The BBC has unveiled Doctor Who: TARDIS Crew, an animated preschool version of the classic series, which will premiere on the British channel CBeebies in late 2027 or early 2028. The show will follow a younger version of the Doctor, and his companions Hannah, Beastie, and Toast-IE, as they adventure through time and space, while crossing paths with classic villains like the Daleks.
Kate Morton, Senior Head of Commissioning for CBeebies, says, “The TARDIS is ready for its youngest crew yet. Packed with imagination, humour and adventure, Doctor Who: TARDIS Crew will inspire children to be curious, courageous and kind as they explore incredible worlds across time and space. It’s everything families love about Doctor Who, wonder, excitement and endless possibility, reimagined for CBeebies’ youngest explorers.”
The Doctor has darker skin than most incarnations, similar to his most recent full-time actor, Ncuti Gatwa, who portrayed the part from 2023 to 2025. However, the teaser art is dominated by his nemesis the Daleks, who last took center stage on the main series in 2022. They vary in shapes and sizes, with weapons ranging from spoons, hoses, and literal plungers in lieu of their traditional weapons. While the show’s target audience means the fascist cyborgs may not cry “exterminate,” they certainly still look very, very grumpy.
Produced by Blue Zoo Animation Studio (The Adventures of Paddington), TARDIS Crew will consist of 52 eight minute episodes when it premieres. It is unknown where the show will be carried outside the UK when it arrives, especially with the end of the Disney deal that saw both of Gatwa’s seasons being released overseas on Disney+, that apparently caused the plan to similarly release the spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea (which aired in the UK last year) to collapse.
The show’s reveal comes in the wake of the BBC opening up a bid to new producers of the main series after the end of the Disney deal, which ended on October 2. In the meantime, Doctor Who continues to go strong publishing wise, with Panini’s Doctor Who Magazine currently revisiting past Doctors and companions in their monthly comic strip following Gatwa’s departure, and a second collection of stories featuring his Doctor, Corruption of the Daleks, due out October 20.
You can also an excerpt from Russell T Davies‘s new memoir The Queerest of Folk, reflecting on the end of his second time as showrunner last year, at The Guardian. In it, among other things, he reveals how far in advance the BBC knew Disney were bailing on the show, just how Billie Piper returned as the supposed current Doctor, and what exactly led to the cancellation of this year’s Christmas special. Allons-y!
