One of the key figures behind Doctor Who's success is returning to the franchise, in what will undoubtedly be a surprise to many. Christopher Eccleston has confirmed that he will return to the Doctor Who franchise for more adventures, though not in the way audiences may have guessed.
The Ninth Doctor has been referenced and featured in Doctor Who's expanded canon for a while but, now, Christopher Eccleston will officially reprise his role for an audio drama titled Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Adventures. The news comes from Big Finish, who explained that the four-volume series will be available through digital download, CD, or vinyl. Big Finish’s Chairman Jason Haigh-Ellery said he and Eccleston first talked about the surprise return while chatting at a convention:
I first talked to Christopher about returning to the role of the Doctor at the Gallifrey One convention in February this year. Christopher said he was enjoying meeting the fans and was pleased that his Doctor was remembered so fondly. He indicated he would be open to discussing a project with Big Finish. And then the pandemic happened and time moved both quickly and very slowly. Over recent months, ideas have been exchanged and discussions had. I am so pleased that Christopherhas decided to return to the role with us – and I'm excited to welcome him to the Big Finish family as we discover the new adventures of the Ninth Doctor.
As mentioned in the statement, the project will chronicle new adventures of the Ninth Doctor, who is the only listed character at this time. No details have been released as to who else will voice the three brand-new, full-cast audio adventures but, given how Doctor Who's canon is currently, these adventures may predate when Christopher Eccleston's Doctor met Rose Tyler. No guarantees though, and I would imagine the hype for this project would only get bigger if it was confirmed that actress Billie Piper is involved.
As touched on earlier, it may be incredibly surprising to hear Christopher Eccleston is physically involved in a new Doctor Who project. The actor has been vocal about not enjoying his time on the show, citing issues with things that happened during the reboot's first season, which inevitably led to him expressing the desire to leave the show. He only spent one season on the series but is largely responsible for the strong start that has kept the series going ever since.
And if Christopher Eccleston is willing to voice his Doctor in an audio drama, is it possible he'd be up for reprisal on the television show? Doctor Who is no stranger to Doctors of different eras linking up in different time periods and, with Chris Chibnall slowly but surely working in the past villains to Jodie Whittaker's run, now would be as good a time as any to bring him back. We can only wait and see!
Doctor Who is done with Season 12, though a holiday special is expected to happen later this year. Stay tuned for more details on that, and for the latest news happening in television and movies.
