Image: BBC
… Because the 40th Anniversary was marked in several ways, but most notably “Scream of the Shalka,” an all-new animated webcast featuring a brand new incarnation of the Doctor: the Ninth Doctor, played by Richard E. Grant.
Elsewhere, audio publisher Big Finish released a series of special stories—a trio of classic villain tales featuring Omega, Davros, and the Master, who all had connections to past anniversary specials, and Zagreus, a multi-Doctor special starring Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy, and Paul McGann.
A couple of months before the anniversary, there was another gift: the September 2003 announcement that Doctor Who would be returning to TV full time for a new series. Wonder whatever happened to that?