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The Tenth and Eleventh Doctors in the same episode? Doctor Who doesn't get much better than that.
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00:00From the long-awaited return of a fan-favorite character to inside baseball references that
00:05have us all pointing at the TV like that Leonardo DiCaprio meme, Who fanatics might butt heads on
00:10a lot of things, but we can all agree that the following moments are Doctor Who fan service
00:15at its finest. And so, with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with WhoCulture, here with 10 times
00:20Doctor Who gave fans exactly what they wanted.
00:24Number 10. Fully exploring the depths of the TARDIS
00:28Though the TARDIS has been around since the opening moments of the show, it wasn't until 2013 that we
00:35finally got to explore its labyrinthine innards in great detail. The idea for Journey to the Center
00:40of the TARDIS stemmed from Steven Moffat's frustration with the 1978 serial The Invasion
00:46of Time, which he deemed disappointing due to its depiction of the TARDIS interior. Production
00:52issues forced these scenes to be filmed in a not-so-visually-impressive disused hospital.
00:56As a result, Moffat wanted Journey to the Center of the TARDIS to atone for what he thought was a
01:01lackluster portrayal of the Doctor's iconic machine. And though you could argue that the
01:06episode doesn't go far enough in showcasing all the weird and wonderful sights lurking within,
01:11it nonetheless provided our most in-depth TARDIS experience to date, something fans have been
01:16hankering to see for quite some time. The intriguing architectural reconfiguration room, the huge TARDIS
01:22library, a blistering sequence set inside the Eye of Harmony, swimming pools, storage rooms,
01:28and more. It made the TARDIS feel as expansive as we often are told it was. The episode's main plot
01:34certainly could have been better, but the TARDIS element was a well-executed tribute to the Doctor's
01:40most loyal companion. Number 9. Christopher Eccleston's Comeback
01:45The fact that we only spent one series with Christopher Eccleston's Ninth Doctor left
01:50many a frustrated fan wanting more. A LOT more. As with Paul McGann, Eccleston's time on screen was
01:57far more brief than your average Doctor's. And though Big Finish came to McGann's rescue towards
02:01the end of the Wilderness years, a comeback for 9 just didn't seem on the cards. And that's because
02:07in the years after his 2005 exit, Eccleston made it clear that he wasn't on great terms with Doctor
02:13Who, even stating that he didn't enjoy working on the show. And that's exactly why the announcement
02:19of his audio-exclusive return was such a great moment of fanservice. Absolutely nobody expected it
02:26to happen. So far, 9 has battled Cybermen, Ravagers, ancient psychic aliens, and more,
02:31and his Big Finish run has been very well received. Eccleston himself is also enjoying it,
02:36even enthusiastically teasing a 60th anniversary story with the late David Warner. After all the
02:42behind-the-scenes drama we've heard about over the years, to see him embrace the Hooniverse once again,
02:47albeit just in audio form, was a fantastic surprise, and it's something that fans have been eager to see,
02:53but never thought they would since 9 regenerated in the Series 1 finale.
02:58Number 8. Classic Doctors Unite. Any TV show episode in which heroes past and present combine
03:05forces is going to be a fan favourite, and Doctor Who has been doing this for longer than most.
03:11The internet may not have been around during the classic years, but that doesn't mean there weren't
03:16hordes of fans excitedly discussing the possibility of seeing multiple Doctors in the same story.
03:21It's been apparent since day one that the show's timey-wimey premise would allow for this,
03:26and indeed, a multi-Doctor adventure was an idea that was often mentioned behind the scenes,
03:31well before it actually happened. Producer Barry Letts finally delivered the goods in 1972-1973,
03:38with The Three Doctors, a serial that received a rapturous response from Whovians at the time,
03:44with Part 4 racking up 11.9 million viewers, the highest-rated single episode for both Jon Pertwee
03:51characters would follow in 1983 and 1985, respectively, and though none of these classic
03:59Doctor team-ups had particularly great stories, The Five Doctors fares the best despite having
04:04the largest cast, multi-Doctor adventures are fan service at its finest, and it's undeniably
04:10delightful to watch the likes of Pertwee's suave gentleman butt heads with Troughton's nutty Professor.
04:15Number 7, Captain Jack Harkness Returns. Throughout the 2010s, ask any Doctor Who fan
04:22to pick a character they wanted to see return, and there was a good chance that Captain Jack
04:27Harkness would be at the top of the list. Despite having a consistent presence in the
04:31Who-niverse during the first few years of the 2005 revival, the cheeky Time Agent mysteriously
04:37vanished from our screens after the conclusion of Torchwood's fourth series in 2011. And despite fans
04:43clamoring for his return, the character remained MIA as the years ticked by. This wasn't just
04:49something that everybody wanted to see, either. It was also something that seemed like a natural
04:53fit for the show. Jack was still involved with Torchwood, so there was every chance he'd bump
04:58into the Doctor while investigating an alien threat. He was also known to use a vortex manipulator,
05:04meaning that he could jump around the universe and into the Doctor's life at will. Presumably noticing
05:09the fan outcry, Chris Chibnall ultimately brought back Jack in the series 12 episode Fugitive of the
05:14Judoon. His role here had little relevance to the plot, but nobody actually cared. This was nothing
05:20more than fan service, and Whovians lapped it up like a steaming hot bowl of fish fingers and custard.
05:26Number 6, Would you like a jelly, baby? Possibly more than any other show on television,
05:31Doctor Who has a habit of reusing catchphrases, quips, and other iconic lines. Every single time this
05:38happens, you just know the writer was sat there with a proud smirk on their face, thinking,
05:42oh yeah, the fans will love this! Because, let's be honest, we're quite easy to please as a fanbase.
05:47Just mention jellybabies or fezzes and we'll immediately start whooping and cheering.
05:51Some of our favourite examples of repeat quips include the 4th Doctor offering Davros a jelly
05:56baby, the 12th Doctor poking fun at the 3rd Doctor's reverse the polarity quip in The Girl Who Died,
06:01Ganger11 spouting out several iconic catchphrases in The Almost People, bonus points for the jelly
06:07baby line in this scene, which is actually Tom Baker's voice dubbed over Smith's, the cyber
06:11planner exclaiming Alon-Z in Nightmare in Silver, and the 13th Doctor's Geronimo upon rope swinging
06:18between ships in Legend of the Sea Devils. Is this shamelessly pandering to the fans? Yes.
06:24Are we totally okay with it? Also, yes.
06:27Number 5, The Doctor and River on Deryllium.
06:30River Song's debut in Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead brought with it more questions
06:36than answers. Who exactly was she, how did she know the Doctor so well, and would we ever see
06:41the character again? Back then, there were no guarantees that River would return. Even Alex
06:46Kingston thought it was a one and done, which would have been a massive shame considering all
06:50the backstory hints that were just begging to be expanded upon, not to mention how well she clicked
06:55with the Doctor. One of those backstory hints was so important that River used her last living
07:00moments to tell the Doctor about it, describing a previous encounter where the Doctor, who knew
07:06her death was imminent, took her to see the Singing Towers of Deryllium, where they spent their final
07:11night together. All the time we've been together, you knew I was coming here. The last time I saw you,
07:16the real you, the future you, I mean. You turned up on my doorstep with a new haircut and a suit. You took
07:21me to Deryllium to see the Singing Towers. What a night that was. The towers sang and you cried.
07:27This instantly became an off-screen adventure that fans were desperate to see. And in 2015,
07:34Stephen Moffat, the king of the long-term payoff, delivered the goods. Christmas special The
07:39Husbands of River Song depicted their Deryllium getaway in stunning detail, rewarding those fans
07:44who'd spent the last seven years wondering if they'd ever get to see it brought to life. And,
07:49you know, we all know that I maybe love River Song a little bit, so if they wanted to do a little
07:54bit more fan service, they could, you know, bring her back. Again. Soon. Please. Thank you.
08:00Number 4. The Coming Together of the RTD-verse
08:05Russell T Davies was ahead of the curve when it came to the cinematic universe craze in the 2010s.
08:11With Doctor Who, Torchwood, and The Sarah Jane Adventures, he was running an interconnected franchise
08:16years before Marvel Studios made it cool. Something he lamented in a 2021 interview, saying,
08:21I was in the middle of running an empire, and my god, I did that 10 years too soon, didn't I?
08:26Back when this small-screen universe first kicked off, fans obviously knew that these shows existed
08:31in the same world. And though it was fun when they referenced each other, what we really wanted to
08:36see was a huge crossover episode. Knowing that such an episode would be a ratings juggernaut,
08:41RTD made good on that potential with 2008's The Stolen Earth and Journey's End. Episodes with such
08:48large casts that the opening credits hilariously struggled to keep up with their names. Watching
08:52Sarah Jane rub shoulders with Martha and having Donna fire quips at Captain Jack was glorious,
08:58and the fact that RTD managed to stuff all of these characters into a story that actually worked was
09:03almost unbelievable. This was Doctor Who's Avengers Endgame, and it was a dream come true
09:09for fans at the time. Not just that it happened, but also the fact that it was really damn good.
09:14Number 3. Tom Baker's Curator Cameo
09:18Commenting on why he chose Tom Baker as the only classic Doctor to return for The Day of the Doctor
09:24in 2013, Stephen Moffat said that the idea was simply irresistible. He said,
09:28"...to have the longest standing and the oldest Doctor from Longest to Go make an appearance and be the
09:34one who briefs the new Doctor on where to go, well, it's irresistible, isn't it? You get to hear that
09:39voice again. It was just wonderful." In other words, he knew that this particular Baker, as the
09:44most popular classic Doctor by a mile, would be the one that fans would want to see the most.
09:48With The Day of the Doctor being a celebration of the first 50 years of Who, it also made perfect
09:53sense to bring back the man who'd represented the show for the longest period of time. And the great
09:58thing about the cameo was that it wasn't just there for the sake of it. Baker, as the mysterious
10:02curator, was there to round out the episode's story and New Who's ongoing Time War arc by confirming to
10:08the 11th Doctor that his attempt to save Gallifrey was successful. Gallifrey falls no more. It was the
10:14very definition of a crowd-pleasing moment, and there were undoubtedly a lot of tears in the audience
10:20when Baker's booming voice rang out across the gallery. Number 2. Everything about the 60th anniversary.
10:28If you told someone a year ago that Doctor Who's 60th anniversary celebrations would be written by
10:33Russell T Davies and star David Tennant and Catherine Tate, they would have probably laughed
10:37in your face. The 50th anniversary was so wonderful that it almost felt like it would be impossible to
10:43top. But the 60th not only looks set to match its predecessor in the fan-pleasing department,
10:48there's a strong chance it's going to blow it out of the water. Not only do we have the returns of
10:53RTD, Tennant, and Tate, but director Rachel Talalay, who helmed several terrific episodes during the
10:58Peter Capaldi era, and there's lots more too. We're getting the late Bernard Crippen's final
11:03Doctor Who performance, the rumored, much-requested return of the Doctor Who Christmas special,
11:08a spiritual successor to fan-favorite Doctor Who Confidential, and presumably an appearance from our
11:14newest Doctor, Shuti Gatwa. There are also constant whispers that the likes of Matt Smith,
11:18Peter Capaldi, Karen Gillan, and Paul McGann will be involved, speculation that David Tennant
11:23recently fuelled by saying that he'd filmed with other people behind closed doors. It's basically
11:28RTD going, oh Stephen, the 50th was cute, now watch this. And honorable mention does need to go to Chris
11:35Chibnall here too, who also knows what Whovians want, and is about to give it to them in a matter of
11:40weeks. Classic fan-favorite Ace and Tegan are set to return for Jodie Whittaker's final episode later this
11:47year, which should be a nice warm-up before the full-on craziness of the 60th in 2023.
11:53Number 1. The 10th and 11th Doctors joining forces
11:58Now yes, we know we just said that the 60th anniversary could blow the 50th anniversary
12:03out of the water, and it very well might, but we couldn't give the top spot to something that
12:07hasn't happened yet, could we? Just as he knew that Tom Baker's curator would be an instant win for fans,
12:13Stephen Moffat knew that bringing back David Tennant and linking him up with Matt Smith was the safest
12:18bet he could possibly make when crafting a multi-Doctor story to celebrate the show's half-century
12:24milestone. So that's exactly what he did! With Tennant regularly topping Best Doctor polls and the Smith
12:30era taking the show to international stardom, the 10th and 11th Doctors had made the mighty Whovian
12:35army bigger than ever, so it's no surprise that they were top of fan wish lists when the 50th was
12:40looming, making it something of a no-brainer for Moffat to pick up the phone and ask Tennant to return.
12:46Though it was a tad disappointing that Christopher Eccleston couldn't complete the trifecta of New
12:51Who Doctors, watching Tennant and Smith poke fun at each other's outfits, Sonics, and Zygon-infused
12:57love lives was such a treat that any potential disappointment quickly faded away, and with 12.8 million
13:03viewers making it one of the most popular modern episodes and positive reviews all around, the
13:08Day of the Doctor was a huge success in every possible way. And that concludes our list, if you
13:14think we missed any then do let us know in the comments below and while you're there don't forget
13:18to like and subscribe and tap that notification bell so you never miss a WhoCulture video. Also head
13:23over to Twitter and follow us there at WhoCulture and I can be found across various social medias just
13:28by searching Ellie Littlechild. I've been Ellie with WhoCulture and in the words of River Song
13:34herself, goodbye, sweeties.
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