Doctor Who fans were given a wonderful treat this weekend, when a 2 and a half minute trailer for the upcoming 60th anniversary specials dropped. With less than two months to go until the show’s return, let’s take a look at some of the fun new details revealed by the new trailer.
The Doctor (David Tennant) explains his history with Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) to Ruth Madeley’s character, while clips from the Season 4 episode “Journey’s End” plays. In that episode, Donna had to have her memory wiped by the Doctor because of a human/Time Lord meta crisis which also created another version of the Doctor. He notes that if Donna remembers him, she will die. Which is made all the more complicated by a spaceship crashing right in front of her.
We get a lot more fun lines from Catherine Tate, who effortlessly slips back into the role. She shouts, “we’ve got a bloody Martian in the shed!” – referring to the Meep, the iconic creature adapted from 1980 comic strip, “The Star Beast,” and voiced by Miriam Margolyes. Later in the trailer, it’s shown that something happened that was so bad that the TARDIS ran away, to which Donna says “we’ll just go and kick its a**!”
The Doctor says that “after a very long time,” something is coming back, likely referring to Neil Patrick Harris’ character, confirmed to be the Toymaker, a character who has not appeared in Doctor Who since 1965’s “The Celestial Toymaker.”
While we knew that Jemma Redgrave would be returning to play Kate Stewart, the head of U.N.I.T., in the next season alongside Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor, it turns out she will also be in the 60th anniversary specials. The Doctor warmly embraces her as he arrives at a very tall and grand new headquarters for the organization. Kate asks “how do we fight the human race?” – potentially setting up some sort of control the Toymaker has over the population.
Amid a backdrop of an apocalyptic London, we get some emotional clips of Tennant acting his heart out, as he screams “why does it have to be this!” and “your fight is with me!” at the Toymaker, as the Toymaker is literally seen in the sky pulling the strings like a puppet master. The Doctor then says to Donna, “I don’t know if I can save your life this time.”
The trailer then ends with a brand-new shot of Ncuti Gatwa, mysteriously appearing as the Doctor.
These three specials of Doctor Who – “The Star Beast,” “Wild Blue Yonder” and “The Giggle” – will air this November on the BBC in the UK, and for the first time, Disney+ everywhere else.