Doctor Who: 10 Behind The Scenes Decisions We Can't Forgive

2. Ending Every Spin-Off Show

Doctor Who Torchwood
BBC Studios

Over the last decade, Doctor Who spin-off shows The Sarah Jane Adventures, Torchwood, and Class have either been cancelled or have just ended, with the most recent - Class - airing its final episode in December 2016.

These shows expanded the world of Doctor Who with fantastic characters who were dealing with various alien attacks, and while The Sarah Jane Adventures can no longer continue due to the unfortunate passing of Elisabeth Sladen, it's frankly quite annoying that the BBC doesn't tap into the unlimited possibilities that a Doctor Who spin-off could explore, either with Torchwood, Class, or a brand-new original series.

With the breaks between Doctor Who seasons growing bigger and bigger in recent years (and with Big Finish proving that there's a massive appetite for Doctor Who content outside the main show ) why not schedule a spin-off to fill in that gap, giving fans a constant stream of Who-related TV content throughout the year? Yes, Class' ratings weren't great, but one stumble doesn't mean the BBC should just give up.

Again, it's not like the infinite universe of Doctor Who doesn't present many options, and it's not like the show's fanbase is some niche, tiny corner of the TV community. But for some reason, the BBC just doesn't seem bothered about putting in the effort to produce a spin-off (even in the Classic era, they canned a K-9/Sarah Jane show), and that sucks, because more Doctor Who is never a bad thing.

Hopefully, the return of Captain Jack Harkness in Series 12 is a sign that Torchwood may be revived, but we'll just have to wait and see.

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Danny has been with WhatCulture for over ten years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. In 2022, he took charge of WhoCulture and has grown it into the biggest Doctor Who channel on YouTube, and one of the biggest Doctor Who communities on the web full-stop. He has been writing and video editing since his early teens, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers, off the back of a burning obsession with the Matt Smith era of the show. Like many his age, he first got into Doctor Who with the 2005 revival, but has since gone back and fallen in love with the classic years too. If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order, or to give you a random factoid about the making of Gridlock, Danny is the person to ask!