) join recurring Who star Jemma Redgrave (as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart) in a tale with a very short synopsis: “When a fearsome and ancient species emerges from the ocean, dramatically revealing themselves to humanity, an international crisis is triggered. With the entire population at risk, UNIT step into action as the land and sea wage war. ”
A UNIT-focused spinoff was announced back in 2023. Focusing on UNIT is still a strange choice, but no stranger, really, than the choice to bring back Mbatha-Raw and Tovey in new roles. Which, in itself, isn’t new for Who: Let us never forget that Peter Capaldi was at the eruption of Mount Vesuvius (along with future companion Karen Gillan), and then appeared on Torchwood, well before he became Twelve.
This spinoff is written by creator Russell T. Davies and Pete McTighe and directed by Dylan Holmes-Williams. The latest trailer is a mere 30 seconds of footage that mostly serves to remind UK viewers that it’s only a week until they get to watch this story of interspecies conflict and possible cooperation. Those of us in the US will continue to wait for Disney to announce a premiere date.
