Warning: Spoilers ahead forDoctor Whoseason 14, episode 7, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday.”
Summary
Doctor Whoseason 14, episode 7, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday,” has Russell T Davies making a much-needed adjustment to the franchise canon, answering a question about the Doctor’s descendants that’s been burning since 1963. TheDisney era ofDoctor Whohas already neatened up some of the rougher parts of the show’s lore, and “The Legend of Ruby Sunday” continues that trend in a way that creates many exciting future possibilities. While no one from the Doctor’s bloodline is directly added to theDoctor Whoseason 14 castfor the penultimate episode, their looming presence can’t be ignored.
WhileWilliam Hartnell’s First Doctor’s very first companion was his biological granddaughter, the implication that the Doctor has had children at some point is pretty much all viewers have had to go on for the last 60 years. The Doctor’s offspring have never been at the heart of the action inDoctor Who, with never so much as a name being mentioned by the show’s main character. Now, decades after Susan’s introduction in theDoctor Whopilot episode, Russell T Davies has clarified why her mother or father has received so little focus.
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Doctor Who has been a fixture on TV screens for 60 years, meaning there are plenty of stories to choose from when picking out the Time Lord’s best.
Doctor Who Season 14, Episode 7 Confirms The Doctor’s Children Aren’t Born Yet
The Fifteenth Doctor confirms this to Ruby Sunday & Kate Lethbridge-Stewart
The Doctor tells Ruby he believes his granddaughter Susan is deadinDoctor Whoseason 14, episode 2, “The Devil’s Chord.” During this exchange, Ruby connects the dots and points out this meansthe Doctor must also have children to have a granddaughter. The Doctor retorts with, “I did have. I will have. Time Lords get a bit complicated.” This is a sentiment he rewords when speaking to Kate Lethbridge-Stewart in “The Legend of Ruby Sunday.” Explaining the phenomenon of being a grandfather before being a father, he simply attributes it to the “Life of a Time Lord.”
Both of these moments essentially confirm that, despite having a lot of interaction with Susan in the earlier stages ofDoctor Who’s classic era,the Doctor still isn’t yet a father from his temporal perspective. This may seem like a high-concept twist to comprehend - because it is - but it allows the glaring absence of any mention of the Doctor’s children to make far more sense.
How The Doctor Met Susan Before Having Children
The Doctor’s “timey-wimey” life has allowed him to skip meeting a generation of his family
The Doctor’s lack of direct fatherhood hasn’t stopped him from having a history with Susan. While he might easily cast the situation aside as a confusing necessity of being a time traveler, the scenario needs to have an element of logic applied to it so that Davies' canonical tweak doesn’t fall apart. Fortunately, there is an explanation that makes sense, and there’s already a very similar situation that already exists withinDoctor Who.
IfRiver Song’s timeline with the Doctoris used as a loose example, David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor met River before he had married her, but River had a vivid memory of their union - even if it was to Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor instead. So,the Doctor’s relationships with his loved ones rarely form a straight linethrough time and space. That being said, the Doctor’s ties to Susan are slightly more linear than the ones to his late wife.
Doctor Who: What Happened To Susan, The Doctor’s Granddaughter
The First Doctor left his granddaughter, Susan Foreman, on Earth, but Doctor Who media has provided several updates on her status since then.
Susan has always been the Doctor’s biological granddaughter, whereas River’s relationship with the Doctor meant they initially met as strangers who arguably had no two-sided affiliation. So, the Doctor’s time with his granddaughter is slightly less complicated, as all it means is that he skipped meeting his children (for now) and jumped right to coming face-to-face with Susan. There doesn’t seem to be the confusing back-and-forth crossing of timelines that happens between River and the Doctor.
The Doctor’s Children & Susan’s Mother Can Still Appear In Doctor Who
The long-running British sci-fi has plenty of time to introduce the Doctor’s descendants
Susan already exists in theDoctor Whouniverse, which means that in some corner of space and time, so will her parents - one of whom will be a child of the Doctor. This means that whoever Susan’s mother turns out to be, the Doctor either hasn’t met her yet or just hasn’t procreated with her. So, this will be a very pivotal character to introduce inDoctor Whoseason 15or beyond, even if there’s a gargantuan wait for the reveal.
As the Doctor’s descendants, his children and grandchildren would share at least part of his DNA, meaning he would no longer be alone in the universe as a member of an unknown species.
Even after Susan’s mother appears inDoctor Who, there’s still a generation between the Doctor and Susan that needs to make its debut. Fascinatingly,the Doctor’s children could even show up before he ever meets their mother, which would mirror his relationship with his granddaughter. As the Doctor’s descendants, his children and grandchildren would share at least part of his DNA, meaning he would no longer be alone in the universe as a member of an unknown species.
Chris Chibnall’s Timeless Child storyline altered the Doctor’s backstory. So, he is no longer Gallifreyan, despite still being a Time Lord.
While Susan is tangible evidence that the Doctor has had - or will have - at least one child, the implication is that he has actually fathered at least two. The Doctor’s offspring are often referred to as “children,” rather than making the notable distinction that he has only ever had one child. If so, thenSusan’s existence may just be the tip of the icebergwhen it comes to the future size of the Doctor’s biological family.
Doctor Who Season 14 Changing The Doctor’s Timeline Makes A Lot Of Sense
It’s always been unusual thatthe Doctor has hardly ever mentioned being a parentin the six decades ofDoctor Who. There has been the odd throwaway comment, but it’s a facet of the character that has been conveniently ignored - despite the presence of a biological descendant in the very first episode.Doctor Whoseason 14, episode 3, “Boom,” is one of the most prominent references, withNcuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor’s “Dad-to-Dad” gambit. Such a solid mention of the Doctor’s fatherhood could be argued to foreshadow the reveal in “The Legend of Ruby Sunday.”
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“Rogue” shows a brief glimpse of an alternate Doctor, and while it’s not confirmed to be linked to bi-generation, it’s tough to explain it otherwise.
Russell T Davies has justified the omission of the Doctor’s children being mentioned with this small moment inDoctor Whoseason 14’s penultimate episode. His alteration means, from the Doctor’s point of view, he has never met his children - because they haven’t been born yet. On the other hand, his status as a time traveler allowed him to witness the future of his bloodline and form a bond with his granddaughter.What remains unclear is whether Susan still has a relationship with her parentsduring her time onDoctor Who, or if they have met their end.
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Doctor Who: Released on June 12, 2025, this series follows the Doctor and their companion as they journey across time and space, encountering a range of extraordinary friends and adversaries, expanding the universe of the long-running British science fiction series.
