Doctor Who Series 13: 6 Big Reasons To Be Worried

When Chibnall took the reigns in 2018, Doctor Who moved from its traditional Saturday night slot, to a Sunday night one. While this inherently felt like a demotion (you can't get more prime-time than Saturday night), the show's ratings were strong, aided by the fact that each episode started no later than 7pm - a reasonable hour for families and young children, especially with school and work in the morning.

But with Series 13 though, not only is that Sunday night demotion still in effect, but the episodes are now set to air much later in the evening - assuming that the entire series follows the premiere's lead.

This is subject to change of course, but reportedly, that premiere will start at 8:30pm on Sunday night, a bizarre move for a show that's supposed to be four-quadrant entertainment. Lots of parents aren't going to let their kids stay up till half-nine on a school night, and heck, the parents themselves might want to be in bed by that point!

According to this article, Flux will premiere 8:30pm on Sunday 31st October on BBC One ?

Thoughts on the time slot ?#DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/OrMxK5BEgi

— Safe Space Who ? (@SafeSpaceDrWho) October 9, 2021

This isn't some brand-new adult drama we're talking about here, or a re-run of a daytime quiz show - this is Doctor freaking Who. This is a show that deserves the Saturday night red carpet treatment, not to be shunted off to a barren Sunday evening like that weird uncle nobody talks to at parties.

Sure, day-and-date views are less important in the era of iPlayer and streaming, but shouldn't Doctor Who be appointment viewing? Answer: yes. Not to sound too conspiratorial, but a cold, dark Sunday night isn't where you air a blockbuster show that you're proud of - especially when that show needs all the help it can get.