Every Reference To The Doctor In The War Between The Land & The Sea
By Dan Bibby
December 12th, 2025
[Updated December 22nd, 2025]
[Updated December 22nd, 2025]
Warning! Spoilers ahead!
Although the Doctor doesn't directly feature in The War Between the Land and the Sea, the Doctor Who spinoff still finds chances to name-drop the franchise's most famous character. These instances don't directly influence the story being told, but they do serve as evidence of how profoundly the Time Lord can impact people in various ways.
Led by Russell Tovey as Barclay Pierre-Dupont, The War Between focuses on UNIT as the Sea Devils/Homo Aqua make some pretty extreme (but understandable) demands of humanity after suffering in Earth's polluted oceans for far too long. The Doctor's absence from the story makes sense. As an alien, he has no real right to get involved in the negotiations. Humans and Homo Aqua both originate on Earth, so it's down to them to settle things without extraterrestrial interference.
Led by Russell Tovey as Barclay Pierre-Dupont, The War Between focuses on UNIT as the Sea Devils/Homo Aqua make some pretty extreme (but understandable) demands of humanity after suffering in Earth's polluted oceans for far too long. The Doctor's absence from the story makes sense. As an alien, he has no real right to get involved in the negotiations. Humans and Homo Aqua both originate on Earth, so it's down to them to settle things without extraterrestrial interference.
1. Barclay Says He "Met The Doctor Once"
Barclays discusses his brief interaction with the Doctor in The War Between's first episode, "Homo Aqua." He doesn't give enough detail about which Doctor he encountered, but using "he" when talking about him rules out Jodie Whittaker's Thirteenth Doctor. In all likelihood, Barclay is referring to Fifteen (Ncuti Gatwa), as Tovey's character explains he saw the Doctor "last year in the tower," presumably meaning UNIT Tower in London. That said, with Fourteen still around, he remains a possibility, too. So does any male version of the Doctor.
2. Kate Praises The Doctor's Companions
Jemma Redgrave's Kate Lethbridge-Stewart is blindsided along with everyone else when Salt (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) insists that Barclay serves as humanity's ambassador during negotiations. However, UNIT's commander-in-chief also cautiously believes in Tovey's character...while also throwing shade on him in private. She tells Colonel Ibrahim (Alexander Devrient) that she has seen "ordinary people achieve extraordinary things," then goes on to qualify the statement with: "but they're usually travelling with the Doctor." So, although Kate is being forced into believing in Barclay, it's also clear she's uneasy due to the fact that he hasn't been chosen or recognized for his greatness by the Doctor.
3. Kate Compares Barclay To The Doctor
As ill-prepared as Barclay is to negotiate with Salt and Aquakind at large, he does at least draw one direct comparison to the Doctor. Despite being told he must adhere to the script that's been meticulously written for him, Barclay can't resist speaking out of emotion and disobeying UNIT's orders not to do exactly that. A frustrated Kate declares, "This is like working with the Doctor!" Barclay's ability to see Homo Aqua's point of view without prejudice is what makes him a great ambassador, and sharing a talent for rebelling against authority — just like the Doctor — is another.
4. Kate Explains Why The Doctor Never Shows Up In The War Between (& Rarely In Other Doctor Who Spinoffs)
The War Between's final episode, "The End of the War," toys even more with the darkness that Doctor Who spinoffs can do so well. With the Doctor's absence from the story, the more desperate members of the human race often get away with things that they wouldn't in the Time Lord's presence. Still, although humanity wins the war with Aquakind, Kate understandably seems deeply concerned with the method of said victory. In the wake of Aquakind's surrender, Shirley Bingham (Ruth Madely) seems to read Kate's mind.
"I keep thinking," Shirley says, "the times when the Doctor is nowhere to be seen." Kate replies with an especially poignant: "He told me once, 'I save the human race, I don't shape the human race. You can get that wrong all on your own.'" This reinforces the main theory why he's so often absent from Doctor Who stories that don't feature alien threats: They're almost always nothing to do with the Doctor.
In other words, some events are so vital to humanity's development that the Doctor is forced to look away rather than hold their hands. It's a brutal realization on which to end The War Between the Land and the Sea, but not one that's entirely new to the Doctor Who franchise at large.
The War Between is streaming now on the BBC iPlayer, but only in the UK. International audiences will be able to watch on Disney+ in 2026.
"I keep thinking," Shirley says, "the times when the Doctor is nowhere to be seen." Kate replies with an especially poignant: "He told me once, 'I save the human race, I don't shape the human race. You can get that wrong all on your own.'" This reinforces the main theory why he's so often absent from Doctor Who stories that don't feature alien threats: They're almost always nothing to do with the Doctor.
In other words, some events are so vital to humanity's development that the Doctor is forced to look away rather than hold their hands. It's a brutal realization on which to end The War Between the Land and the Sea, but not one that's entirely new to the Doctor Who franchise at large.
The War Between is streaming now on the BBC iPlayer, but only in the UK. International audiences will be able to watch on Disney+ in 2026.
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