Doctor Who Series 8 is behind us. With six weeks to go before the Christmas Special, fans of the Doctor are left to speculate on what the future holds for the popular BBC series. This of course means one thing: rumors, and lots of them.

Foremost among the silly season whispers is talk of Doctor Who getting cancelled amid a perceived drop in ratings. While not attributed to any official sources, cancellation rumors always seem to persist online among the rabid fan base.

This time though, Doctor Who show runner Steven Moffat saw fit to address concerns. As reported by Radio Times, Moffat defended the shows ratings, pointing out that while overnight numbers have indeed dipped, delayed viewing through services like Amazon and iPlayer have made up difference.

“Indisputably, without doubt, exactly the same number of people watch ‘Doctor Who’ now as they ever did.”

Moffat did, however, concede a need for change within the show. Moffat pointed out that new Doctor Peter Capaldi saved the show in the eighth season. Moffat added that shows wither when they become reliable, stating “the new show is old now, so this had to be a reinvention.”

While the show won’t be going anywhere any time soon, fans are wondering who the next companion will be. The Inquisitr reported current companion Clara Oswald is likely leaving after the Christmas Special, and events in the series finale certainly support this theory.

With the show replacing the Doctor at the beginning of Series 8, fans are understandably concerned about yet another major casting change. According to the Mary Sue, Moffat recently addressed this topic, telling a Royal Television Society panel that he is willing to shake things up when it comes to future companions.

“We actually have changed it up quite a lot, look how different those girls have been. Wait and see. What we have is probably the most enduring form of the show and I think will always tend back to it for whatever reason, but there’s no reason you couldn’t tend away from it and there’s no diktat or special rule book left by Verity Lambert or something. We absolutely could vary it. The times they’ve varied it, it makes them work hard – you can see them struggling with Leela. She was a great character but they had to civilize her fast because it was getting hard to fit her into stories – but it’s not a hard and fast rule at all.”

Fans are also wondering about the fate of Missy following the events of the Doctor Who Series 8 finale “Death in Heaven.” Aftera fan favorite turn as a regenerated female Master, and some fans are disappointed that Missy’s run appeared to end with the finale. Yet, according to Doctor Who TV, actress Michelle Gomez says her turn as Missy may not be over. When asked if she would return for Series 9, Gomez was pretty clear she will be back.

“‘Yes’ is my answer. I’ll be back. Can I say that? Am I allowed? If not, well, I guess we’ll have to see how she’s received.”

Nothing is ever what it seems with Doctor Who, so we’ll just have to wait for our answers. With six week until the Christmas Special and ten months until the Series 9 premier, rumors are all we have. What are you hoping to see from Doctor Who next year?

[Photo courtesy of BBC]