Ahead of Doctor Who's return to BBC America on Saturday, Sept. 19, the programmer said Alex Kingston would return as Professor River Song to play alongside Peter Capaldi, the current Doctor (and River Song's husband), for the first time. Filming on the special begins this week, an episode written by lead writer and executive producer Steven Moffat, produced by Nikki Wilson and directed by Douglas Mackinnon.
From the announcement today: River Song made her first Doctor Who appearance in 2008 in Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead and has appeared in 15 episodes to date. It’s Christmas Day in the future and the TARDIS is parked on a snowy village street, covered in icicles, awaiting its next adventure. Time traveller River Song meets her husband’s new incarnation, in the form of Capaldi, for the first time.
Said Kingston in the release: “To be honest, I did not know whether River would ever return to the show, but here she is, back with the Doctor for the Christmas special. Steven Moffat is on glittering form, giving us an episode filled with humor and surprise guest castings. I met Peter for the first time at Monday’s read-through, we had a laugh, and I am now excited and ready to start filming with him and the Doctor Who team. Christmas in September?, why not!”
From Moffat: “Another Christmas, another special for Doctor Who -- and what could be more special than the return of Alex Kingston as Professor River Song. The last time the Doctor saw her she was a ghost. The first time he met her, she died. So how can he be seeing her again? As ever, with the most complicated relationship in the universe, it’s a matter of time ...”
The upcoming season of Doctor Who will have 12 episodes.
