Ouf! we can all heave a little sigh of relief, because it looks like season eight of Doctor Who will have “at least” 13 episodes in 2014.

So that means a full series for Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor! Brilliant, Allons-y, Geronimo!

That’s what Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat has revealed in an interview with Broadcast. He confirmed that they (the powers that be) are committed to producing “at least” 13 episodes for 2014. However, it’s unclear whether the yearly Xmas special will be included in that 13 episodes order.

(Apparently there were earlier reports that suggested that season eight would have comprised 12 episodes instead of the regular 13.)

Moffat spoke about his difficulties with managing the grueling workload of the Doctor Who series (and, let’s not forget, the dude’s got to juggle Sherlock as well):

“There’s always a point in production, usually half-way, maybe two thirds, through a series when you realise you’re juggling at least one aspect of each show at once: maybe a press launch for one, another in the edit and I might not have written the last one. You wake up in the night thinking about 13 emergencies, each of them equally calamitous. As a lifestyle choice, it’s questionable.”

“One of the hardest things for me to do is work out when I’ll have time to write. A whole week can disappear when I haven’t had a moment to sit down. I was amazed recently when I got a script ready in time for the tone meeting.”

Hopefully they won’t split season eight like they did season six and, worst of all, season seven, which was split between 2012 and 2013. (Worst. Decision. Ever.)

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the series, and frankly it felt like there was barely any Doctor Who to be had. (Apparently there will have been only 10 episodes to have been broadcast by the end of 2013.)

So let’s cross our fingers that 2014 will be a better year for Doctor Who now, shall we?

(via Doctor Who TV)