Brian Minchin takes over Caro Skinner's old role:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/doctorwho...-of-Doctor-Who

Feel free to merge with relevant thread if it doesn't warrant its own.

Good news. Definitely needs its own thread. Let's hope he's as good as Brian Pond nee Williams.

So they're paying someone to produce something. Series 8 is in the bag. Hope Brian blabbers about when.

AWESOME NEWS!! It was a twenty month contract as I recall from the job ad so there must almost certainly definitely be more besides the Christmas special to produce. Phew! panic over.

It's interesting that he's currently working on a series with Toby Whithouse as well. Bet that will set the rumour pigeons flying again.

Wonderful. Loads of experience, inside and outside the Whoniverse, so should be great.

First time the revived series hasn't had a woman in an exec capacity? Not that I always notice that sort of thing...

This is what the show needs.

Hopefully this means getting things back on track, schedule wise.

And good quality things too. Sarah Jane Adventures , whilst Whoniverse, was exceptionally good. I never bothered watching it until joining here and being told to. I was blown away by the quality. I had become cynical about children's telly during the eighties and nineties with all the merchandise based cartoons etc. It made me glad that people who really care were still making good stuff.

Ting would welcome the news, as he was always a SJA fan.

What? That "The Game" is actually a cover for the secret season 8 that they're currently filming with the New Doctor and show runner, that it takes a radical departure and has the first story spanning six episodes all set on earth in the 1970s

coo

This is really good news - all that Doctor Who, Torchwood and Sarah Jane Adventures is gonna serve Brian so well in the executive post

Series 8 is starting to take shape...

Does the non-creative exec really matter? The only impact they will have on the show is how well they can fight for the budget.

I only wish we were getting S8 as we did with S1-4 + 5, ie, 13 weeks from April. Seeing as they won't wrap up filming the 50th for a while, I guess this won't happen.

The point is it's a new position, with a twenty month contract. So this makes me feel rather more confident about the future of Doctor Who beyond the anniversary than I have for a while now.

Is it relevant that this guy has worked with Toby withouse twice before? As Toby is rumoured to be a future showrunner.

Toby just needs to be the next showrunner. He's 100% my favourite choice and having Brian onboard is surely a sign this could happen, right?

Really don't understand why anyone would be worried about that. Series 8, and beyond, has always been a certainty...if for no other reason than big cooperation's don't tend to willingly commit commercial suicide.

Can I draw your attention to the BBC's announcement in 1985 that it was suspending production on one of its most successful and profitable shows?

You can but I'd draw your attention to the fact it's 2013. Different era, different commercial world. Not getting into an argument but the BBC simply cannot afford to ditch one of their biggest money makers at a time when they're under severe financial constraint. Still, I can't stop people being worried if they wish. I'm just saying I'm not in the slightest.

The BBC have to have people watching in the UK in order to survive, money from overseas sales is far less important than BBC1 ratings.

If Top Gear collapsed in the ratings in the UK it would be dumped.

Well, it's a good thing Doctor Who's ratings aren't collapsing then isn't it. I'd quite like that to happen to Top Gear though. The less Jeremy Clarkson, the better......

The fact that at the moment each series is being spread over two years, juggled around the calendar and schedules, that the BBC have been rather vague about the reasons why and as yet there's been no confirmation of series 8, the fact that until yesterday there wasn't even an exec producer or company to do the special effects, that there were rumours flying around of the BBC 'not wanting to tire out the brand' were all things that were making me a little nervous.

Of course what you say about big corporations is true but the BBC doesn't always behave like most other corporations and actually profit shouldn't be there main motive for making shows, so I am very pleased that Doctor Who is still successful.

But I am quite happy to accept that this mostly due to my own paranoia from seeing how the BBC treated the Doctor Who production team and it's fans back in the 1980's and how they were less than honest about things back then.