RTD Defends Controversial UK Midnight Scheduling of Series 14, Says Even Kids Should “Stay Up!”

Back in March, it was announced that Series 14 of Doctor Who would premiere at midnight in the UK on iPlayer. Meanwhile, in the US, the show would air at a much more convenient evening slot on Disney+. This massive scheduling shake-up prompted complaints from some fans.

In the latest issue of DWM, now available, Russell T Davies defends the change in a lengthy column: “You’re not having to change your habits to fit the show; the show is changing to fit you. And it’s adapting to the patterns of modern TV shows, which I believe will soon be the norm. This is the future, and it’s already here.”

As for the very late release timing in the UK which might exclude younger viewers, RTD has a simple response: “Stay up! Have a party! This includes kids, too—many children attended midnight releases of new Harry Potter books. It was part of the excitement, a story they would remember for years. I’d especially recommend staying up for Episode 7 because it’s quite shocking—there might even be screaming!”

The showrunner then addressed fans’ concerns about avoiding spoilers: “If you want to stay spoiler-free before Saturday night’s [BBC One] airing, it can be done. I managed to stay spoiler-free when Game of Thrones aired in the UK during the early morning hours. I would watch it at 9pm that night, blissfully unaware. Perhaps I’m not as active online as you, but managing your online activity for about 18 hours on a Saturday should be feasible.”

RTD does eventually admit he “hears the worries”, and continues, “It’s easy to say ‘stay offline’ when your health or job or nature might make that impossible. And I’m sorry, because then, yes, spoilers, will fly. Unfortunately, there’s always been a subset of viewers hitting the spoiler problem, like the tons of people who work Saturdays and on night-shifts. They’ve had to negotiate this for years. So there has never been a transmission pattern in the digital age that’s perfect for everyone.”

He concludes: “And to be honest. If you’re that online, and cannot change… folks, you stand a high chance of getting spoiled anyway. Before transmission. That’s the modern world. Beyond my control.”