The latest edition of Doctor Who Magazine previews the new spin-off series launching next Sunday, The War Between the Land and the Sea

In the magazine

• As THE WAR BETWEEN THE LAND AND THE SEA surfaces on BBC One and iPlayer, we speak to star RUSSELL TOVEY about his role as Barclay Pierre-Dupont.

• Writer PETE McTIGHE, producer JOEL COLLINS and director DYLAN HOLMES WILLIAMS discuss the development of this eagerly awaited spin-off.

• A preview of the new 90-minute version of Third Doctor classic THE SEA DEVILS.

• UNIT intelligence on previous SEA DEVIL skirmishes!

• Back to 1968! UNIT’s first encounter with the Doctor – 57 years ago!

• Concept artist PETER McKINSTRY talks about his work and his new book The Art of Time Travel.

• Doctor Who showrunner RUSSELL T DAVIES shares his latest 12 Days of Christmas!

• Looking back on 60 years of the Doctor Who Annual.

• We remember Doctor Who’s very first Dalek December…

• …and the many ways in which Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol has influenced Doctor Who.

• We excavate the Cave-Monsters – in the first part of our deep dive into the fact and fiction of Doctor Who and the Silurians.

• A ghost story for Christmas featuring the Fifteenth Doctor…

Regular features

• GALLIFREY GUARDIAN: News including the launch of The War Between the Land and the Sea, a round-up of this year’s Doctor Who Day activity, and a Children in Need Special.

• Reviews – featuring the latest audios, books and action figures.

• Other Worlds – the essential guide to new stories in Doctor Who’s expanded universe – including the War Doctor’s clash with every Cyberman ever!

• Prizes to be won – you could win a massive Christmas bundle of Blu-rays and CDs! 

Doctor Who Magazine Issue 624 is on sale Thursday 4 December 2025  from panini.co.uk and WH Smith priced £8.99 (UK). 

Also available as a digital edition from pocketmags.com priced £7.99.

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

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.

The BBC has announced that the latest Doctor Who Spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea, is due to launch in the UK on BBC iPlayer and BBC One this December.

The five-part series will showcase how the world reacts when a fearsome and ancient species emerges from the ocean, dramatically revealing itself to humanity and triggering an international crisis.

Featuring a star-studded cast including Russell Tovey as Barclay, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Salt, Jemma Redgrave as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, Ruth Madeley as Shirley Ann Bingham, Alexander Devrient as Colonel 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 and will air on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in the UK in 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 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.

Following on from the season two finale of Doctor Who, viewers were treated to a first look at the next chapter in the Whoniverse, ‘The War Between The Land And The Sea’, and new character imagery has been released of Russell Tovey as Barclay and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Salt.

The five-part series also stars previously announced cast members Jemma Redgrave, Alexander Devrient, Ruth Madeley, Colin McFarlane, Adrian Lukis, Patrick Baladi, Francesca Corney, Mei Mac, and Vincent Franklin.

Additional guest stars who can be spotted in the trailer are 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, and will air on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in the UK, and exclusively on Disney+ outside of the UK (where available).

The War Between the Land and the Sea