It will be very interesting to see what happens to the overnights in September. The natural assumption is that we have reason to be optimistic – the nights will draw in, meaning more people at home. Also, if the BBC give “Doctor Who” the same slot it gives to “Merlin” (i.e. directly after “Strictly Come Dancing”), this will be no bad thing. “Merlin” got 6-7 million consistently last year, even though it was up against “The X-Factor”. One reason is because “Strictly” gave it a good lead-in. “Doctor Who” hasn’t had that over the last seven episodes: we had to put up with the abysmal “Don’t Scare the Hare” and “So You Think You Can Dance” – both have bombed in the ratings, so “Doctor Who” had a lot of work to do in pulling viewers to BBC One.

So reasons to be cheerful for September… whether it will mean a transition for the whole series to an autumn or winter slot remains to be seen. I quite like the idea of this spring / autumn split, though, it has to be said.