Portsmouth university student's petition reaches thousands as Doctor Who Xmas special is axed

The BBC officially announced that there would not be a Christmas special this year, and that instead there would be a special episode on New Year's Day.

The news comes after a petition started by University of Portsmouth student Niall Moran, 20, reached more than 2,500 people.

He says that although it is too late for this year, the BBC should consider bringing back the Christmas special in 2019.

Niall said: '˜For the first time in 13 years, families won't be gathering round with their Christmas dinner to watch Doctor Who '“ and I think that's quite disappointing.

'˜It has become a tradition for many families and from the petition, it seems to have affected a lot more people than I had expected.

'˜Even if people aren't a fan of the new Doctor, some of them would still have tuned into the Christmas special because that's what they've always done.'

Niall believes that, with enough fan support, the BBC would bring back the Christmas special for next year '“ but is counting on people signing the petition to form a large enough voice.

He said: '˜I've heard that there just aren't any ideas for a Christmas special at the moment.

'˜But the BBC do care about what the fans think '“ and if they see a petition like this that has thousands of signatures from passionate fans, they might end up rethinking their decision.

'˜My worry is that after this one-off, Doctor Who won't get that Christmas slot back, and that would be a real shame.'

To sign the petition go to change.org/p/bring-back-our-doctor-who-christmas-special