Here you have it, Doctor Who fans! You voted, and now we have part 1 of your Top 50 episodes list! Where will your favorite rank?
In just one weeks time, Whovians all around the world will be gathering on their sofas – sonic screwdrivers in hand – and getting ready to watch series 7 opener “Asylum of the Daleks.” After months of hype, leaks, and plenty of uhhm-ing and aaah-ing on when to actually broadcast the series, Doctor Who will finally be back on our screens. To tie you over until next Saturday, we’ll be counting down your Top 50 favorite episodes of the last 49 years. And trust us, they’ll be surprises.
Before we begin, we feel the need to warn the Classic fans among you that none of the first eight Doctor’s adventures made it on to the list (that’s demographics for ya!), but to soften the blow we’ve included a few of your favorites in the “Honourable Mentions” section.
That’s enough from us, on with the list. Allons-y!
SCHOOL REUNION
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Squeezing its way into the top 50, “School Reunion” holds a special place in the hearts of many Classic Who fans. Not only does it see the return of fan-favorite companion Sarah Jane Smith (played by the late, great Elizabeth Sladen) and faithful alien’s best friend K-9, but it gives us an insight into what life is like for people who The Doctor leaves behind. Throw in Giles from Buffy as a monster headmaster and some fabulously bitchy exchanges between Sarah and Rose, and you’re on to a winner. |
THE WATERS OF MARS
| One of the grittier episodes of the Tennant era, “The Waters of Mars” explores a darker side to The Doctor we’d rarely seen before. When The Doctor finds himself on the doorstep of a doomed space station, he struggles between saving innocent lives and following his own rules of time travel. With Ten at his most arrogant, and one of the most downbeat endings in the show’s history – “The Waters of Mars” is an unforgettable tragedy. |
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THE FIRES OF POMPEII
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“The Fires of Pompeii” was only Catherine Tate’s second episode in the role of official companion, and it was in this adventure that she assuaged many nay-sayers fears. Incredible acting from the leads, a believable setting and a truly touching ending helped “The Fires of Pompeii” become one of series 4’s finest moments. |
THE UNICORN AND THE WASP
| Pre-broadcast, “The Unicorn and the Wasp” already had enemies because of its frankly ridiculous title. But the episode itself turned out to be a joy – a classic Agatha Christie style mystery with a Doctor Who twist. There were so many ways in which the episode could have failed, but it thankfully avoided them all, resulting in a light-hearted, satisfying mystery with real character. |
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DALEK
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Doctor Who without the Daleks seems unimaginable now, but due to a licencing dispute they nearly didn’t appear in series 1 at all. Thank the TARDIS they did, because “Dalek” proved itself as a dark and gritty character study – the likes of which we haven’t seen since. Two sworn enemies, both the last of their kind battle in a game of wits, brute strength and compassion. Sometimes, less really is more. |
CLOSING TIME
| James Corden’s Craig returns to Doctor Who minus Sophie, instead joined by new-born baby Stormageddon. While the Cybermen strand of the story fell a little short, “Closing Time” is a gem of an episode for its hilarious comedy and The Doctor’s new found bromance. From a 900 year old alien working in a toy shop to a baby calling his Dad “Not-Mum”, this second outing is a welcome relief from the relative darkness of series 6. |
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THE GOD COMPLEX
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“The God Complex” is Amy and Rory’s last episode as full-time companions of The Doctor, only joining him for interspersed excursions thereafter. And their last proper adventure is a dark one, bringing crippling fear, insanity, and a Minotaur. As a brilliant array of characters have their faith tested and ultimately broken, The Doctor is forced to acknowledge his own god complex – and this time he can’t save everyone. |
THE RUNAWAY BRIDE
| Catherine Tate’s first adventure with The Doctor (over a year before she became a full-time companion) is every bit as wacky, festive and bizarre as we’ve come to expect from yule tide episodes. While she’s not quite the character we fell in love with in series 4, Donna Noble is hilarious and even gripping (her warning to the Doctor post-climax is one of the most touching since the revival) throughout. With set pieces including a TARDIS chase down a busy London road and an underground battle with spider-creatures, “The Runaway Bride” is a thoroughly enjoyable romp. |
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THE CHRISTMAS INVASION
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The second festive special on this list, “The Christmas Invasion” is perhaps most memorable as David Tennant’s debut as The Doctor (minus a “Parting of the Ways” cameo). As Tennant recovers post-regeneration, PM Harriet Jones takes charge and Jackie Tyler is attacked by a psychotic Christmas Tree. In the final confrontation The Doctor quotes the Lion King and re-grows a hand… what’s not to love? |
AMY’S CHOICE
| Starring Toby Jones as a darker side of The Doctor’s sub-conscious, “Amy’s Choice” presents Madame Pond with two versions of reality – traversing the universe with The Doctor, or settled with Rory and carrying a baby – and forces her to choose between the two. Featuring a single sentence that manages to sum up the entire show (“Something here doesn’t make sense, let’s go and poke it with a stick”), this episode features all the necessary comedy, threat and emotion to make it one of the greats. |
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ROSE
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Let’s start the Top 40 where it all began (again). “Rose,” the first episode of Doctor Who for 16 years rebooted the show as a contemporary, self-aware sci-fi show for a mainstream audience. Serving as an introduction not just to a new Doctor, but also one of his most popular companions, the episode takes a creepy premise and uses it to slapstick comic effect (Micky-swallowing wheelie bin, we’re talking to you), “Rose” remains one of the most confident series openers. |
PARTNERS IN CRIME
| After the epic event-status of “The Voyage of the Damned” and the series 3 finale, “Partners In Crime” brought the story firmly back down to Earth – Chiswick, specifically. Thoroughly hilarious all the way through (the window mime conversation being a highlight), and featuring the utterly adorable Adipose, “Partners In Crime” is a classic comedy mystery with not-so subtle social commentary. Oh, and there’s the return of Donna as well. |
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THE DOCTOR’S DAUGHTER
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Starring Georgia Moffett (daughter of Fifth Doctor Peter Davison) as “The Doctor’s daughter” in “The Doctor’s Daughter” (Moffett went on to marry David Tennant, also making her The Doctor’s wife), Jenny is a “generated anomaly” created from The Doctor’s DNA. In a world of fighting colonies, cloning and warfare, The Doctor, Donna, and Martha try to control the newly born Time Lady and bring peace to two opposing sides. “The Doctor’s Daughter” is a rich, layered episode with an air-punching ending. |
A CHRISTMAS CAROL
| Ever since we saw him munching on fish fingers and custard, Whovians had been waiting to see Matt Smith’s eccentric Eleventh Doctor at Christmas. And Steven Moffat’s first festive offering didn’t disappoint, offering up a tragic love story in a quirky cyberpunk world. An obvious riff on Charles Dicken’s classic, “A Christmas Carol” adds magic and high-concept sci-fi with inventive creatures, amazing dialogue and great performances all-round. |
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TURN LEFT
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Featuring the long-awaited return of Rose (not including screaming out of television screens and fading away as she walks), “Turn Left” asks a massive question – what would happen if The Doctor died? What follows is a disaster movie style story going as far back as 2005, showing in turn the various attacks and invasions of Earth that happen throughout the series – but this time without anyone to stop them. As humanity is restricted and defeated time and time again, society sinks lower than anyone could have expected. What’s so great about “Turn Left” is that it provides a gritty story akin to Children of Men – with the added bonus of aliens. |
BAD WOLF/THE PARTING OF THE WAYS
| The only tie in your voting results is between two consecutive episodes, and they just so happen to be the series 1 finale! Here we have the triumphant return of a Dalek fleet, the end of Christopher Eccleston’s Ninth Doctor and the first appearance of David Tennant in a role he would become synonymous with. This two parter brought the answers we had craved since we first saw “Bad Wolf” scrawled across a city wall, the first (apparent) death of Jack Harkness and some sickening twists on classic game shows. “Bad Wolf” and “The Parting of the Ways” provides an exciting and explosive ending to The Doctor’s television return. |
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UTOPIA
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Despite all indications that this would be another apocalyptic explosion fest, “Utopia” turned out to be a surprisingly low-key affair (the doomsday style thread remained present, but it was left bubbling away in the background). With Captain Jack back from the dead – and his own spin-off show – the focus is firmly set on the three leads in a dialogue heavy script. As those apocalyptic tones ramp up and several pieces from the whole series come together, we’re left with one of the greatest cliffhangers in Doctor Who history. It’s the slow burning tension and constant suspense that make “Utopia” a gripping watch. |
THE WEDDING OF RIVER SONG
| With all of time colliding and the clocks no longer ticking, the day The Doctor dies has arrived! But of course, he’s not going down without a fight. A brilliantly bizarre adventure including Churchill as the Holy Roman Empire and the Orient Express travelling to Area 51 (relocated to a pyramid), “The Wedding of River Song” whizzes along at breakneck speed as Amy, Rory and River join The Doctor in a showdown with The Silence. The controversial reveal could well be the reason this episode didn’t rank higher, but there’s no denying series 6 didn’t end on a game-changing note with The Doctor playing dead as he avoids the oldest questions in the universe: “Doctor Who?” |  |
LAST OF THE TIME LORDS
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“The Last of the Time Lords” forces The Doctor into the most desperate situation we’ve seen him in so far. The Master has taken over Earth, and is getting ready to wipe out human civilization. Meanwhile, The Doctor has been weakened and aged to the point where he’s just short of having conversations with himself and looking for his “preciousssss”. John Simm’s delirious performance as the psychotic Master keeps us glued to our screens in an epic conclusion to the third series. |
THE SATAN PIT
| The second part of the Ood’s introductory story sees The Doctor come face to face with a gigantic Beast that claims to be the inspiration for the Devil in all cultures. As the largest monster The Doctor has ever faced, The Beast possesses, scares, and taunts its victims leading to a war of words between him and the legendary Galiffreyan. With one of Rose’s most heroic moments saving a spaceship crew from certain death and an operatic score, “The Satan Pit” is horror with grand scale and high stakes. |
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THE SOUND OF DRUMS
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Following on from “Utopia’s” shocking cliffhanger, “The Sound of Drums” brings the action back to the present with a Bourne Identity like espionage adventure. When The Doctor, Jack and Martha are made public enemy number one by the freshly elected Prime Minister Mister Saxon (an anagram of Master No. Six), they must go under cover to unearth his plan and try and save the world. The fact that they fail ramps up the stakes once again, setting up perfectly for the dizzy heights of “Last of the Time Lords.” Plus, that drum beat’s stuck in our head. |
LET’S KILL HITLER
| Possibly the most explored time travel premise in history, the fandom took a collective gasp when “Let’s Kill Hitler” was announced as a title. We didn’t quite get the history changing assassination of a dictator we were expecting though (he was left in a cupboard). Instead, one of the last gaps in River Song’s timeline was filled as we see her attempt to murder The Doctor before giving up her remaining regenerations to save him. With the Mels revelation and a montage of Amy and Rory’s school years, “Let’s Kill Hitler” became one of the most surprisingly touching episodes of Moffat’s tenure so far. |
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THE LODGER
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Ranking above its series 6 counterpart, “The Lodger” is one of two episodes in which James Corden guest stars as Craig. With The TARDIS stuck in a sort of timey-wimey limbo, The Doctor must adjust to human life. He does so by lodging in Craig’s appartment, which just so happens to have a disguised spaceship perched on top of it. Toothbrushes become weapons, aliens excel at soccer and two actors share great chemistry – “The Lodger” is an often hilarious, sometimes touching episode which has a place in the fandom’s collective heart. |
HUMAN NATURE
| With “The Lodger” seeing The Doctor pretend to be a human, “Human Nature” takes it one notch further by changing his whole biology and hiding his Time Lord “soul” in a fob watch. Assuming the role of Headmaster John Smith, The (human) Doctor falls in love with a school nurse. Meanwhile, a mysterious and vicious family of aliens begin hi-jacking bodies to hunt for the Time Lord. A rare romance story set against the backdrop of a gothic period horror presents the premise for one of the most unique Doctor Who episodes we’ve seen so far. |
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THE SHAKESPEARE CODE
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Frankly, we’re amazed it took the writers of Who so long to create a Shakespeare story. But when they finally got round to it, they certainly didn’t disappoint. Centering around the lost play “Love’s Labour’s Won,” “The Shakespeare Code” presents a tale of alien witchcraft, mysterious murders and J.K. Rowling saving the day several hundred years before she’s born. Narrowly missing out on a place in the Top 25, “The Shakespeare Code” presents several interesting observations about the playwright himself – as well as a surprising (albeit pleasant) attitude to Martha’s race. |
HONORABLE MENTIONS
| There are many episodes that narrowly missed out on a place in the list, with places 45-55 being especially close. While they didn’t quite make the cut, special shout outs must go to “Planet of the Ood,” “Father’s Day,” “The Beast Below,” “Tooth and Claw,” and “The Doctor, The Widow, and the Wardrobe” – all of which are beautiful, brilliant, and terrifying in their own right. Finally, we must mention “Remembrance of the Daleks,” “City of Death,” and “The War Games”; the only Classic episodes to receive any votes in our readers poll. |
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