Doctor Who will return to screens at Christmas, 2026, but the BBC's co-production deal with Disney Plus has ended

Promo art for The War Between the Land and the Sea shows some Sea Devils rising from the oceans and looking at New York.

(Image credit: BBC / Disney Plus)

The BBC has confirmed that the long-awaited new Doctor Who spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea, will be hitting screens this year – in the UK, at least.

In a new press release that also comes with a host of new images, the BBC has confirmed that the series will launch on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in December, though an exact date has not yet been revealed. The US, however, will have a little longer to wait, with the show coming to Disney Plus "in 2026."

According to the BBC, The War Between the Land and the Sea will "showcase how the world reacts when a fearsome and ancient species emerges from the ocean, dramatically revealing themselves to humanity and triggering an international crisis."

The broadcaster also confirmed that the cast for the series will include new characters like Russell Tovey's Barclay and Gugu Mbatha-Raw's Salt, alongside returning Whoniverse faces Jemma Redgrave as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, Ruth Madeley as Shirley Ann Bingham, and Alexander Devrient as Colonel Ibrahim.

Russell Tovey as Barclay in The War Between the Land and the Sea. — (Image credit: BBC / Disney Plus)

Doctor Who showrunner Russell T. Davies, who is also the writer and executive producer on The War Between, described the new show as, "A huge, spectacular Christmas treat, with heroes and monsters and battles and romance, in a world on the edge of disaster. And remember. Watch the seas!"

Those "monsters" would appear to be Sea Devils, an ocean-dwelling race that pre-dates humanity and were first seen in classic Doctor Who back in 1972. They appear to have undergone a bit of a face-lift since we last saw them in 2022's 'Legend of the Sea Devils,' which stared Jodie Whittaker as the Doctor.

The new spin-off seems to be standing in for the traditional Doctor Who Christmas special this year, with the main show not returning until Christmas 2026. The new announcement also comes just days after it was revealed that the partnership between the BBC and Disney Plus on Doctor Who has ended, with the BBC seemingly going it alone for the time being.

You can fill out your watchlist with our guide to the best shows on Disney Plus.

Will Salmon is the Streaming Editor for GamesRadar+. He has been writing about film, TV, comics, and music for more than 15 years, which is quite a long time if you stop and think about it. At Future he launched the scary movie magazine Horrorville, relaunched Comic Heroes, and has written for every issue of SFX magazine for well over a decade. His music writing has appeared in The Quietus, MOJO, Electronic Sound, Clash, and loads of other places too.

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