Talking to the Hollywood Reporter on November 19 about the state of British television, Head of Drama Ben Stephenson confirmed that the BBC are very happy with the current state of Doctor Who.

“I think it is one of the most secure shows we have ever had,” he noted. “And the U.S. ratings are up, and Peter Capaldi has done brilliantly.” Although some fans have expressed concern that lower overnight ratings could cause problems for the show, Stephenson pointed out that “Doctor Who used to get time-shifted by 5 percent. It now time-shifts by 40-50 percent” and that with a show like this, he looks at the audience share among the 16-34 age group as being very important since “TV drama struggles sometimes to get people under 50”.

He also sang the praises of the upcoming adaptation of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell which he described as “bold” (fans of Yes, Minister may not regard this as a compliment!). “It is about magic, is massive fantasy, has long special-effects sequences, so it is as otherworldly as The Hobbit is,” he added. “It’s a sort of extension of what we have done in Doctor Who, but for a more grown-up audience.”

The full interview, in which he discusses SS-GB in more detail as well as the impact of co-productions on the BBC can be read here.