BBC star takes swipe at 'grumpy old fans' after complaints about series

Doctor Who legend Mark Gatiss has hit out at “grumpy” critics of the BBC sci-fi series.

The award-winning actor, who wrote several episodes of Doctor Who under Steven Moffat’s and Russell T Davies' tenures as showrunner, has also co-created the likes of The League of Gentlemen and Sherlock, and starred in Game of Thrones, Wolf Hall and Mission Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One.

Alongside penning some of the Doctor Who storylines, Mark has also acted in a handful of episodes between 2007 and 2017.

And he has now defended the show from backlash, after some fans have claimed the beloved BBC series has declined in recent years.

“As much as I love old stuff, the job of the show constantly is to regenerate itself,” Mark said in an interview with Radio Times.

“And sometimes when I meet grumpy old Doctor Who fans, you think, ‘You’ve just fallen into the same space time trap, that it’s not as good as it used to be, because it’s not for you anymore.’

“If you still like it, that’s great. It’s great, but it’s not for you.”

Speaking of his work on Doctor Who, he continued: “The actual process of trying to make it a modern show for a new audience is not about nostalgia, and I think that's the great difference.”

He went on: “Nostalgia is a great enemy, and we have to all be careful of it.”

"It's part of the reason we're in the mess we are, I think - weaponised nostalgia.

“‘Nothing's as good as it used to be,’ and yet people can't see that people have always thought that, even when it used to be better. It's a dangerous thing."

Doctor Who has recently hit headlines after speculation over the future of the show, following Ncuti Gatwa’s sudden exit.

After two years as the Time Lord, Sex Education actor Ncuti ended his time on the programme, with Billie Piper returning to take over.

Speaking about his decision to quit, the Scottish actor told Laura Kuenssberg: "I'm getting old, and my body was tired... and I've now just started doing some ballet, so I'm making really great decisions."

He reflected on the role, saying: "It's the most amazing job in the world, a job that any actor would dream of and – because it's so good – it's strenuous.

"It takes a lot out of you, physically, emotionally, mentally, and so it was time."

When probed on a comeback, he commented: “Never say never.”

The future of Doctor Who now remains unclear, as fans wait to see if Disney Plus will renew its deal for more seasons though the BBC will reportedly continue the show otherwise.

BBC Studios CEO Tom Fussell did recently confirm with Deadline: “[BBC Studios is] really committed to Doctor Who and is continuing to look at ways in which we can bring the show to fans.”

Doctor Who is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.