Production is due to commence on the 20th of February, on the seventh full series of Doctor Who since its return in 2005, and today the names of the first two guest writers for the series were announced – and it’s likely the two names will invoke very different reactions from fans…

One is Chris Chibnall, the man who was in co-charge of the first two series of Torchwood (and author of the episode Cyberwoman), as well as being the writer of the David Tennant Doctor Who episode 42, along with the Silurian two-parter of a couple of years ago. Chibnall’s other main credits might include a couple of episodes of Life on Mars as well as showrunning both the first series of Law and Order: UK and, more recently, Camelot, but to most Doctor Who fans he will always be remembered as the rather embarrassing teenager who harassed professional writers Pip and Jane Baker on a December 1986 edition of the programme Open Air.

The other is Toby Whithouse, creator of the universally lauded Being Human, as well as the well-regarded Channel 4 series No Angels, and who has three previous Doctor Who credits, including the story that reintroduced Sarah Jane Smith to the nation, School Reunion. His Series Six episode, The God Complex, received something of a mixed reaction (with the reactions ranging from ‘good’ to ‘very good’, and even ‘best story of the year’), and his inclusion in the list of writers for the third year in a row surely puts him right up there alongside Mark Gatiss in the betting for Steven Moffat’s successor as showrunner – particularly as Whithouse’s Being Human looks likely to come to an end this year.

What do you think? Glad to see Chris Chibnall back, or would rather have seen the back of him? Keen with anticipation for Toby Whithouse’s “big blockbuster of a genre piece” (Caroline Skinner, executive producer)? Let us know in the comments…

In other news, it was also announced today that the two missing episodes recovered late last year, Air Lock (from the story Galaxy 4) and The Underwater Menace Episode 2, will not be released on DVD this side of Christmas. Dan Hall’s comments, released today, seem to indicate they’ll also be released separately from one another, although that is yet to be seen.

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