Doctor Who has just turned 61 years old, and there have been a LOT of unforgettable moments in that time. Here are some of our favourites!
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00:00Doctor Who is 60 years old, many happy returns, and since 1963 the show has been providing us with unforgettable moments.
00:08So we wanted to celebrate that history and showcase some of the scenes that stand out to us.
00:13Quick note before we start, regenerations, companion departures and speeches are lists unto themselves,
00:19so none of those will feature here, which should keep things more interesting.
00:23I'm Ellie for Who Culture here with 20 Doctor Who moments we'll never forget.
00:27Number 20, Ra Ra Rasputin, The Power of the Doctor.
00:31I never know how to say that word. Rasputin? Rasputin? Rasputin. You know who I mean.
00:36Sure, John Simms' master wheeling an elderly David Tennant around to the Scissor Sisters is iconic,
00:41but nothing beats Sasha Dewan's gloriously deranged disco dancing in The Power of the Doctor.
00:47The story goes that Dewan misread the script and effectively improvised the moment.
00:52Improvisation is key to Doctor Who's success, given its persistent lack of time and money,
00:57and nowhere is this better realised than the master busting some sick moves to Boney M while taunting the Doctor.
01:03Possibly another perfect bit of improv was the Dalek and Cyberman actors looking quizzically at each other
01:08when presented with the master's dance routine.
01:10It's one of Doctor Who's most chaotic and hilarious sequences from the past 60 years.
01:16Number 19, You Can't Mend People?
01:19Kinder.
01:19It might have an unconvincing pink snake, half the cast of The Bill, and a very fake-looking forest,
01:25but Kinder is genuinely terrifying.
01:27Not in a jump-scare sort of way, but in a psychological way that can really get under your skin and freak you out.
01:33The Fifth Doctor regularly seems out of his depth here,
01:36not knowing how to deal with the increasingly unpredictable Hindle
01:39and disarm the explosive devices set around the dome.
01:42In this memorable scene, the Doctor returns to the dome to find Hindle and Sanders building a model village,
01:48and when the Doctor accidentally breaks the head off of one of the model villagers,
01:51Hindle memorably screams,
01:52You Can't Mend People, Can You?
01:54while waving the decapitated cardboard figure in the Doctor's face.
01:57It's one of the most genuinely spine-chilling portrayals of madness in the show's history.
02:02And you're welcome for that wonderful performance, by the way.
02:04Number 18, Because I'm Clever.
02:07Midnight.
02:07There's always a danger that Doctor Who can become too safe,
02:10because the audience knows the Doctor will save the day.
02:13Midnight brilliantly turned all of that on its head by putting the Doctor in a situation he could neither control nor understand.
02:19It's extraordinary to see David Tennant's tenth Doctor, arguably the most confident of them all,
02:25growing increasingly exasperated with his paranoid and frightened travelling companions,
02:29all of which builds to the unforgettable moment where the Doctor frustratedly tells them that they should listen to him
02:35because he's clever, before they all threaten to throw him off the shuttle.
02:38It's one of the most frightening moments in Doctor Who, because it further chips away his authority,
02:43making him powerless to stop the situation from spiralling wildly out of control.
02:48Number 17, I'd rather have a pint.
02:50The Demons.
02:51Doctor Who may be about to embark on an exciting new era as a multinational sci-fi franchise,
02:57but it's a fundamental part of British culture.
03:00There's no escaping that the Beatles, James Bond and Doctor Who all came to prominence around the same time.
03:06And there's no finer example of Doctor Who's uniquely British attitude than the closing scene of the classic 1970s serial, The Demons.
03:14A literal apocalypse has been averted by blowing up a church,
03:17a cloven-hoofed demon has been banished, and the master is in cuffs.
03:21And how does everyone celebrate this monumental victory?
03:24With Morris dancing.
03:25Or if you're the Brigadier and Mike Yates, a pint in a local pub.
03:28Although Mike definitely would have preferred a dance.
03:30Number 16, Daleks vs Cybermen.
03:33Doomsday.
03:34The fight between the Daleks and the Cybermen in Doomsday was something that old-school fans have been dreaming about since they were nine years old.
03:41It was also really cool to watch if you were nine years old in 2006.
03:45It was this perfect moment that brought Doctor Who fandom young and old together in collective joy.
03:50And it was only modern Doctor Who's second year on telly.
03:53The actual battle scenes aren't as good as you remember, but will we ever forget?
03:57The hilarious smack-talking between the Daleks and the Cybermen.
04:00What RTD remembered was that both villains had a lot more personality back in the 60s,
04:05and he brings that in spades with one of the greatest mic drops in the show.
04:09This is not war.
04:11This is pest control.
04:13Again, you're welcome for that wonderful performance.
04:16Number 15, the final scene, Survival.
04:18Okay, so it technically is a speech, but we'd be remiss to not include the very last scene of classic Doctor Who.
04:25And look, rules are made to be broken.
04:27Written by Andrew Cartmel when he was informed that there would be no season 27,
04:31Sylvester McCoy's poetic speech about cities made of song and people made of smoke ensured Doctor Who's future.
04:37Leaving it so open-ended allowed the adventures to continue in novels, in comics, in audio dramas, a one-off TV movie,
04:44and finally a brand new TV incarnation in 2005.
04:48It's such a beautifully evocative speech about the wonder and possibilities that Doctor Who creates.
04:53It's so beautiful that it got a stirring remix in Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred's recent Tales of the TARDIS episode.
05:00Number 14, Flying Earth Home, Journey's End.
05:03The original console room designer reflected that the TARDIS was a machine designed for one person.
05:09Russell T. Davis gleefully stomped all over that assertion in Journey's End when he confirmed that it's actually designed for six pilots.
05:16The scene where everyone bands together to fly Earth home is utterly corny, but RTD's Doctor Who had more than earned the right by this point.
05:25It's a joyous culmination to four series of Doctor Who and the prototype Hooniverse created by Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures.
05:32And who can forget Martha Jones' fourth wall break as she winks to the camera as she operates her section of the console.
05:38Number 13, The Shoes.
05:41They fit perfectly.
05:42The TV Movie.
05:43In 2023, it's hilarious to look back at the gnashing of teeth that greeted the Doctor and Grace's kiss in the 1996 TV movie.
05:51After all, there will be a lot more of that when Doctor Who returned in 2005.
05:55However, the outrage over the kiss obscures what is the best scene of the TV movie, and a defining moment for Paul McGann's Doctor.
06:02As he passionately rattles off an incredible story about his childhood on Gallifrey, with meteor storms and fantastic colours, he pauses to appreciate how comfy his new shoes are.
06:13That's the Doctor.
06:14The alien time traveller who has seen so much, but still takes comfort in small, everyday things like a well-prepared meal or a banging pair of shoes.
06:22Number 12, Sarah Jane's face falls off.
06:25The Android Invasion.
06:25During Doctor Who's most horror-tinged era, the fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith were there to reassure the viewer, to hold their hand and guide them through the fear and the danger.
06:36However, when Sarah was replaced by a murderous android, all bets were off, and it was hard to know who to trust.
06:41Tom Baker and Liz Sladen play the moment brilliantly, with the Doctor becoming rougher and more aggressive, and android Sarah becoming colder and more stilted.
06:49And then the reveal. Her face falls off to reveal robot circuitry and creepy glass eyes.
06:55It was a cliffhanger that lived long in the memory of fans like Stephen Moffat, and likely influenced the moment in The Almost People, where the 11th Doctor reduces ganger Amy to a puddle of porridge.
07:05Number 11, Space Pig.
07:07Aliens of London.
07:08Christopher Eccleston's first day on Doctor Who involved him chasing down a man dressed as a pig.
07:14There's literally nothing more Doctor Who than a serious actor chasing a ridiculous creature around some corridors.
07:20But while this is initially bonkers and hilarious, it's also gut-wrenchingly sad.
07:25You have to have a heart of stone not to feel something when a unit soldier pumps the pig full of lead, and Eccleston sells the moment in a raw and powerful way that's quite unlike any of his predecessors.
07:36If there's a moment that sums up how Russell T. Davis revitalised Doctor Who while also staying true to its undeniable weirdness, then it's the 9th Doctor mourning the tragic death of a pig in a spacesuit.
07:48Number 10, The Autons Attack, Spearhead from Space.
07:52Doctor Who is rarely as unflinchingly brutal toward innocent bystanders as it is in this shocking sequence from Spearhead from Space.
07:59As the morning commuters shake themselves awake waiting for the first bus, shop dummies come to life and begin making their way up the high street.
08:06It's the most cinematic sequence in Doctor Who up to that point, as the Autons massacre innocent everyday people while the Doctor's trying to bring the crisis to an end elsewhere.
08:16The shots of horrified extras were traumatising for kids at the time, and it's still terrifying to this day.
08:21It certainly left its mark on multiple generations of Doctor Who fans who'll never feel 100% safe in Primark ever again.
08:28Number 9, Four Knocks, The End of Time Part 2.
08:32The End of Time brought David Tennant's era to a barnstormer of a climax.
08:36The confrontation between the Doctor, the Master and Rassilon, and the sucker punch ending, was an emotional rollercoaster.
08:42Tennant plays a blinder here, from his disbelief at surviving the encounter, to his gut-wrenching realisation that he's still got one last person to save.
08:51Bernard Cribbins is also brilliant, bringing on the tears with the slightest of expressions, and Murray Gold is rarely better.
08:58You were always this.
09:01That being said, did Wilf really need to knock on that glass four times? Way to stick the knife in Mott?
09:07If there's a scene that best encapsulates who the Doctor is, it's this.
09:11The hero who can breezily avert the destruction of an entire planet, but will give their life to save just one person.
09:17Number 8, And Cut, Vengeance on Varos.
09:20The end of Vengeance of Varos' first episode is one of Doctor Who's greatest cliffhangers.
09:26Buckling under the intense heat of the illusory desert, the Doctor falls to the ground, about to pass out, or worse, die.
09:33But rather than cutting to the usual cliffhanger sound,
09:35the show does something completely different.
09:40It cuts back to the gallery, as the director orders the shot to be held for a little longer,
09:45before signalling for the cameras to cut there, and cue titles.
09:49It's a masterfully meta Doctor Who moment from writer Philip Martin.
09:53It's the Doctor trapped inside a TV show, and being tortured for the entertainment of a politically apathetic population.
10:00As Perry recently pointed out in Tales of the TARDIS, the story is still incredibly relevant in the 2020s.
10:06Number 7, Reunited with Sarah Jane, School Reunion.
10:09There was an odd moment when Doctor Who came back, where older fans took some convincing that it was still the same show,
10:16and not a complete reset.
10:17All of that changed when the Tenth Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith were reunited in School Reunion.
10:22It's hauntingly beautiful, from Sarah laying eyes on the TARDIS,
10:26to her standing back as the Tenth Doctor moves quietly into shot.
10:30It's an electric scene that not only beautifully captures the idea of picking up exactly where you left off with an old friend,
10:36but also bridges the gap between old and new Doctor Who.
10:39The decades just melt away, as the Doctor and Sarah are reunited once more in a creepy school.
10:44What a triumph.
10:45Number 6, Nine Meets the Dalek.
10:48Dalek.
10:48Tom Baker's contemplation of genocide in Genesis of the Daleks is terrific,
10:53but it is ultimately a speech, so instead, let's consider the Dalek's return to Doctor Who in 2005,
10:59a scene that is the meatiest bit of Doctor Dalek dialogue since the fourth Doctor contemplated touching two wires together.
11:05Christopher Eccleston proves he was absolutely the right choice to relaunch Doctor Who with prestige and gravitas in just a few minutes.
11:13He goes from utter terror at being locked inside with a Dalek,
11:16to an almost cruel mockery when he realises it's unarmed,
11:19to frothing rage and chest-puffing pride at destroying the Daleks once and for all.
11:24An astonishingly raw performance never seen before in Doctor Who,
11:28and one of the most unforgettable Dalek scenes of all time.
11:31Number 5, The Apple, The Eleventh Hour.
11:34Stephen Moffat's Doctor Who is at its best when it's tackling big sci-fi ideas with the poetry and beauty of a fairy tale.
11:41Case in point, the scene from The Eleventh Hour where Amy finally buys into the Doctor's crazy world.
11:46When the raggedy man crashes into her garden demanding food,
11:49little Amelia hands the Doctor an apple with a smiley face carved in.
11:53He keeps hold of the apple, then disappears for 12 years, leaving Amelia to deal with her abandonment.
11:58So, is there a description of how time travel works as moving and memorable,
12:03as the Doctor returning to adult Amy with the same apple still fresh that she had handed him over a decade earlier?
12:09Well, no, there isn't, quite honestly.
12:11Number 4, Cybermen at St. Paul's, The Invasion.
12:15If we're being honest, Doctor Who would have never taken off if it weren't for the monsters.
12:19Five weeks into its run, the Daleks breathed life into an occasionally stilted educational show for kids,
12:25and it never looked back.
12:26One of the most iconic Doctor Who images is the Cybermen marching down the steps of St. Paul's Cathedral
12:31in the Patrick Troughton serial, The Invasion.
12:34It's more iconic than the Daleks on Westminster Bridge,
12:37because the Cybermen pose a serious threat to the safety of London,
12:40whereas the Daleks have already conquered the planet.
12:42There's a reason that the image transcended the Doctor Who story from which it originated,
12:47and adorned student bedrooms, postcards, and greeting cards.
12:50It's the perfect example of Doctor Who's unique selling point,
12:54the clash of the alien with recognisable reality.
12:57Number 3, and the Shepard's Boy says, Heaven Sent.
13:01Heaven Sent was voted the greatest Doctor Who story of all time in a recent Doctor Who magazine poll,
13:06and it's easy to see why.
13:08An absolute masterclass in writing, direction, and performance by Stephen Moffat,
13:13Rachel Talalay, and Peter Capaldi that gets to the very heart of who the Doctor is.
13:18In the final montage, set to Morigold's haunting The Shepard's Boy,
13:21the Twelfth Doctor lives up to his promise to never be cruel, never be cowardly, and never give up,
13:27as he spends billions of years smashing his fist into a wall of diamonds.
13:31That's who the Doctor is, the hero that will always do the hard thing and take the long way round.
13:37Not because it's easy, not because it works, because it hardly ever does, but because it's right.
13:42Number 2, The Curator, The Day of the Doctor.
13:44In an anniversary special full of unforgettable moments,
13:48the surprise return of Tom Baker takes the jelly baby.
13:51What's sometimes forgotten is how brilliantly Jenna Coleman underplays
13:55Clara's delivering of the message that the Under Gallery's curator wants to speak to the Doctor.
14:01It would be so easy to add some portent or mystery to those words,
14:04but she just throws them out as she heads back to the TARDIS.
14:07And then when Tom Baker's unmistakable voice booms out from off-camera,
14:11there are chills down everyone's spines and goosebumps on their arms.
14:16It's a masterclass in set-up, which is hardly surprising given Stephen Moffat's career as a sitcom writer.
14:21What's more, it's the only instance of Tom Baker sharing the screen with another Doctor in official Doctor Who.
14:27It's utterly magical.
14:29Number 1, Barbara is menaced by a Dalek, The Daleks.
14:33If there's something that ties Doctor Who together across six decades,
14:36it's the skills of the actors to lend gravitas to special effects that often look a bit ropey.
14:41In that regard, Jacqueline Hill was a trailblazer that fundamentally changed the shape of the show.
14:47Due to the nature of Doctor Who filming in the 1960s,
14:50Hill wasn't acting opposite a full Dalek prop.
14:52She was acting opposite assistant floor manager Michael Ferguson brandishing a Dalek sucker arm.
14:57Regardless, Hill absolutely sells the horror of the moment, teasing the eventual Dalek reveal the next week.
15:03And thus, a legend was born.
15:05An unforgettable moment that gets a new lease of life via the 60th anniversary colourisation,
15:10and it's hard to think of something more deserving.
15:13And that concludes our list, but for more of our favourite Doctor Who moments,
15:17then check out 10 Greatest Modern Doctor Who episodes.
15:21In the meantime, I've been Ellie with Who Culture,
15:23and in the words of Riversong herself, goodbye, sweeties.