The time has come! After 13 months, Doctor Who finally returns for its 60th Anniversary. The Doctor (David Tennant) and Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) are back together, and it all kicks off this Saturday, November 25th, on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 18:30 GMT. As Disney+ prepare to launch Doctor Who globally, all eyes are on the franchise. In this preview for the opening special, Doctor Who: “The Star Beast”, we’ll take you through everything we know, from spaceships crashing in London, to The Meep, and the return of the Noble family. It’s all kicking off as Doctor Who is finally back!
Titled “The Star Beast“, this episode will bring the Fourteenth Doctor into our lives for their first full on-screen adventure. Returning showrunner Russell T Davies writes the episode, and Rachel Talalay directs it. The special is based on the 80s comic ‘Doctor Who and The Star Beast‘ featuring the Fourth Doctor. Most of the same characters, such as the Wrath Warriors and Beep the Meep, will be included.
A spaceship crashes into London!
It wouldn’t be Doctor Who without a spaceship crash landing! Whether this is Beep the Meep’s ship or the Wrath Warriors, we’ll soon find out. This happens moments after the Doctor finds himself back into Donna Noble’s life after helping her with some boxes…and then quickly putting them back. We know from past episodes that Donna is quite prone to missing big alien events. She had a hangover when the Sycorax ship came to earth, and was in Spain during the Battle of Canary Wharf. Will she finally catch an alien ship crashing?
How Donna gets her memories back, or if she gets them back, will (hopefully) be revealed on Saturday. As of right now, this plot point is completely up in the air for us.
The Doctor investigates…and meets Shirley
Introducing Shirley Anne Bingham, played by Ruth Madeley. Who Shirley is, and why the Doctor confides in her, like everything else, is all a secret. Does she work for UNIT? Is she investigating this ship as well? As revealed in the trailer, Shirley is the person the Doctor tells about wiping Donna’s memory. So, it seems she’s someone we can trust…or can we?
The Noble family returns…with a new addition
Yep, the gang are back! The Noble family returns with a new addition…Donna and Shaun’s daughter Rose, played by Yasmin Finney. The last time they graced our screens was in the New Year’s Day special “The End of Time: Part Two” in 2010. Things have certainly changed since we’ve last seen them.
After the Doctor wiped Donna’s memory, her life seemed to go back to normal. Until she discovers, what she describes as a ‘space rat’, living in her shed. That ‘space rat’ turns out to be Beep the Meep.
What we can speculate from the trailer is that Donna’s daughter Rose is the one who finds the Meep, and hides them away. However, nothing stays hidden for long, as Donna soon discovers what her daughter’s been hiding…
Donna feels like something’s missing…
As revealed in the trailer, Donna’s having a heart-to-heart with her mum Sylvia about what she’s feeling. The Doctor may have wiped her mind of their adventures, but Donna feels like she’s lost something lovely…
The Wrath Warriors are on the hunt
These tall bug-like creatures will be making their screen debut in the special. Originally introduced in the 80s comic, the Wrath Warriors will explode into Donna’s home on the hunt for the Meep. Nothing more is known about these aliens, so we’ll have to wait and see for the episode…
UNIT Returns
UNIT hasn’t been away for too long after appearing in the centenary special last year. As you may remember, their building was destroyed in the episode, and now it looks like they’ve had a refresh!
Introducing the cast…
The Fourteenth Doctor – David Tennant
Donna Noble – Catherine Tate
Rose Noble – Yasmin Finney
Sylvia Noble – Jacqueline King
Shaun Temple – Karl Collins
Beep the Meep – Miriam Margolyes
Shirley Anne Bingham – Ruth Madeley
BBC Reporter – Matt Green
Trailers & Previews
It looks like we know quite a bit about this episode, but in reality, we know very little! All major plot points are still under-wraps. The excitement is building…and it’s only TWO days to go!
Doctor Who will return on November 25th 2023, with “The Star Beast“, the first in three special episodes as the show’s 60th Anniversary headliner event. David Tennant returns as the 14th Doctor alongside Catherine Tate as Donna Noble. Ncuti Gatwa’s first episode as the Fifteenth Doctor will air over the festive period, while his series 14 will debut in 2024 with Millie Gibson. Disney+ will be the exclusive home for new Doctor Who seasons outside the UK and Ireland.
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