Doctor Who’s Chris Chibnall reveals exit took ‘longer than expected’

Doctor Who is approaching the end of an era, with Jodie Whittaker and showrunner Chris Chibnall set to leave the programme in 2022 – and Chris has revealed that his exit took ‘longer than he expected’.

The writer and producer is set to be replaced by Russell T Davies, who was behind the 2005 revival of the show, but things haven’t gone exactly as he initially planned. 

‘It’s taken longer than expected if we’re being honest. I’ve been throwing batons at people for about a year now. And finally, someone’s picked it up,’ Chris told Metro.co.uk and other gathered press.

‘We had that conversation right at the start, and I hope you can see that the atmosphere is so team-oriented and so positive, it is a proper family atmosphere.’

He added: ‘This cast and this crew are so close – you wouldn’t want to do it with other people, because it’s just been its own little, discrete show. And then the next version will be its own discrete show, just as Peter [Capaldi]’s era was, and Matt [Smith]’s era was, and David [Tennant]’s was.’

Chris looked back on his time on the show, saying: ‘You couldn’t enjoy it any more than we’ve enjoyed it. It’s been such a laugh and such a privilege.

‘And I think we’ve been deliberately very mindful of being in the moment. Obviously, I’ve known Russell and Steven [Moffat] for a long time and part of their advice was just: “Enjoy it while you’re doing it, because afterwards you really miss it.”

‘We’ve definitely approached it like that. I don’t feel any sadness about the end approaching. It’s just: ‘We came in, and we did what we set out to do.’ And I feel like there’s been an incredible atmosphere while we’ve been doing it. So it feels really good. And frankly, I’ll get to see my family again, which would be really nice.’

Chris and Jodie are both leaving next year, but there’s a whole lot to enjoy before that.

An air date for the 13th series Doctor Who: Flux – which will feature one continuous story line – was recently announced for October 31.

Doctor Who: Flux arrives on BBC One on October 31.

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