Doctor Who showrunner is never going to reveal the answer to *that* 73 Yards mystery

Doctor Who
(Image credit: BBC)

Doctor Who’s latest horror-tinged classic, 73 Yards, featured mysteries upon mysteries. 

Of course, the Doctor’s disappearance after breaking a fairy circle was the episode’s original chief concern, but things soon turned altogether more sinister after a woman followed Ruby (Millie Gibson) and turned everyone she encountered against the companion with just a few words.

Now, showrunner Russell T Davies has addressed the cryptic message – by saying he has no intention at all of ever revealing what is said.

"You will never know. I’m never gonna tell you what she says. It’s kind of up to you to sit there and think, 'Well, what could someone say that would make a mother run away from her daughter forever?'” Davies said on Doctor Who: Unleashed (H/T Radio Times) on the moments that also featured Ruby being abandoned by her mother Carla (Michelle Greenidge). 

"You could look at yourself and think, 'What would make me do that?' And once you start to do that, you enter the real horror story. The dreadful things that are being said there, terrible things."

Doctor Who, meanwhile, is heading from a time-loop in Wales to the big screen. This season’s finale, titled Empire of Death, is set to screen in cinemas on June 21 alongside the previous week’s episode, The Legend of Ruby Sunday.

Beyond that, Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor is returning for a second season, with a Christmas special starring Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan and penned by Steven Moffat also on the way.

Doctor Who is airing every week on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in the UK and Disney Plus in the US and worldwide. For more, check out the Doctor Who release schedule and the best shows on Disney Plus.

Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.