Doctor Who Announces 2020 Holiday Special “Revolution of the Daleks”

Doctor Who wraps up a shocking twelfth season on Sunday with the finale episode “The Timeless Child.” This season saw the return of The Master (played by Sacha Dhawan), the introduction of a new incarnation of the Doctor (played by Jo Martin), and the return of John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness. Another big return is on its way. Following the conclusion fo the season finale in the United Kingdom, the BBC announced that the Doctor will return in a new holiday special. That episode is titled “Revolution of the Daleks,” confirming that some of the Doctor’s oldest enemies will return to face Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor.

The BBC says the episode will air “in the upcoming festive season,” but did not name a date. For 10 seasons, Doctor Who aired a Christmas Special on Christmas Day. For the past two seasons, since Chris Chibnall took over a showrunner, the series has aired its special on New Year’s Day instead. The BBC also confirmed that Whitaker will be again joined by here companions — Ryan played by Tosin Cole, Graham played by Bradley Walsh, and Yaz played by Mandip Gill — in “Revolution of the Daleks.”

“We can’t leave the Doctor there! On that cliffhanger! Well, we did,” Chibnall says in the statement. “But rest assured, the Doctor and her friends will be back for a one-off extended Special around Christmas and New Year. (I don’t know when they’re going to put it on yet, otherwise we’d tell you!). There will be Daleks. There will be exterminations. Thrills, laughter, tears. You know. The usual. See you at the end of the year.”

Charlotte Moore, director of BBC content adds, “I can’t wait for the Doctor to go into battle with the ultimate enemy in this year’s Daleks festive special.”

In January, Whittaker confirmed that she will return as the Doctor in the show’s thirteenth season. “Yes, I’m doing another season,” Whittaker said. “That might be a massive exclusive that I’m not supposed to say, but it’s unhelpful for me to say [I don’t know] because it would be a massive lie! I absolutely adore it. At some point, these shoes are going to be handed on, but it’s not yet. I’m clinging on tight!”

Fans in the United States who have fallen behind on Doctor Who will have an easy means of catching up before “Return of the Daleks” airs. HBO Max launches in May and will be the new exclusive streaming home of Doctor Who.