WARNING: Contains SPOILERS for Doctor Who: "The Giggle."
Summary
- David Tennant's Doctor finally gets a chance at a normal life on Earth, bringing an end to his struggles and traumas.
- The bi-generation creates a Doctorverse, where each Past Doctor has their own adventures, teasing an interesting future for David Tennant's Doctor.
- UNIT now has a Doctor on call, as David Tennant's Doctor could be called upon for help and guidance in times of crisis.
In a huge moment in Doctor Who history, David Tennant and Ncuti Gatwa's Doctors now co-exist, raising the question of what's next for the Fourteenth Doctor after "The Giggle". After the historic bi-generation, David Tennant's Doctor finally gets a chance of having a normal life on Earth, safe in the knowledge that his successor is out there looking after the universe. It's a moving ending for this most human of Doctors, who always harbored a dream of settling down. However, it's hard to escape the fact that Doctor Who has an Earthbound Doctor again, 50 years after the original exile of the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) came to an end.
Doctor Who's shock bi-generation has created two Doctors. One is Ncuti Gatwa, the charismatic intergalactic adventurer who takes up the baton from David Tennant. The second is David Tennant's Fourteenth Doctor, finally allowed to slow down and reconcile the traumas of the Timeless Child, the Flux, and everybody he's lost. Intriguingly, Russell T Davies stated in the in-vision commentary for "The Giggle" that the bi-generation has essentially created a Doctorverse, where each Past Doctor now has their own adventures. This explains how the older Doctors could reunite with their companions in Tales of the TARDIS and teases an interesting future for David Tennant's Doctor.
Doctor Who 60th Anniversary Specials Ending Explained
The final Doctor Who anniversary special, "The Giggle," is a regeneration story like no other - and its ending sets up some tremendous adventures.
David Tennant's Fourteenth Doctor Has A Family On Earth
15 years after he was forced to leave Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) with the Metacrisis Doctor, David Tennant's Doctor finally gets a home life of his own. In the epilogue to "The Giggle", the Doctor s Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) and her family for lunch in the garden. The Doctor's TARDIS is effectively their new shed, and it's revealed that he's still taking it for short hops when nobody is looking. He's already taken his favorite niece, Rose (Yasmin Finney) to Mars, and traveled to New York's gilded age with "mad auntie Mel" (Bonnie Langford). However, the Doctor seems to finally be at peace, and the orphaned Timeless Child finally has a family of their own.
Doctor Who also revealed that the Doctor's former companion Mel was also an orphan, so it's a touching epilogue that both she and the Fourteenth Doctor get a brand new blended family. The Doctor tells Donna that he's never been happier in his whole life, and it's heartening to know that he can now take the time to reconcile all the pain and loss with a strong family by his side. It's the perfect ending for David Tennant's Doctor, who has harbored these hopes since his Tenth incarnation told Rose that he could never truly settle down with her. Finally, he has a chance to do just that, and it's a lovely happy ending, until the next time the Earth is in deadly danger, of course.
UNIT Now Has A Doctor On Call
For the first time since the 1970s, Doctor Who's UNIT has a Doctor on call, although unlike Jon Pertwee's Third Doctor, David Tennant's incarnation isn't on the payroll. At least, not yet he isn't. After all, UNIT already has a highly capable and dependable scientific advisor in the form of Shirley Anne Bingham (Ruth Madeley). Russell T Davies has said in the behind-the-scenes show, Doctor Who Unleashed, that the Fourteenth Doctor is effectively retired at the end of "The Giggle." However, there is a grand tradition in popular culture of classic heroes being brought out of retirement in times of crisis.
It's been confirmed that Kate Stewart (Jemma Redgrave), Mel and Shirley will return for the Ncuti Gatwa era of Doctor Who, so they won't need to bother the Fourteenth Doctor in the next season. However, the Fifteenth Doctor will have his hands full, showing new companion Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson) all creation, so he can't be around all the time. This means that, should the worst happen, UNIT can turn to the retired Fourteenth Doctor for help and guidance, either in a future episode or the rumored Disney+ spinoff.
David Tennant Can Star In Doctor Who UNIT Stories & Even Spinoffs
Before coming back to Doctor Who, Russell T Davies stated his desire to see Doctor Who spinoffs for past Doctors. The bi-generation and RTD's reveal that Tales of the TARDIS is a side effect of that process create the possibility of future adventures for David Tennant as the Doctor. A limited event miniseries' featuring a previous Doctor would be an inventive way to fill the gaps between seasons of Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor Who. Tennant remains a big draw, and while it's right to rest his Doctor for now, leaving him on Earth does feel like a shrewd piece of future-proofing by Russell T Davies.
The other possibility for David Tennant's Doctor is a recurring role in the rumored UNIT spinoff series on Disney+. The Fourteenth Doctor returning for a season finale or mid-season two-parter would be a great way to boost interest in the UNIT show, should it happen. In fact, now that the bi-generation has apparently brought back every former incarnation of the Doctor, a UNIT spinoff could even have a rotating cast of special guest Doctors. It's an exciting time for Doctor Who fans, as it truly feels like anything is possible in this brand new era of the long-running sci-fi show.
Doctor Who returns to BBC One and Disney+ on Christmas Day. All three 60th anniversary specials are available to stream now.
-
The latest Doctor Who series introduces the Fifteenth Doctor, ed by new companion Ruby Sunday.
-
Tales of the Tardis is a live-action series that brings back past Doctors from the Classic Who years. Each episode pieces together the story from a classic Doctor Who episode with new footage of the original characters reminiscing about a past adventure. The episodes are available exclusively in the UK on BBC's iPlayer.
