Doctor Who
Summary
AsDoctor Whocelebrates 60 years in 2023 , and accessing the show ’s chronicle has never been easier , there ’s no good time to dive into each Doctor ’s greatest hits . With six decades worth of idiot box episode , comic strips , novel , audio drama , and spinoffs , harness theWhoniversecan be a intimidating prospect for the uninitiated . However , the data formatting ofDoctor Who- specially its classic geological era - does mean that it ’s very leisurely to just plunk in , feet first . For the majority ofDoctor Who ’s 60 year , the only prior noesis needed is that the lead type has a time and space auto that can travel anywhere .
While diving intoDoctor Whomay have been easier in the days of syndicated screening on PBS and classic serials being release piecemeal on VHS and DVD , it can be a little harder now . Over 800 episode ofDoctor Whowere dropped on the BBC ’s iPlayer table service , alongsideDoctor and Companion reunion seriesTales of the TARDIS . Such a bounteousness ofDoctor Whonew and old , could be difficult to undertake without a hand to hold , and there ’s no better blank space to start than the safe stories for each of the thirteen Doctor .
13First Doctor (William Hartnell) - The Aztecs
Broadcast 23 May - 13 June 1964
" The Aztecs " established many of the show ’s rule around sentence traveling , primarily that history can not be rewritten . The moral dilemma faced by story instructor Barbara Wright ( Jacqueline Hill ) as she contemplates averting the racial extermination of the Aztecs still holds up today . William Hartnell is on incredible form as the Doctor , showcasing the righteous fury and irascibility that belies a tender and sensitive nature . It ’s a chef-d’oeuvre of a story that sit well alongside modern historic episodes like " The Fires of Pompeii " or " Rosa . " What ’s more , the existing color output photos suggest that it ’s a prime prospect for colorization following " The Daleks " , giving this classic a brand - unexampled lease of life .
12Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton) - The Tomb of the Cybermen
Broadcast 2 - 23 September 1967
" The Tomb of the Cybermen " is Patrick Troughton ’s second of four Cybermen stories , and it ’s the best one because of its stripped back part drama and paranoia . The Second Doctor , Jamie ( Frazer Hines ) and Victoria ( Deborah Watling ) are trap in the dormant tomb of the Cybermen with a knave ’s art gallery of characters with their own agendas . What makes it even more gripping is that the Doctor ’s own curiosity is just as grave as the scheming of the antagonists . It also features one of the most memorable panorama in all ofDoctor Who;the Cybermen awaking and emerging from their tombs , which is often imitated but seldom improve .
Eleventh Doctor Matt Smith once summon " The Tomb of the Cybermen " as one of his preferent Doctor Who stories .
11Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) - Spearhead from Space
Broadcast 3 - 24 January 1970
It ’s no exaggeration to say that Jon Pertwee ’s launching serial publication , " Spearhead from Space"savedDoctor Whofrom being cancel . Derrick Sherwin completely turned the show around by stranding theThird Doctor on Earth , and making him scientific adviser to UNIT . As an early looping of the so - call " UNIT Family " , Robert Holmes ' story control all the base elements that would later be refine by Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks . It ’s also the most cinematic lookingDoctor Whoserial of the classic earned run average , owing to industrial activity requiring the entire story to be filmed on 35 mm out on emplacement . From its nightmarish shop windowpane dummy freak to its grounded scope , this is the design for RTD ’s own version ofDoctor Who .
10Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) - City of Death
Broadcast 29 September - 20 October 1979
Written byTheHitchhiker ’s Guide to the Galaxyauthor Douglas Adams , " City of Death " is the undisputed high point of the Tom Baker era ofDoctor Who . Clearly a huge influence on Steven Moffat , the level revolves around a stranded alien stealing Leonardo DaVinci ’s Mona Lisa and using it to fund his return home . The emplacement shoot in Paris make " City of Death " something really special , asDoctor Whorarely left England ’s Home Counties . It ’s also jam full of laugh - out - flashy joke and cock-a-hoop sci - fi mind that stars Tom Baker and Lalla Ward grasp with both hands . An excellent gatewayDoctor Whostory that showcases everything that makes the show so unique .
Tom Baker once reflected that watching " City of demise " is like watching two people descend in love . He would marry his co - star Lalla Ward a yr by and by .
9Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison) - The Caves of Androzani
Broadcast 8 - 16 March 1984
No story challenge theFifth Doctor ’s nice cat statuslike " The Caves of Androzani " byDoctor Wholegend Robert Holmes . on a regular basis voted as one of the very bestDoctor Whostories , it sees Peter Davison ’s incarnation risk of infection everything to make unnecessary his unexampled companion Peri ( Nicola Bryant ) . It ’s a fascinating account because it ’s one of the rarified times that there are no redeemable characters other than the Doctor and Peri . From the gun runner , to the war factions , to the odious business people on Androzani Major , everyone is beyond the Dr. ’s help . With the odds so highly stacked against him , it ’s only by sacrificing his life sentence to save Peri from Spectrox poisoning that the Fifth Doctor can really win .
8Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) - Revelation of the Daleks
Broadcast 23 - 30 March 1985
There are certainly undecomposed Dalek story , but " Revelation of the Daleks " is the point at which Colin Baker’sDoctor Whoera really clicks into space . write by Eric Saward , " Revelation of the Daleks " is an unrelentingly bleak fib about the heroic effort by Davros ( Terry Molloy ) to stay on relevant and eventually avenge himself against his creations . However , unlike other stories in Colin Baker ’s first time of year , the Sixth Dr. is a far more reassuring presence for Peri , which soften the write up ’s grueling edges . There are also some fantastic scene between the Doctor and Davros that are up there with Tom Baker and Michael Wisher ’s confrontation in " generation of the Daleks " .
The newfangled Doctor Who spinoff , Tales of the TARDIS , finally provides an upgrade outfit for Colin Baker ’s Sixth Doctor 39 old age after his debut .
7Seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) - The Curse of Fenric
Broadcast 25 October - 15 November 1989
WhenDoctor Whoended in 1989 , it was see a veridical creative high item and " The Curse of Fenric " is the highlight of the Sylvester McCoy epoch . ArguablyDoctor Who ’s first attempt at a story electric discharge in the modern sense of the terminus , it tied up the mystery of the Seventh Doctor ’s companion Ace ( Sophie Aldred ) in a truly powerful way . It ’s full of the emotional eccentric play that viewers expect of modernDoctor Who , and touches on timeless themes like generational trauma and the futility of war . It ’s also incredibly atmospheric and unsettling , with the British fog and rain playing a key use in establishing the inauspicious tone .
Fans can choose from either the as - broadcast 4 - part serial or the feature film - length edit of " The Curse of Fenric " , which forms the final episode ofTales of the TARDISseason 1 .
6Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann) - The TV Movie
Broadcast 14 May (US) & 27 May (UK) 1996
Paul McGann’sDoctor Whoera was tragically turn off short after just one dark , when the pilot moving-picture show fail to perform as Fox had desire . While Paul McGann ’s Doctor would go on to top multiple series of novel , audio adventures , and risible strips , there ’s only one full - length TV adventure in his epoch . TheDoctor WhoTV Movie is nowhere near as terrible as some would intimate , and McGann ’s performance is certainly a highlight . Matthew Jacobs ' book takes the basic chemical element ofDoctor Whoand updates it for a 1990s net TV audience to give a tantalizing glimpse into what an American carbon monoxide - production variation of the show would have looked like .
5Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) - The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances
Broadcast 21 - 28 May 2005
In his autobiographyI Love the osseous tissue of You , Christopher Eccleston cites " The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances " as his favorite script from hisDoctor Whoera . It ’s easy to see that in Eccleston ’s performance as he gives his most " Doctorish " take on the key character of the whole serial publication . The first two episode written by succeeding showrunner Steven Moffat , " The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances " is full of the wickedness , comedy , and insinuation that would later on define his own earned run average ofDoctor Who . However , here he acquire the residual just right and yield audiences a genuinely creepy-crawly and unsettlingDoctor Whotwo - parter that at last come down to the honey between a mother and son .
4Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) - Human Nature/The Family of Blood
Broadcast 26 May - 2 June 2007
Steven Moffat ’s " Blink " may be the bestDoctor Whostory from David Tennant ’s epoch , but he ’s not in reality in it all that much . " Human Nature / The Family of Blood " is , therefore , a far proficient showcase for the player ’s ability . The idea of turningDavid Tennant ’s Tenth Doctorinto a human hits harder than in the original Seventh Doctor novel . David Tennant is fantabulous as both John Smith and the 10th Doctor , and it ’s heartbreaking when Smith has to change back to save the hamlet . It ’s a poetic tragedy that remind viewer of the fact that the Doctor is doomed never to be the romantic hero that can settle down after their adventures are ended .
