Doctor Who itself took a bit of a break this year with only a few specials rather than a whole series, but now that spin-0ffs had officially proved themselves worthwhile, they went back to where they started with K9. Much like the fan-films of the 90's, this Australian produced series needed no licence from the BBC, as it instead uses only characters held under licence by the show's writers rather than owners. K9 himself was again voiced by original 70's actor John Leeson, and even though only one series was produced, the show also featured Doctor Who monsters the Axons, Mandrels, and Sea Devils. Despite the connections though, its only British broadcast was on the Disney XD channel.
2010
After long speculation over who would replace firm fan favourite David Tennant, it was the new face of Matt Smith who was joined by equally new companions Amy and Rory. This time the new dynamic of two engaged companions brought a new atmosphere to the TARDIS crew, not least because Amy becomes probably the only companion who tried to sleep with the Doctor on the night before her wedding. In fact with new showrunner Steven Moffat bringing in a new logo and TARDIS design (both inside and out), the show received so much of a revamp several BBC sources even described it as "Series 1". Moffat even included classic Who when describing it as "Season 31", but most fans were too impressed with Smith's performance to notice. Impressed and intrigued, what will happen when "Silence will fall"?
2011
Wibbly Wobbly began early with The Comic Relief specials Space And Time, and it didn't let off easily. With the Doctor seemingly dying, the start of series 6 turned the occasional story arc into one long mystery. With a story involving NASA and the White House, it also seemed only fitting that the TARDIS welcomed modern sci fi go-to guy Mark Sheppard on board. (For "modern sci fi" read The X Files, Sliders, Star Trek: Voyager, Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, Warehouse 13.....) Split into two halves, this series took a break after just seven episodes, and confirmation of River Song's identity: Amy and Rory's daughter! The second half picked up right where the first left off, and the death of the Doctor was finally explained when audiences were invited to The Wedding of River Song.