Doctor Who Spinoff Show Announced for 2016

As the long-running sci-fi show Doctor Who settles into a ninth season since returning in 2005, the BBC has announced a new spinoff series.

Entitled Class, the new series will be set at the fictional Coal Hill school, which was the setting of the very first episode of the time travelling adventure in 1963. It has featured several times over the years, most recently in 2014, where the Doctor's current assistant Clara worked as a teacher.

The programme will be aimed at a teen audience, and is being written by bestselling Young Adult author Patrick Ness. In a statement issued by the BBC, Ness spoke about his new role in the world of Doctor Who.

"I'm astounded and thrilled to be entering the Doctor Who universe, which is as vast as time and space itself," he said. "I can't wait for people to meet the heroes of Class, to meet the all-new villains and aliens, to remember that the horrors of the darkest corners of existence are just about on par with having to pass your A-Levels."

Doctor Who showrunner Stephen Moffat, who will executively produce the new show, added: "No one has documented the dark and exhilarating world of the teenager like Patrick Ness, and now we're bringing his brilliant storytelling into Doctor Who. This is growing up in modern Britain--but with monsters!"

Class will consist of eight 45-minute episodes. It will begin production early next year, for broadcast later in 2016. It will be the third Doctor Who spinoff in the past decade, following the more adult Torchwood and the kids show The Sarah Jane Adventures, both of which ran until 2011.