Doctor Who assembles its new production team

from SCI FI Wire by Wire Staff

The BBC's Doctor Who has tapped a new production team as it gears up for its fifth season, Variety reported. Matt Smith takes over from the departing David Tennant as the 11th Doctor.

The new team includes Tracie Simpson, who produced the recent Doctor Who special "Planet of the Dead," and Peter Bennett, whose credits include Torchwood, created by Russell T. Davies, the British screenwriter responsible for the successful revival of Doctor Who four years ago.

Also on board is Beth Willis, who produced the high-profile British sci-fi series Ashes to Ashes, the sequel to the time-jumping Life on Mars.

They join the program's new show runner, Stephen Moffat, who is stepping into Davies' shoes, and Piers Wenger, head of drama at BBC Wales, where Doctor Who is made.

Preproduction on the new season starts in May, with filming scheduled to start this summer around the Welsh capital city of Cardiff.