The BBC has released first look photos from the Doctor Who Christmas Special 2020. Few fandoms have responded as positively to the chaos of the last few months as that of Doctor Who. During the worst of the lockdown, fans worked together with former writers, actors, and showrunners to produce a wealth of original content online. That's been followed by the biggest transmedia event in the history of Doctor Who, "Time Lord Victorious," which is proving a huge success.
But, of course, Doctor Who is first and foremost a TV series. Production on season 13 was inevitably delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic, but there are now reports Doctor Who has begun filming once again. Even better, the Doctor Who Holiday Special 2020 had wrapped before the lockdowns began, and it will air over the Christmas/New Year period. This will pick up from the cliffhanger ending of Doctor Who season 12, which saw the time traveler imprisoned by the Judoon, with her companions left on Earth. And somehow the Doctor's oldest enemies will fit in - because the Holiday Special is called "Revolution of the Daleks."
The BBC has taken advantage of the New York Comic Con Doctor Who panel to release two tantalizing first-look images from the Doctor Who Holiday Special, showing the Doctor and her friends. Check out the images below.
The Doctor has a good track record of escaping prisons, but the first image suggests she'll be held in the Judoon cells for quite some time. The Judoon have previously worked for the Time Lords - indeed, the Doctor may well have been imprisoned for "crimes" she conducted against Gallifrey - so they're one of the few races likely to have figured out how to contain the force of nature who calls herself the Doctor. Tie-in novels have previously explored the idea of just what it would mean for the Doctor to be confined in one place for a lengthy period of time since her mind rebels at stagnation. It will be fascinating to see this idea brought to life in the actual TV series.
Meanwhile, on Earth, the Doctor's companions must deal with a Dalek on their own. They have no idea where the Doctor's gone. In fact, they have no way of knowing she isn't just wandering the cosmos on her own. All three have to adjust to a normal life on Earth, and by the looks of it Yaz is the one who will struggle the most. During the panel, actor Mandip Gill teased that Yaz's past mental health issues will be explored, although she didn't clarify whether that would be in the Holiday Special or in Doctor Who season 13. The Holiday Special is expected to see Bradley Walsh and Tosin Cole bow out, but hopefully it won't be because they pay the price for winding up on the wrong side of a Dalek.