Doctor Who is a show about timeline-jamming adventures, freaky space monsters, long corridors, and quirky geniuses—but it’s also about the power of love and acceptance, a wild idea certain viewers just can’t seem to grasp. Back in January, the BBC said it received 144 complaints about a new character who happened to be transgender, Yasmin Finney’s Rose Noble. And now, it’s revealed a new wave of complaints thanks to the lip lock between Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor and Jonathan Groff’s rakish bounty-hunter in this past season’s “Rogue.”
In January, the BBC dismissed the anti-trans complaints in a statement reminding all that “[Doctor Who] the show has and will always continue to proudly celebrate diversity and reflect the world we live in. We are always mindful of the content within our episodes.”
This time around, Deadline reports, the network received missives from just two viewers aghast at what they saw in the Bridgerton-inspired episode, citing “inappropriate sexual innuendo” and content that was “unsuitable for children.” Also, amusingly, “one person added that the speed of the Doctor and Rogue’s connection was ‘concerning.’” (The episode’s runtime was just under 45 minutes; how much time were they going to take?)
The BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit flatly dismissed the complaints, with added clarification for that viewer perturbed by the concept of a fictional whirlwind romance. The trade quotes the group’s statement as follows: “The ECU considered the sexual innuendo to be towards the mildest end of the spectrum and in any case likely to go over the heads of children. The development of the relationship served the needs of a fast-moving plot and was unlikely to strike viewers of any age as a model for interpersonal relationships outside this particular fictional context.”
“Rogue” was notable not because it contained the very first same-sex kiss on Doctor Who—it didn’t; that came back in 2005 when Jack Harkness landed a farewell peck on the Ninth Doctor—but because it was the show’s very first same-sex kiss with real emotion behind it. The distinction is particularly notable especially considering, as io9’s James Whitbrook has noted, the disappointing way Doctor Who handled the chemistry-laden relationship between the Thirteenth Doctor and companion Yaz during Jodie Whittaker’s time on the series.
Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor will be back this Christmas with “Joy to the World,” a Doctor Who festive special with another Bridgerton connection: it’ll star Nicola Coughlan from the Netflix period romance series. Whether or not Groff’s Rogue—who asked the Doctor to “find me” shortly before he was forcibly zapped away—will ever be seen again has yet to be determined, but the two characters definitely have some unfinished business.
In the U.S., you can watch Doctor Who on Disney+.
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