When Russell T Davies brought back Doctor Who in 2005, it was grounded with a contemporary Earth setting, from which the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) and Rose (Billie Piper) would travel across the planet’s past, present, and future. RTD’s ban on alien worlds in Doctor Who did cause consternation among old-school fans, but the approach guaranteed that the relaunch had a hugely successful crossover appeal. However, 18 years later, it feels like Davies still wants to avoid alien worlds, which feels like a regressive and potentially harmful approach to Doctor Who’s future.

While the exact plot details of Doctor Who season 14 are still under wraps, the show’s social media accounts have shared various enticing images of what to expect. Each of these images depicted the Doctor and Ruby in various period costumes that suggest the majority of Doctor Who season 14 will be set on Earth. Of course, the nature of VFX means that any alien landscapes likely wouldn’t be ready to share on social media so far away from the date of broadcast. However, Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson’s costumes, and the return of Bonnie Langford as Melanie Bush give a good sense of how much of season 14 will be set on Earth in various time periods.

During RTD’s first Doctor Who era it made sense to set a good chunk of the episodes on Earth, to make the show appeal to a much broader audience. However, in 2023 it feels like TV audiences are far more comfortable with mainstream sci-fi after over a decade of seeing Marvel movies and watching Star Wars shows on Disney+ in recent years. On top of that, high-concept sci-fi shows like Rick and Morty have had crossover appeal, using broad comedy to introduce complex science-fiction ideas to audiences that may not have previously had an interest.