Prior to the Thirteenth Doctor and Yasmin's romance,
Doctor Who had previously featured numerous openly queer characters, such as the
bisexual Jack Harkness and
lesbians such as
Madame Vastra and
companion Bill Potts. Romance between the Doctor and other characters had also been seen multiple times in the series prior such as between the
Ninth and
Tenth Doctors with
Rose Tyler, the
Eleventh Doctor with
Clara Oswald, and the
Twelfth Doctor with characters such as
Missy and
River Song. Despite this, the relationship between the Thirteenth Doctor and Yaz was the first time in the series' history that the Doctor had been in an openly
LGBTQ+ relationship. The ship first came about following the airing of the 2018 episode "
Arachnids in the UK", in which Yaz's mother asked if Yaz and the Doctor were in a relationship, and Yaz cited wanting more time with the Doctor as one of her reasons for travelling on the TARDIS, as well as saying that the Doctor was the best person she ever met. This spawned considerable fan-works, including memes and
slash fiction, which expanded the ship's popularity in the fandom. The episode "
The Haunting of Villa Diodati" features a scene in which a character worries if another will reciprocate her feelings, to which Yaz thinks of the Doctor and replies that she "know[s] someone like that." and that he was initially unaware of Thasmin following lead actress
Jodie Whittaker's
first series as the Thirteenth Doctor, though Whittaker was aware and explained it to him. Khan's actress,
Mandip Gill, was also aware of the ship, having seen
fan art and
fan fiction surrounding it. Prior to the airing of
Doctor Who series 13, Gill teased that fans of the ship would see more related to the ship as the series progressed, but did not give definite details on how it would end. During series 13 of
Doctor Who, also known as
Doctor Who: Flux, Yaz is seen pining for the Doctor when they are separated, while Yaz also admits her feelings for the Doctor to Dan in the same episode. In the episode, the Doctor quips about being a good date, but does not elaborate until later in the episode. The Doctor reveals that she reciprocates Yaz's feelings but doesn't want to go through with the relationship because "there's no point. Time always runs out." The Doctor asks to live in the present, which Yaz agrees to. Neither Whittaker nor Gill regret how the ending of the relationship was handled, with Whittaker enjoying the final scene's shooting and ending. Following the announcement that audio dramas featuring the Thirteenth Doctor and Yaz would be produced, Whittaker teased that "we could be [kissing] in the background." == Reception ==