Neil Gaiman has confirmed that he won’t be contributing to Series 9 of Doctor Who due to “ridiculous work commitments”.

The writer told Radio Times that, while he can’t fit it into his busy schedule at the moment, he’s still “determined to write for Peter Capaldi “at some point in the future. “As long as Peter is Doctor Who, I will write for him,” he said. “Every time I’m in the UK, I go and see the Doctor Who people. None of us are going to let me go off the boil. But it’s an enormous time commitment. How Steven Mofatt does it and Sherlock, and retains his sanity, I do not know.”

He continued: “I haven’t done an episode set on Earth yet and I also haven’t created a new monster. So there are still boxes left to tick. I don’t think I’ve scared anybody yet either. I’d love to write something that sends adults behind the sofa too and makes them wee a bit…”

Neil’s previous Doctor Who episodes are The Doctor’s Wife and Nightmare in Silver.