A new article by Radio Times discussed how fans still want Steven Moffat to write for Doctor Who. It’s been more than 7 years since he left the role of showrunner, and while he’s written a couple of Doctor Who episodes recently - including 2024's Christmas special "Joy to the World" - he has strongly hinted that these might be his final episodes for the show. (For now, at least.)
Of course, this hasn’t stopped some fans from hoping that he writes for Doctor Who again soon. Many have commented on one of Moffat’s private Instagram posts, stating that they would “cheer” if he wrote another story and hoped he would bring back River Song “one last time”.
It’s not surprising to see so many fans wanting to see more stories from Moffat. Regardless of what people thought of his time as showrunner, there is no question that he’s written some of the most popular episodes of the New Series, including “The Empty Child”, “Blink”, and “Heaven Sent”. Even last year’s episode “Boom” proved to be one of the most popular stories for Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor so far.
A fitting response
What does the man himself think of all this? Surprisingly, he’s already posted a brief but brilliant response on X.
I'd like to thank all twelve of all those people. https://t.co/urCWnYKaUz
— StevenWmoff (@SWmoff) January 20, 2025
Honestly, that’s probably the best response he could have given. Not just because it’s a typical example of Steven Moffat’s self-deprecating sense of humor. But even better is that it allowed fans to provide the perfect response. And yes, fans of the 50th anniversary special know what that response is.
"No sir! All thirteen!"Doctor Who: "The Day of the Doctor"
There are many, many examples of fans quoting this iconic line. It highlights two things. First, it’s very possible that Moffat used the number twelve specifically for this fan reaction. If so, he definitely knows the fandom well by this point. Second, that Moffat has more than 12 fans. A lot more.
Steven Moffat may never write for Doctor Who again. If so, it would be disappointing, but it’d also be understandable. He’s given us a lot of great stories over the years, and it may be difficult for him to write one more at this point. But whether he writes for the show again or not, one thing is clear – he’ll always have his own share of fans, and those fans number far more than 12.