Is Clara leaving before Christmas? It looks like we’ve got a huge surprise in store during this season of Doctor Who, according to Jenna Coleman, and that’s why she won’t give us a definitive yes or no.

Earlier this summer there were reports that Jenna was leaving Doctor Who at Christmas, and while the BBC refused to deny the comment, saying, “People will have to watch the series to see if she’s coming back or not,” those comments combined with recent comments from Coleman and Peter Capaldi lead us to believe this surprise is a certain character’s death or disappearance.

In a new interview in the upcoming Radio Times, Coleman talks about the rumors of her departure, stating, “We’ve sat down with [showrunner] Steven Moffat and we’ve all decided we don’t want anyone to know which way it’s going. If you know I’m in the next series – or if you know I’m off – you’ll know how the story ends.”

Why is she being super secretive? “Because there’s a surprise we’ve got coming, it’s much better that nobody knows which way it’s going to go – so that’s where we’re trying to keep it at the moment.” But could it be that talking about the surprise alone is already spoiling it?

When you put Coleman’s quotes together with Capaldi’s, things start to come together (if only just a little bit). Capaldi was on The One Show last month, and he said, “I don’t know where these rumours have started. I’ve read that she may be leaving at Christmas but I don’t even know if she’ll get to Christmas… You’ve got to just watch and wait and see.”

As with all Doctor Who mysteries, any theories we have are purely speculative, but it’s our guess that Clara disappears or leaves sometime before the Christmas special.

But it could go the complete opposite route as well. Perhaps these rumors are simply rumors, and Coleman will be back for another season. However, because the original source of Jenna’s departure has been scarily accurate in the past, we’ll take Jenna’s word about staying on with a grain of salt.

So what do you think? Will Clara disappear or die before the Christmas special? If not, what do you think this surprise is? Let us know in the comments below!