Doctor Who season 14 has a release date, and it'll air on Disney Plus before BBC One

Doctor Who season 14's release date has been revealed – and, in a significant launch day switch-up, it'll debut on Disney Plus first before airing on BBC One.

Announced in a Disney press release, Doctor Who's next season will officially air on Disney Plus on Friday, May 10 at 7 PM ET / 4 PM PT in the US, as well as 10 AM AEDT in Australia. In another change from the show's usual release format, it'll also arrive with a two-episode premiere.

Unfortunately for British viewers, the fourteenth season of Doctor Who's rebooted series won't be available to watch on BBC One until the evening of Saturday, May 11. However, diehard Whovians will be able to catch the first two episodes of Doctor Who season 14 on BBC iPlayer at the same time as their US and Australian counterparts. The catch? You'll have to stay up until midnight (12 AM on May 11) to stream it alongside your international cousins. Curse you, time zones.

As the above X/Twitter post reveals, too, we don't have much longer to wait for season 14's first teaser to be released publicly. Indeed, it'll be posted online in a week's time (at the time of writing) on Friday, March 22. We've caught glimpses of the kinds of era-spanning adventures that the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Ruby Rose (Millie Gibson) will get up to in some first-look images over the last few months, but the unveiling of actual Doctor Who footage is always an exciting time.

So, what can we expect from Doctor Who season 14 ahead of its trailer reveal? Details are still thin on the ground, but Disney – in conjunction with the BBC – was happy to provide a brief story synopsis: "This season of Doctor Who follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday through infinite adventures across time and space in the TARDIS. From the Regency era in England to war-torn futures, the duo champion the forces of good while encountering incredible friends and dangerous foes."

Adding his two cents' worth to the show's May 2024 return, showrunner Russell T. Davies – who helmed the first four seasons of the legendary British sci-fi show's revival – said in a statement: "At last, it’s my great delight to unleash a whole new season of the Doctor and Ruby’s adventures together. Monsters! Chases! Villains! Mysteries! And a terrifying secret that’s been spanning time and space for decades. Don’t miss a second!"

Doctor Who season 14 will mark the first multi-episode adventure for Gatwa's Gallifreyan and Gibson's Rose. Gatwa made his debut in the final episode of Doctor Who's three-part 60th anniversary special, before starring alongside Gibson in the Doctor Who 2023 Christmas special.

Those episodes were the first to launch on Disney Plus and the BBC simultaneously, too, following a new licensing agreement that led Doctor Who to materialize on Disney's primary streaming service from 2023 onwards. Previously, the iconic sci-fi franchise was only streamable on Max stateside, and Foxtel and Binge in Australia.

Ahead of the 60th anniversary specials, the entire Doctor Who collection was made available to watch in full for the first time as well on BBC iPlayer. International viewers were disappointed to learn, though, that it wouldn't be coming to Disney Plus at the same time. With season 14 set to hit Disney Plus in less than two months, we're crossing our fingers that the full collection will join one of the world's best streaming services in the near future. If it does, expect Doctor Who to join our best Disney Plus shows guide accordingly.

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