Dervla Kirwan and her "knight in shining armour"

Thursday 18 December 2008, and a pointedly low key press launch for Doctor Who‘s Christmas episode, ‘The Next Doctor’ held at London’s Soho Hotel.

Jane Tranter, the BBC’s outgoing Head of Drama, warned the assembled: “‘The Next Doctor’ – for the next 60 minutes or so, make of that what you like. And I’m absolutely not going to tell you anything. But by the time you’ve got to the end, you’ve got to promise not to tell anyone else what to make of that. The ability of Doctor Who is to ask big questions and keep everybody guessing. Please enter into the spirit of that, and allow everyone to keep asking questions”.

So I will. Although I can’t help but squeal that all the previous TV Doctors get a fleeting cameo. That’s unrelated to the main plot, though.

With Tranter set to move to LA, she reflected on what the Doctor Who team has achieved – and the future.

“We’re coming to the end of an era with the show,” she said. “Or as I like to say, the end of the beginning. The next generation are here: Steven Moffat, Piers Wenger and Ben Stephenson. They will not disappoint you – that much I can absolutely promise. I can’t wait for the fifth series to begin, and neither can they. I can literally feel their feet moving even as they’re sitting here; as they wait, running on the spot, waiting to be unleashed. There are exciting times ahead…”