Doctor Who could be produced in Scotland under an ambitious bid by STV Studios to take over the next era of the long-running BBC science fiction series.
The Glasgow-based production group is reported to have teamed up with Screen Scotland as it competes for the contract to make Doctor Who when the programme returns with a new series expected in 2028 or 2029.
Industry publication Deadline reports that the STV Studios proposal would involve moving production of the series to Scotland.
If successful, it would represent a major coup for the country’s television industry and potentially bring jobs and opportunities for Scottish crews, studios and production facilities.
Doctor Who has been closely associated with Wales since its revival in 2005, with Cardiff becoming the programme’s production base and locations across the country regularly doubling for planets, cities and different periods of history.
STV Studios is now among a number of major production companies competing to shape the programme’s next chapter.
Its recent drama credits include the acclaimed BBC police series Blue Lights and Apple TV’s Criminal Record, starring former Doctor Who star Peter Capaldi.
STV Studios describes itself as Scotland’s biggest television production company and has expanded significantly beyond its Glasgow base in recent years.
The company faces formidable competition for Doctor Who. Line of Duty and Bodyguard creator Jed Mercurio is reportedly attached as an executive producer to a rival bid from Hat Trick Mercurio, the production company he runs with Hat Trick founder Jimmy Mulville.
World Productions, the company behind Line of Duty, Bodyguard, Vigil and Karen Pirie, has also submitted a separate proposal and is reported to be spearheading ITV Studios’ attempt to secure the contract.
Two production labels within BBC Studios are also expected to be in contention.
The BBC launched the competitive tender as it prepares to reshape Doctor Who following the end of its production partnership with Bad Wolf.
Its brief asks producers to develop a “multi-episodic series”, including specials, for transmission in 2028 or 2029, with the possibility of a second series.
The BBC wants the next incarnation to remain a major family adventure capable of competing in the international television market.
Its tender says the programme should feel “cinematic, distinctive, and ambitious” while encouraging producers to come forward with new approaches to storytelling, visual effects and world-building.
The corporation is also open to moving away from the traditional Doctor Who showrunner model, with different writers potentially working across individual episodes under a wider production team.
Doctor Who has generated a substantial television production industry in Wales over the past two decades and the BBC’s tender has indicated a preference for the next series to continue qualifying as a Welsh production, which could be a stumbling block for the STV Studios bid.
The initial stage of the tender has now closed, with the BBC expected to whittle down the competing proposals before interviews take place in early 2027. The production contract is expected to be awarded in March.
Scotland already has a strong relationship with Doctor Who.
Sylvester McCoy, David Tennant, Peter Capaldi and Ncuti Gatwa are all Scottish actors who have played The Doctor.