Next month is the 60th-anniversary of the world’s longest-running sci-fi television show. Alongside the series of specials, the BBC has opened its vaults and will release the biggest collection of Doctor Who episodes ever onto their own streaming platform, the iPlayer.
From November 1st, over 800 episodes of Doctor Who will be made available, including older “classic” Who alongside the episodes from the 2005 revival onwards. Episodes will be made available with multiple accessibility options, including subtitles, audio descriptions, and sign language.
As part of the celebration, an extensive online archive from the show’s history will be released on the BBC site including interviews with cast, written documents, long unheard audio, and behind-the-scenes photos. Returning showrunner Russell T. Davies said:
“I’d like to thank the BBC for all the hard work, to get this massive back catalogue under one roof, at long last. I’m so excited for new viewers – imagine being 8 years old, spending winter afternoons exploring the 60s, 70s, 80s and beyond. And we’re determined this won’t be a dusty museum – we have exciting plans to bring the back catalogue to life, with much more to be revealed!”
With the BBC show now a co-production with Disney, and Disney+ becoming the home of Doctor Who outside the UK, all eyes now turn to Disney+ to see if the extensive back catalog will make its way to that platform as well.
Doctor Who is listed in Guinness World Records as the longest-running science-fiction television series in the world, as well as the “most successful” science-fiction series of all time, based on its overall broadcast ratings, DVD and book sales, and iTunes traffic.
David Tennant returns in the form of the Fourteenth Doctor for the three 60th anniversary specials that air in late November.
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