The 2022 specials of the British

science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...

programme ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'' are three additional episodes that follow the programme's thirteenth series. The specials aired on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

on 1 January, 17 April, and 23 October, respectively. They are the final episodes to be overseen by

Chris Chibnall Christopher Antony Chibnall (born 21 March 1970) is an English television writer and producer, best known as the creator and writer of the award-winning ITV (TV network), ITV mystery-crime drama ''Broadchurch'' (2013-17) and as the third showr ...

showrunner A showrunner is the top-level executive producer of a television series. The position outranks other creative and management personnel, including episode directors, in contrast to feature films, in which the director has creative control over th ...

. Chibnall wrote all three specials, co-writing the second with Ella Road. They were directed by Annetta Lauger, Haolu Wang, and

Jamie Magnus Stone Jamie Magnus Stone (born 15 December 1985) is a Scottish film director and animator, who studied at the National Film and Television School. He is the son of Sally Magnusson and grandson of Magnus Magnusson and Mamie Baird. Career Stone stu ...

, respectively. The specials star

Jodie Whittaker Jodie Auckland Whittaker (born 17 June 1982) is an English actress. She is best known for her roles on television as Beth Latimer in ''Broadchurch'' (2013–2017) and the Thirteenth Doctor in ''Doctor Who'' (2017–2022, 2025). She came to pro ...

as the

Thirteenth Doctor The Thirteenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. She is played by Jodie Whittaker, the first woman to portray the character, in three series, five specials and a ...

as well as

Mandip Gill Mandip Kaur Gill (born 5 January 1988) is an English actress and narrator. Her first television role came in 2012 when she was cast as Phoebe McQueen in the Channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks''. After departing the series in 2015, Gill went on to ...

and

John Bishop John Bishop (born 30 November 1966) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and former semi pro footballer. His first television appearance was in 2007 on the RTÉ topical-comedy show '' The Panel'', where he was a regular panelist until 20 ...

as her time-travelling companions,

Yasmin Khan Yasmin Cordery Khan is a British historian, novelist and broadcaster whose work focuses on the British Empire, Colonial India and the decolonisation of South Asia. She is a Fellow of Kellogg College, Oxford and Professor of Modern History base ...

and Dan Lewis. Whittaker, Gill, and Bishop also departed the series at the end of the third special. The final episode also stars

Sophie Aldred Sophie Aldred (born 20 August 1962) is an English actress and television presenter. She has worked extensively in children's television as a presenter and voice artist. She played the Seventh Doctor's companion, Ace, in the television series ''D ...

and

Janet Fielding Janet Claire Mahoney (born 9 September 1953), known professionally as Janet Fielding, is an Australian actress who starred in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' as companion Tegan Jovanka. Early life and career Fielding w ...

as former companions

Ace An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or a club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the ...

and

Tegan Jovanka Tegan Jovanka is a fictional character played by Janet Fielding in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. An Australian airline stewardess and a native of Brisbane who was a companion of the Fourth and Fift ...

. The first two episodes were produced alongside the preceding series while the third was commissioned later to coincide with the BBC's centenary. Filming took place from June–October 2021 and was impacted by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Some other members of the production staff also exited the programme once production was complete. The three specials were seen as an improvement on the previous series but received some criticism to the resolution of its overall story arc and saw a decline in viewing figures.

Episodes

Casting

Main characters

returned as the thirteenth incarnation of

the Doctor The Doctor, sometimes known as Doctor Who, is the protagonist of the long-running BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. An extraterrestrial Time Lord, the Doctor travels the universe in a time travelling spaceship called th ...

for the three episodes, with the final special being the last regular appearance of Whittaker in the role.

and

also return as

and Dan Lewis, respectively. Gill and Bishop initially stated they were unsure if they would depart after the third special. but Gill confirmed her departure from the show in the final special on 3 May 2022. while Bishop's exit was confirmed following its broadcast.

and

also headlined the final special, returning to the programme as former companions Tegan Jovanka and Ace. Fielding last appeared in the programme in 1984 while Aldred was last seen in 1989. On their return, Chibnall said he believed Fielding and Aldred's original eras to be representative of specific times in ''Doctor Who''s history.

Guest characters

In November 2021, it was reported that

Aisling Bea Aisling Clíodhnadh O'Sullivan (born 16 March 1984), known professionally as Aisling Bea ( ), is an Irish comedian, actress and screenwriter. She created, wrote and starred in the comedy series '' This Way Up'' on Channel 4. As a stand-up comedi ...

and

Pauline McLynn Pauline McLynn (born 11 July 1962) is an Irish character actress and author. She is best known for her roles as Mrs. Doyle in the Channel 4 sitcom ''Father Ted'', Libby Croker in the Channel 4 comedy drama '' Shameless'', Tip Haddem in the BBC ...

would appear in the New Year's Day special. Bea portrayed Sarah, the owner-operator of ELF

self storage Self storage (a shorthand for "self-service storage") is an industry that renting, rents storage space (such as rooms, lockers, Shipping container, shipping containers, and/or outdoor space), also known as "storage units," to tenants, usuall ...

. Adjani Salmon appeared as Nick, a regular customer of Sarah's.

Nicholas Briggs Nicholas Briggs (born 29 September 1961) is an English actor, writer, director, sound designer and composer. He is associated with the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its spin-offs, particularly as the voice of the Da ...

voiced the Daleks. Jonny Dixon returned from "

The Woman Who Fell to Earth "The Woman Who Fell to Earth" is the first episode of the eleventh series and the 845th episode overall of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. It was written by new head writer and executive producer Chris Chibnall, ...

" (Whittaker's first episode) reprising his role as Karl Wright. Chibnall later revealed that the role of Sarah role was specifically created for Bea while casting Salmon was the idea of Rebecca Roughan, a

script editor A script editor is a member of the production team of scripted television and radio programs, usually dramas and comedies. The script editor has many responsibilities including finding new script writers, developing storyline and series ideas wit ...

on the programme. In "Legend of the Sea Devils",

Crystal Yu Crystal Yu is a Hong Kong-British television, film and stage actress. She played Lily Chao on the British BBC medical drama ''Casualty'' from 2013 to 2017. Life and career Yu, born in Hong Kong, came to London at the age of 11 when she was of ...

was cast to play Madame Ching while Arthur Lee and Marlowe Chan-Reeves guest starred as Ji-Hun and Ying Ki. David K. S. Tse appeared as Ying Wai while Craig Els played Marsissus, the chief Sea Devil. Nadia Albina returned from

series 13 Series 13 or Season 13 may refer to: * Lego Minifigures (theme)#Series 13, the toy line by Lego * Warehouse 13 ''Warehouse 13'' is an American science fiction television series that originally ran from July 7, 2009, to May 19, 2014, on the S ...

as Diane. "The Power of the Doctor" featured the largest number of returning characters.

Sacha Dhawan Sacha Dhawan () (born 1 May 1984) is a British actor. He began his career in the ITV series '' Out of Sight'' (1997–1998), '' The Last Train'' (1999), and '' Weirdsister College'' (2001–2002). He originated the role of Akthar in the play '' ...

and

Patrick O'Kane Patrick O'Kane is an Irish actor who was born in 1965 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He has been part of the companies of the Royal National Theatre and the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester. He has appeared in London's West End and at the Abbe ...

reprised their roles as the

Spy Master A spymaster is a leader of a group of spies or an intelligence agency. List of spymasters See also * List of American spies A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, ...

and Ashad respectively. Both

Jemma Redgrave Jemima Rebecca "Jemma" Redgrave (born 14 January 1965) is an English actress, and a member of the Redgrave family. She is known for her roles as the title character in '' Bramwell'' (1995–1998) and as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart in ''Doctor Who'' ...

(

Kate Lethbridge-Stewart Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, also known as Kate Stewart, is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. She was created by writer Marc Platt (writer), Marc Platt and first portrayed by Beverley Cressman in ...

) and

Jacob Anderson Jacob Basil Anderson (born 18 June 1990) is a British actor and musician. As an actor, he is known for his roles as Grey Worm in ''Game of Thrones'' (2013–19), Louis de Pointe du Lac in ''Interview with the Vampire (TV series), Anne Rice’s ...

(Vinder) returned from series 13, the former having reprised her role after six years. Briggs once again voiced the Daleks, as well as the Cybermen. The episode saw David Bradley,

Peter Davison Peter Malcolm Gordon Moffett (born 13 April 1951), known professionally as Peter Davison, is an English actor. He made his television acting debut in 1975 and became famous in 1978 as Tristan Farnon in the BBC's television adaptation of Jame ...

Colin Baker Colin Charles Baker (born 8 June 1943) is an English actor. He played Paul Merroney in the BBC television drama series ''The Brothers (1972 TV series), The Brothers'' from 1974 to 1976 and the Sixth Doctor, sixth incarnation of The Doctor (Do ...

Sylvester McCoy Percy James Patrick Kent-Smith (born 20 August 1943), known professionally as Sylvester McCoy, is a Scottish actor. Gaining prominence as a physical comedian, he became best known for playing the seventh incarnation of the Doctor in the long ...

Paul McGann Paul John McGann ( ; born 14 November 1959) is an English actor. He came to prominence for portraying Percy Toplis in the television serial '' The Monocled Mutineer'' (1986), then starred in the dark comedy '' Withnail and I'' (1987), which wa ...

and

Jo Martin Joanna Lisa Martin (born 29 April 1969) is a British actress. On television, she is known for her roles in the BBC series '' The Crouches'' (2003–2005) as Natalie Crouch, '' Back to Life'' (2019–2021) as Janice, ''Holby City'' (2019–2022) ...

make cameo roles as previous incarnations of the Doctor. Davison stated he was delighted to return and that he was "always very happy to come back." McCoy felt very emotional about his return and was glad to finally give closure to the Seventh Doctor and Ace. While Chibnall had planned to include

Tom Baker Thomas Stewart Baker (born 20 January 1934) is an English actor and writer. He is best known for having played the Fourth Doctor, fourth and longest-serving incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the science fiction television ...

due to scheduling conflicts this was not possible. Chibnall did not ask

Christopher Eccleston Christopher Eccleston (; born 16 February 1964) is an English actor whose work has encompassed Hollywood blockbusters and arthouse films, television dramas, Shakespearean stage performances and science fiction, most notably the Ninth Doctor, ni ...

Matt Smith Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is known for playing the Eleventh Doctor in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Prince Philip in Netflix's historical series ''The Crown ( ...

Peter Capaldi Peter Dougan Capaldi (; born 14 April 1958) is a Scottish actor, director, singer and guitarist. He portrayed the Twelfth Doctor, twelfth incarnation of the Doctor in the science fiction series ''Doctor Who'' (2013–2017) and Malcolm Tucker i ...

as he wanted the focus on the classic Doctors. David Tennant, who previously portrayed the Tenth Doctor, is introduced as the

Fourteenth Doctor The Fourteenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor and the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' for the 2023 specials. He is portrayed by Scottish actor David Tennant, who previously portrayed the Ten ...

Bradley Walsh Bradley John Walsh (born 4 June 1960) is an English actor, television presenter, comedian, singer, and former professional footballer. Walsh's acting roles on television include Danny Baldwin in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' (2004 ...

guest starred as Graham O'Brien, a former companion of the Thirteenth Doctor. Actors of other former companions,

Ian Chesterton Ian Chesterton is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and a companion of the First Doctor. He was played in the series by William Russell and was one of the members of the programme's first r ...

Jo Jones Jonathan David Samuel Jones (October 7, 1911 – September 3, 1985) was an American jazz drummer. A band leader and pioneer in jazz percussion, Jones anchored the Count Basie Orchestra rhythm section from 1934 to 1948. He was sometimes k ...

and

Mel Bush Melanie "Mel" Bush is a fictional character played by Bonnie Langford in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Mel is a computer programmer from the 20th century who is a companion of the Sixth and Seventh D ...

, portrayed by William Russell,

Katy Manning Catherine Ann Manning (born 14 October 1946) is a British actress. Although she has made many appearances on both screen and stage, Manning is best known for her part as the companion Jo Grant in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doct ...

and

Bonnie Langford Bonita Melody Lysette Langford (born 22 July 1964) is an English actress, dancer and singer. She came to prominence as a child star in the 1970s, when she had a notable role in the TV series '' Just William''. In the 1980s, she played companio ...

, appear together in a brief cameo near the end of the episode. In an interview with ''

Doctor Who Magazine ''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the following year. In ...

'', Langford described her appearance in the episode as being "last minute" and was pleased with the fan reception to the scene. Russell's appearance set a record for longest gap between TV appearances.

Production

Development

On 29 July 2021, the British Broadcast Corporation (BBC) announced that

, who serves as

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...

and

of ''Doctor Who'', would depart the series alongside Whittaker after a run of specials in 2022. Chibnall stated their departures were part of a "three series and out deal" he made with Whittaker prior to the eleventh series. Whittaker furthered this sentiment, stating "We knew that we wanted to ride this wave side by side, and pass on the baton together." The first two specials were produced as part of the eight episodes ordered for the thirteenth series. The BBC's Chief Content Officer, Charlotte Moore, later commissioned a third special which would be

feature-length A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation ...

to coincide with the centenary of the BBC and serve as Whittaker's

regeneration Regeneration may refer to: Science and technology * Regeneration (biology), the ability to recreate lost or damaged cells, tissues, organs and limbs * Regeneration (ecology), the ability of ecosystems to regenerate biomass, using photosynthesis ...

episode. It was also the 300th ''Doctor Who'' story since the programme's inception in 1963. Ahead of the final special airing, it was reported that executive producer Matt Strevens and

Nikki Wilson Nikki Wilson (''née'' Smith) is a British television producer whose credits include ''Doctor Who'' and its spin-off ''The Sarah Jane Adventures''. Her career had predominantly been as a script editor, in which capacity she worked on ''Trial & ...

, a co-executive producer, would also depart once production on the centenary special was complete. Strevens originally joined the series alongside Chibnall. Wilson had been a part of the show since "

The Sontaran Stratagem "The Sontaran Stratagem" is the fourth episode of the fourth series of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as The Doctor. The episode was broadcast ...

" (2008), and also worked on its spin-off show, ''

The Sarah Jane Adventures ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' is a British science fiction television programme that was produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies, and starring Elisabeth Sladen. The programme is a spin-off of the long-running BBC s ...

''. Composer

Segun Akinola Segun Akinola (born 1993) is an English composer for television and documentaries. He served as the music director and composer for ''Doctor Who'' from " The Woman Who Fell to Earth" (2018) until "The Power of the Doctor" (2022). Early life ...

later announced that he would not return after the final special.

Writing

Chibnall continues as the head writer for the traditional New Year's special "Eve of the Daleks", which features the

Dalek The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Nation and first appeared in th ...

s in a loose trilogy that connects their appearances in the past New Year's specials, " Resolution" (2019) and "

Revolution of the Daleks "Revolution of the Daleks" is a special episode of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', first broadcast on BBC One on 1 January 2021. It was written by Chris Chibnall, and directed by Lee Haven Jones. The episode foll ...

" (2021). Chibnall also wrote the following two specials, co-writing the second, "Legend of the Sea Devils", with Ella Road. The second special features the return of the Sea Devils in their first appearance since ''

Warriors of the Deep ''Warriors of the Deep'' is the first serial of the 21st season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was broadcast in four twice-weekly parts on BBC1 from 5 to 13 January 1984. In the serial, two human power b ...

'' (1984). This episode included pirate-themed elements which Chibnall wanted to include after plans for a similar story fell through during production of the thirteenth series. One of Road's major contributions to this special was the addition of the historical figure

Zheng Yi Sao Zheng Yi Sao (c. 1775 – 1844), also known as Shi Yang, Shi Xianggu, Shek Yeung and Ching Shih, was a Chinese pirate leader active in the South China Sea from 1801 to 1810. Born as Shi Yang in 1775 to humble origins, she married a pirate name ...

, also known as Madam Ching. The third and final special, "The Power of the Doctor", sees the Daleks, the

Cybermen The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. The Cybermen are a species of space-faring cyborgs who often forcefully and painfully convert human beings ...

, and The Master. It is the first episode to feature all three in the same story. Reportedly, Chibnall had planned to include the Master in the next regeneration story since the twelfth series and had reached out to

, who portrayed the Master, for suggestions on how to incorporate the character. Dhawan said he wanted to explore the theme of the Master's disguises, which was used as a major plot thread of the episode. Chibnall also included a number of

Easter eggs Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are Egg decorating, decorated for the Christian holiday of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are commonly used during the season of Eastertide (Easter ...

and cameos in this episode from past ''Doctor Who'' actors. He cited the extended length of the special as the reason for this. Returning showrunner

Russell T Davies Stephen Russell Davies ( ; born 27 April 1963), known professionally as Russell T Davies, is a Welsh screenwriter and television producer. He is best known for being the original showrunner and head writer of the revival of the BBC sci-fi seri ...

penned the episode's final moments. The three episodes explored an overarching plot of a potential same sex romance between the Thirteenth Doctor and Yaz. Chibnall and Strevens revealed that this narrative was not originally in the plans for the story arc of the characters, but that they chose to incorporate it into the programme after viewers began

shipping Freight transport, also referred to as freight forwarding, is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it has been ...

them and began referring to the two as " Thasmin". Road also contributed to this storyline in her episode, stating that it "felt really special" to write and mentioning that she is

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

herself. The writing team ultimately opted for the two characters not to kiss on screen, with Chibnall explaining that it felt more emotional than if they had. After the episode aired Chibnall also said that if he "had to make a decision about Yaz and the Thirteenth Doctor again, he would make it differently". The specials also furthered other threads, such as that around "the timeless child", which began in previous series', and the impact of the Doctor's impending regeneration.

Filming

Filming for the first two specials occurred in the same production run as the thirteenth series, also known as ''Flux''. The majority of soundstage filming took place at

Roath Lock Studios BBC Roath Lock Studios is a television production studio in Cardiff, Wales. The facility houses BBC drama productions that include () ''Doctor Who'', ''Casualty'', and ''Pobol y Cwm''. The centre topped out on 20 February 2011 and filming for s ...

(pictured) in

Cardiff, Wales Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

. Production on all episodes was affected by the impact of COVID-19 on television leading to virtual meetings, budgetary concerns, and travel constraints. Annetta Laufer directed "Eve of the Daleks" which was filmed in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

in June 2021 with

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...

Robin Whenary. Laufer was hired after a producer was impressed with some of her previous work. Laufer and Whenary used

cinematic techniques This article contains a list of cinematic techniques that are divided into categories and briefly described. Basic definitions of terms ;180-degree rule :A continuity editorial technique in which sequential shots of two or more actors within ...

while recording the episode. Filming for "Legend of the Sea Devils" followed throughout June and July with a mix of

sound stage A sound stage (also written soundstage) is a large, soundproof structure, building or room with large doors and high ceilings, used for the production of theatrical film-making and television productions, usually located on a secured movie or te ...

and

location shooting Location shooting is the shooting of a film or television production in a real-world setting rather than a sound stage or backlot. The location may be interior or exterior. When filmmaking professionals refer to shooting "on location", they are ...

. Haolu Wang made her television directorial debut with this episode while Mark Waters was the episode's cinematographer. Some recording took place at Sully Beach and

Cardiff Bay Cardiff Bay (; colloquially "The Bay") is an area and freshwater lake in Cardiff, Wales. The site of a former tidal bay and estuary, it is the river mouth of the River Taff and River Ely, Ely. The body of water was converted into a lake as part ...

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

wrapped on this special by 25 July. "The Power of the Doctor" filmed in

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

in September and October with director

. Some filming occurred at Hodge House, Grange Gardens, and the Gate Arts Centre. The

scene was filmed on a

green screen Chroma key compositing, or chroma keying, is a visual-effects and post-production technique for compositing (layering) two or more images or video streams together based on colour hues ( chroma range). The technique has been used in many fie ...

which was overlaid on backdrop footage recorded elsewhere. The main cast concluded filming their scenes by 13 October, but additional photography continued the following day. Whittaker stated that filming her regeneration scene "was singularly the most emotional day on set" and that "it was a wonderfully-celebratory-slash-grief-ridden day". The three specials were in

picture lock Picture lock is a stage in editing a film or editing a television production. It is the stage prior to online editing when all changes to the film or television program cut have been done and approved. It is then sent to subsequent stages in the ...

by February 2022 while

post-production Post-production, also known simply as post, is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording indivi ...

and

visual effects Visual effects (sometimes abbreviated as VFX) is the process by which imagery is created or manipulated outside the context of a live-action shot in filmmaking and video production. The integration of live-action footage and other live-action fo ...

work continued later into the year. The final moments of "The Power of the Doctor" were filmed on 13 May 2022, also on a green screen, with

Rachel Talalay Rachel Talalay (born July 16, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer best known for directing films such as ''Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare'' (1991), ''Ghost in the Machine (film), Ghost in the Machine'' (1993), and ''Tank Girl (film), ...

directing, as Stone was unavailable. Production blocks were arranged as follows:

Release

Promotion

The first details of the New Year's Day special, "Eve of the Daleks", were revealed following the conclusion of the thirteenth series. An eight-minute trailer for this episode was released on 28 December 2021, which also featured a time loop format by having the same content repeat itself for the first seven minutes and nine seconds. Details of "Legend of the Sea Devils" were published after the first special aired. Ahead of the second special, Scottish musician Nathan Evans released a ''Doctor Who''-themed adaptation of the sea ballad "

Wellerman "Soon May the Wellerman Come", also known as "Wellerman" or "The Wellerman", is a folk song in ballad style first published in New Zealand in the 1970s. The "wellermen" were supply ships owned by the Weller brothers, three merchant traders in th ...

". Promotional images introducing the new Sea Devil design were published on 26 March 2022, followed by a trailer and promotional poser on 2 April. The social media campaign for this episode circulated the phrase "Swashbuckle your seatbelts", referencing the term

swashbuckler A swashbuckler is a genre of European adventure literature that focuses on a heroic protagonist stock character who is skilled in swordsmanship, acrobatics, and guile, and possesses chivalrous ideals. A "swashbuckler" protagonist is heroic, ...

. A teaser trailer for the centenary episode, without yet revealing the title or airdate, was likewise released after the second special aired. The title of the special, "The Power of the Doctor", was announced in ''

'' on 14 September 2022.

Broadcast

Two of the eight thirteenth series episodes were already set to be held for broadcast in 2022. The first of the three specials was broadcast in the United Kingdom on

on 1 January 2022 in the series' traditional

New Year's Day In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, January 1, 1 January. Most solar calendars, such as the Gregorian and Julian calendars, begin the year regularly at or near the December solstice, northern winter ...

time slot. The following specials were also broadcast on BBC One; the second special aired on 17 April 2022 as an

Easter Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...

special, with the third and final special airing on 23 October 2022 as part of the BBC's Centenary celebrations. All three episodes were also broadcast on

BBC America BBC America is an American basic cable network that is owned by AMC Networks. The channel primarily airs sci-fi and action series and films, as well as selected programs from the BBC (such as its nature documentary series). Unlike the BBC's ...

in the United States, on

CTV Sci-Fi CTV Sci-Fi Channel is a Canadian English-language discretionary specialty channel owned by Bell Media subsidairy of BCE Inc.. The channel primarily broadcasts speculative fiction and related programming. The network was launched on October 17 ...

in Canada, and on

ABC TV Plus ABC Family is an Australian free-to-air television channel owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and part of its ABC Television (Australian TV network), ABC Television network. The television channel, channel broadcasts a range of f ...

in Australia, where the first special also aired on

ABC Television ABC Television most commonly refers to: *ABC Television Network of the American Broadcasting Company, United States, or *ABC Television (Australian TV network), a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia ABC Television or ABC ...

Home media

"Eve of the Daleks" and "Legend of the Sea Devils" received a joint DVD and Blu-ray release in across several

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

in 2022. "The Power of the Doctor" was released on the same formats later in the year. All three episodes were also distributed as a Blu-ray

SteelBook Optical disc packaging is the packaging that accompanies CDs, DVDs, and other formats of optical discs. Most packaging is rigid or semi-rigid and designed to protect the media from scratches and other types of exposure damage. Jewel case A ...

in region 2 beginning on 7 November 2022. The three specials were included in a complete release of all Whittaker's ''Doctor Who'' episodes in region 1.

Soundtracks

On 18 November 2022, composer

announced that three individual soundtracks featuring selected pieces of score from each special would be digitally released on 2, 9, and 16 December 2022, respectively. A physical CD release containing all three soundtracks was released on 13 January 2023.

Reception

Ratings

"Eve of the Daleks" experienced a 300,000 decline in viewership compared to that of the thirteenth series finale broadcast a month earlier. With 4.4 million total viewers, it also saw a decline in year-over-year data when compared to the two previous New Year's Day specials. "The Power of the Doctor" peaked at 4.04 million in its final moments. The three specials averaged million viewers in consolidated data, which is lower than the average of 4.8 million seen in the previous series and 5.4 million average brought in by the twelfth series. Strevens defended the programme's lower ratings, stating that they were "very strong" for a broadcast series. They also maintained an average television share of %. The episodes have an averaged

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of , the highest score being "The Power of the Doctor" with 82 and the lowest being "Legend of the Sea Devils". In the United States, ''Doctor Who'' averaged 340,667 viewers in its first broadcast on BBC America, also down overall from ''Flux'' and Whittaker's debut series.

Critical response

On the

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website

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, % of reviews are positive, with an average rating of /10 for all three specials. Critics felt that the specials were an improvement on the previous series. ''

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''s Craig Elvy wrote that the "2022 specials are avoiding the mistakes that killed ''Flux''", explaining that the standalone episodic format serves the story better than the seralised format of ''Flux''. Writing for ''

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'', Sarah Barrett ranked the specials as the fourteenth best series of modern ''Doctor Who.'' "Eve of the Daleks" was praised for its comedic tone. ''ScreenRant''s Mark Donaldson labeled the episode "Chibnall's funniest ''Doctor Who'' script". ''

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'''s Andrew Blair felt that both "Eve of the Daleks" and "The Power of the Doctor" were among the best Thirteenth Doctor episodes. Diane Darcy with ''

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'' (''CBR'' noted the parallels between the romantic relationship of the Tenth Doctor and Rose and the Thirteenth Doctor and Yaz, writing that "history seemingly repeated itself, but somehow worse than before". ''CBR''s Maddie Davis stated that "Chibnall undoubtedly dropped the ball there" and felt it represented a wider problem in the media with a lack of

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television writers. Many critics felt the Thasmin plotline was

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, and ''

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''s BJ Colangelo felt it had an intentional lack of closure. Some viewers criticised the resolution of this story arc.

References

{{navboxes, list1= {{Doctor Who episodes by Chris Chibnall {{Thirteenth Doctor stories {{Doctor Who soundtracks 2022 British television seasons Series 13a Series 13a Television shows written by Chris Chibnall