The Timeless Child storyline was perhaps the most controversial aspect of Chris Chibnall's tenure as Doctor Who showrunner. In this plot thread, the Thirteenth Doctor learned that she was not originally from Gallifrey, but that she had been discovered as a child by a Gallifreyan woman named Tecteun, who took her in and raised her. This unknown child possessed the power of regeneration, and it was through them that the Time Lords learned those secrets. Unlike other Time Lords, though, the Timeless Child could regenerate infinitely. The Doctor has actually had many more than thirteen forms, but the Thirteenth Doctor couldn't remember all of her previous regeneration cycles.
Many fans of the show took issue with the idea of the Timeless Child, because of how radically it changed the lore of the Whoniverse. It essentially threw away everything that had been established about Gallifrey and the Time Lords. A few, though, found it intriguing. Doctor Who is fundamentally about change, and sometimes that means reexamining what we think we already know. But considering the largely negative reaction to Chibnall's concept, many wondered if Russel T. Davies, upon returning to Doctor Who for the first time since 2009, would retcon this storyline to pacify fans.
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However, the latest special suggests that this does not appear to be the case. Trapped at the edge of the universe, the Doctor confronts a mysterious entity who seems to know every aspect of his mind. This entity alludes to the fact that the Doctor is not from Gallifrey, suggesting that Davies may in fact plan to pursue the Timeless Child narrative.
What Happens in "Wild Blue Yonder"?
Episode Title | "Wild Blue Yonder" |
|---|---|
Director | Tom Kingsley |
Writer | Russel T. Davies |
Cast | David Tennant, Catherine Tate |
Air Date | December 2, 2023 |
In the second 60th anniversary special, The Doctor and Donna are stranded on a spaceship at the edge of the universe after the TARDIS goes haywire and proceeds to fly off without them. There are no life signs aboard the ship, but they soon discover that they are trapped with two mysterious entities who originated out in the nothingness. These two beings, as they terrorize and observe Donna and the Doctor, learn to copy them, from their appearance to their voice to their very thoughts.
Trapped on a ship with near-exact duplicates of each other, Donna and the Doctor continually get separated and reunite — but each time, it becomes harder and harder for the Doctor to tell who is the real Donna, and vice versa. Even the audience isn't sure, waiting with bated breath for one of the fakes to slip up.
During one such instance, one Doctor and one Donna question each other, while identical versions of each do the same in another room. One Donna asks the Doctor in front of her where he's from. He responds by referencing a conversation that took place between both Donnas and both Doctors:
Nah, we've done that, we talked about that. Back there, out loud. All four of us know it's Gallifrey.
Donna, however, knows the truth.
Except...it's not. [...] You don't know where you're from.
Donna explains that she knows this because, when the metacrisis returned to her, she saw everything the Doctor had been through since the last time they met. She saw the Thirteenth Doctor learn the truth about her identity and origin, and thus she knows that the Doctor isn't actually from Gallifrey.
By acknowledging this revelation, Davies heavily implies that he is, at the very least, not planning to retcon Chibnall's concept of the Timeless Child. The Doctor is not from Gallifrey, but somewhere unknown. He is not a Time Lord, but something else. If Davies plans to ignore this storyline altogether, there's very little reason to include this exchange. If the intention in this scene was solely to leave the Doctor vulnerable and unsettled, Donna's mention of the Flux would have been enough. But by bringing up the Timeless Child, which remains a loose end, Davies opens the door to take that path in future episodes.
The "Donna" who claims to know the truth, though, is proven to be the fake. The rest of the episode is just as filled with drama, tense moments, and a touch of body horror. But eventually, the real Donna and the real Doctor manage to escape, destroying their villainous copies in the process.
But of course, that's not quite the end. In the TARDIS on their way to take Donna home, the Doctor asks her about what the fake Donna said, and if she too knows everything he's done since they last met. Donna claims she can't remember:
It's too much. It's like looking into a furnace.
However, it's unclear if Donna is telling the truth. The Doctor, though he's trying not to show it, is clearly upset by the idea that Donna might know everything he's seen and done since they parted ways. And Donna knows the Doctor well enough to know when he's hiding something. It's not out of the question that she does in fact know, and understands that the Doctor doesn't want her to.
Will Davies Pursue The Timeless Child Story?
As of the latest episode, there's no way to know for sure. All that can be said is that Davies won't be resetting Chibnall's canon. While critics of Chibnall's era of Doctor Who may not appreciate this decision, there is some merit to it.
Davies has said that he intends his new start to be a sort of "soft reboot" for New Who, starting fresh. Some viewers, though, were worried that this would mean doing away with everything both Moffat and Chibnall brought to the series — the good and the bad. However, that doesn't seem to be the case. Whether Davies continues the Timeless Child storyline or not, he at least intends to honor the work that Moffat and Chibnall did. Each of the showrunners has their strong points and their weak points, their fans and their detractors. Like them or not, they all worked to get the show to where it is today. Erasing their contributions isn't the way to show love or respect for the legacy of Doctor Who.
The Doctor is always changing, and Doctor Who changes with them. In his second turn as showrunner, Russel T. Davies acknowledges and respects that the show has taken new directions in the 15 years he's been away. With his acknowledgment of the Timeless Child, he has opened the door for the Fifteenth Doctor to pursue his origins, seek out his home planet, and find answers about what he is.
Of course, considering how controversial the concept is, Davies may decide not to build on the Timeless Child. Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor may find himself on a completely different adventure. But the opportunity to pursue the storyline is there. And with all of time and space at one's fingertips, Doctor Who is all about the opportunity to take a variety of paths.
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