A brand-new trailer for The War Between the Land and the Sea has been released, exclusively broadcast on today’s The One Show, featuring leads Russell Tovey (Barclay Pierre-Dupont) and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Salt).

The five-part series will showcase how the world reacts when a fearsome and ancient species emerges from the ocean, dramatically revealing themselves to humanity and triggering an international crisis. UNIT, led by Kate Lethbridge-Stewart (Jemma Redgrave), fights for control as humanity faces destruction.

Alongside Russell Tovey, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and Jemma Redgrave, the series features a star-studded cast including Ruth Madeley as Shirley Bingham, Alexander Devrient as Colonel Christofer Ibrahim, and Colin McFarlane as General Austin Pierce. Other previously announced cast members include Adrian Lukis, Patrick Baladi, Francesca Corney, Mei Mac, Vincent Franklin, Waleed Hammad, Iestyn Arwel, Hannah Donaldson, Manpreet Bachu, and Ann Akinjirin.

The series is produced by Bad Wolf with BBC Studios for the BBC and Disney Branded Television and will launch with a double bill on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in the UK at 8:30pm on Sunday 7 December, and exclusively on Disney+ outside of the UK (where available) in 2026.

The series was created by Doctor Who Showrunner and Executive Producer Russell T Davies, who wrote the series with Executive Producer Pete McTighe. In addition, Executive Producers for Bad Wolf are Joel Collins, Julie Gardner, and Jane Tranter.

The series is directed by Dylan Holmes Williams, with Lorne Balfe serving as the show’s composer.

NEW TRAILER | The War Between the Land and the Sea

A newly re-edited version of the classic Doctor Who story ‘The Sea Devils’, will be available on BBC iPlayer and broadcast on BBC Four on Sunday 7th December

The 1972 Third Doctor story is being shown ahead of the foes' return in The War Between the Land and the Sea at 8:30 pm on BBC iPlayer and BBC One.

This new 90-minute special condenses the original six-part adventure into a feature-length experience, with updated sound design by Mark Ayres, and an enhanced score featured in The War Between the Land and the Sea created by Lorne Balfe, which has been woven together with Malcolm Clarke’s groundbreaking 1972 music.

The Sea Devils stars Jon Pertwee who played the Doctor between 1970 and 1974, alongside Katy Manning as companion Jo Grant, and features the Master, played by Roger Delgado.

Written by Malcolm Hulke and directed by Michael E. Briant, the story introduced audiences to the formidable aquatic species the Sea Devils.

Russell T Davies, Showrunner, Writer and Executive Producer says:

The special version of The Sea Devils will air on BBC iPlayer from 6 am and BBC Four at 7 pm on Sunday 7th December, and will be followed by a double bill of The War Between the Land and the Sea at 8:30pm on BBC iPlayer and BBC One.

The Sea Devils is produced by Bad Wolf with BBC Studios for BBC Four and BBC iPlayer. Executive producers are Russell T Davies, Joel Collins, Julie Gardner, and Jane Tranter.

The BBC has announced that the Doctor Who Spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea, is set to launch with a double bill on Sunday 7th December from 8:30pm simultaneously on BBC iPlayer and BBC One.

The five-part series follows Barclay (Russell Tovey), a low-level UNIT staff member whose ordinary life becomes a world of terror when an ancient species rises from the sea. Barclay becomes humanity’s ambassador when the mysterious Salt (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) emerges from the Tank at a summit on the Thames. UNIT, led by Kate Lethbridge-Stewart (Jemma Redgrave), fights for control as humanity faces destruction.

Alongside Russell Tovey, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and Jemma Redgrave, the series features a star-studded cast including Ruth Madeley as Shirley Bingham, Alexander Devrient as Colonel Christofer Ibrahim, and Colin McFarlane as General Austin Pierce. Other previously announced cast members include Adrian Lukis, Patrick Baladi, Francesca Corney, Mei Mac, Vincent Franklin, Waleed Hammad, Iestyn Arwel, Hannah Donaldson, Manpreet Bachu, and Ann Akinjirin.

Russell T Davies, Showrunner, Writer and Executive Producer says:

The series is produced by Bad Wolf with BBC Studios for the BBC and Disney Branded Television. Outside of the UK it will air exclusively on Disney+ in 2026.

The series was created by Doctor Who Showrunner and Executive Producer Russell T Davies, who has written the series with Executive Producer Pete McTighe. In addition, Executive Producers for Bad Wolf are Joel Collins, Julie Gardner, and Jane Tranter.

The series is directed by Dylan Holmes Williams, with Lorne Balfe serving as the show’s composer.

BBC Studios is celebrating Doctor Who Day 2025 with an interactive TARDIS Treasure Hunt.

The global celebration of the series takes place on Sunday, 23rd November, the 62nd anniversary of the broadcast of the first episode in 1963.

This year’s festivities centre around an exciting digital activation: VWORP AROUND THE WORLD, an interactive TARDIS treasure hunt inviting fans to help locate the Doctor’s missing time machine.

The virtual scavenger hunt unfolds across five missions, each guiding fans to a secret location via clues that when solved will reveal a location using what3words. Participants will log into the UNIT HQ section of the official Doctor Who website and enter the discovered TARDIS locations to unlock exclusive digital prizes, including deleted scenes, unseen scripts, and behind-the-scenes content.

The fifth and final mission, launching on 20th November, will culminate in a dramatic real-world reveal of the TARDIS landing.

The first three missions are now live on the Doctor Who website  (Mission 1, Mission 2, Mission 3).

In addition to the treasure hunt, fans can look forward to a host of activities to celebrate Doctor Who Day including:

• A 24-hour YouTube livestream showcasing every era of Doctor Who, hosted by content creator Christel Dee.

• The release of Season 2 scripts and deleted scenes on the Doctor Who website.

• A special episode of The Whoniverse Show

• And more surprises

Fans can follow the hunt and join the celebration via the Doctor Who website, social media channels, and the Doctor Who newsletter. The hashtag #DoctorWhoDay will be used across platforms to unite fans around the world.

The next DWM Special Edition begins a new series called Doctor Who: Legends, with a look at the life of Dalek creator Terry Nation.

Editor Marcus Hearn explains

The all-new content includes previously unpublished interviews, deep dives into all of Nation’s Doctor Who stories, and extracts from scripts that never made it to the screen. The issue is lavishly illustrated with rare and unseen images, including pictures from the Nation family’s collection. 

Highlights include:

• Terry Nation reflects on Doctor Who, Survivors and Blake’s 7 in a previously unpublished interview conducted in 1991.

• An exclusive interview with Rebecca and Joel Nation, in which they remember growing up with their famous father.

• Doctor Who writer and former showrunner Steven Moffat pays tribute to Terry Nation and revisits an overlooked Dalek story.

• Lost scenes from some of Terry Nation’s greatest scripts are brought to life with fresh analysis and new artwork.

• Kevin Jon Davies describes childhood meetings with Terry Nation in the 1970s.

• The story of Nation’s entire career from the 1950s to the 80s, including details of his contributions to Out of the Unknown, The Saint, The Avengers and other classics.

• Every Terry Nation film, television and radio credit, compiled for the first time.

• A previously unpublished interview with Nation’s friend and former agent, Beryl Vertue.

• The script-to-screen development of every Terry Nation Doctor Who story, including details from newly discovered notes and drafts.

    AND MORE!

Doctor Who: Legends – Terry Nation is available at panini.co.uk and good news retailers, price £9.99. It will also be available digitally from pocketmags.com price £8.99.

The latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine is published today.

In the issue

• CAROLE ANN FORD, the first person cast in Doctor Who – as the Doctor’s granddaughter Susan – speaks to DWM about First Doctor WILLIAM HARTNELL, how she would have like to have played Susan and returning to Doctor Who in 2025!

• We examine how the character of Susan Foreman came into being…

• …and delve into the paperwork to discover the other actors considered for the role.

• We take a look at a new book celebrating the artwork used in DWM’s own Time Team column – encompassing every story from An Unearthly Child to the TV Movie.

• Back to 1980! PETER DAVISON is cast as the Fifth Doctor, and the demise of the last standing Mark 2 Police Box… 

• Gary Gillatt explains what dogs can teach us about our relationship with the Doctor…

• It’s the last throw of the dice for humanity. We travel to the end of the universe in search of Utopia…

• As we celebrate 62 years of Doctor Who we look back at the 20th Anniversary Special The Five Doctors…

• The concluding part of our latest comic strip featuring the Fifteenth Doctor…

Regular features

• GALLIFREY GUARDIAN: Doctor Who returns to TV for Christmas 2026! Plus, we talk to Film Is Fabulous! about the hunt for missing episodes and bring you details of forthcoming audio releases.

• Reviews – featuring the latest audios and books.

• Other Worlds – the essential guide to new stories in Doctor Who’s expanded universe.

• Prizes to be won – including Blake’s 7 Season 2 on Blu-ray! 

Doctor Who Magazine Issue 623 is on sale Thursday 6 November 2025  from panini.co.uk and WH Smith priced £7.99 (UK). 

Also available as a digital edition from pocketmags.com priced £6.99.