‘Doctor Who’ Christmas special: Who wanted Matt Smith to stay for season 8?

Before we arrive today at the “Doctor Who” 50th Anniversary Special, we have to start off here by sharing what we personally feel to be a pretty darn funny comment all about whether or not Matt Smith should have remained The Doctor for a little while longer. This isn’t even a fan who is saying this at the moment about the actor; instead, it’s his own mother.

Speaking per Metro at the show’s massive celebration of its anniversary in London this week, Smith had the following quip about the upcoming Christmas special that features his character’s regeneration into Peter Capaldi, and how hard it was for him and his family to accept that he was walking away from the role now:

“I don’t think anything can prepare you for the experience of what being the Doctor in Doctor Who is. But I think Peter is as ready as he can be … It was always going to be a difficult show to leave. Filming endings is sad and I’ve had such a ball and my mum wanted me to stay.

“It was quite sad at the end, obviously, when I had to leave … But I think we’ve got a really moving story, a really great sense of adventure in it which I’m pleased about.”

Capaldi will surely not be mentioned tonight during the special, mostly because (as we said earlier) this filmed long before he was confirmed to be playing the character. But, the Christmas special will easily touch on it, and pending some sort of surprise, we very well expect for him to appear as the Doctor in the Christmas special next month. This will be both the best and the easiest way for us to transition directly from one era of The Doctor to the next, and for it to happen without it feel too jarring.

Fans of the Tardis, the wait is not much longer at all. We will be back immediately following the Doctor Who special with more all about it, so stay tuned for more of that.

Photo: BBC One