10 Biggest Doctor Who Criticisms (And Why They're Wrong)

Despite Class’s first series being fairly well received, before its premiere it still gained a reputation amongst some fans on social media as 'The spin-off no one asked for', while others have called for a return of Torchwood, or new spin-offs with pre-existing characters. But television can’t work purely from what fans want.

While the Paternoster Gang are workable as occasional characters, a full spin-off with them would be a logistical nightmare. Not only would the Victorian setting chew through quite a bit of the budget; but two of the three lead characters need heavy prosthetics that take hours to apply and have to be replaced for every day of shooting.

Elsewhere, some spin-offs have either run their course or just don’t have enough going for them to go to a full series. Torchwood racked up a respectable four series but by Miracle Day, many thought it had run out of steam. Meanwhile, a Clara and Ashildr spin-off would be little more than Doctor Who with a different name and an incredibly impractical Tardis prop.

Fans just have to accept that what they think would be a good spin-off might not make for the best ongoing series, or be possible to produce. But failing that, there’s always the Big Finish audios. Where the only real stumbling blocks are licensing, and signing on the actors they need.