It’s no wonder that Davies describes “The Devil’s Chord”, which sees the Doctor and Ruby rock up to the 1963 recording of The Beatles’ first album, as not a traditional celebrity historical. “The Beatles are part of it but it’s much madder than that,” he explains to DWM. “It makes up its own rules right in front of you.”
That kind of giddy invention, says Davies, is what Doctor Who needs to stand out in the SFF landscape of today. “We’re in a very busy science-fiction/fantasy world now. We’ve always got to do what other shows don’t. It’s Doctor Who’s unique territory.”
“The Devil’s Chord” is unashamedly part, says Davies, “of that tradition – my new tradition – of having gods at war on screen.”
In other words, you might say that the show has moved past the previous tradition of ‘gods’ being explained away as aliens worshipped by cultures who’ve misapprehended their true nature (see: The Web Planet, The Fires of Pompeii and more) and is leaning into the Buffy and Marvel Cinematic Universe-ish fantasy it’s always been. Can we get a hallelujah?
Doctor Who returns on Saturday May 11 on BBC One and iPlayer in the UK, and on Friday 10 on Disney+ around the world. Subscribe to Doctor Who Magazine here.
