Series 7 - 50th Anniversary Special - Matt Smith, David Tennant and John Hurt - Day of the Doctor

'The man who regrets and the man who forgets' 

50 years of television is a wonderful thing to celebrate and what better way than with a real fan pleaser of an episode broadcast not only on televisions all around the world but also in viewed by thousands of people in cinemas around the UK. The atmosphere at the cinema was brilliant; there were cosplayers everywhere, film crews interviewing fans and a massive queue for the screening. The most exciting thing was seeing just how many people, adults and children alike, there are who love Doctor Who in our area. Sometimes you just don’t realise how much you have in common with the people around you. 

 

So after queuing amongst the other fans for about half an hour we settled into our seats with our bag of Jelly babies and watched as the credits started to roll. For those of you who didn’t see this episode at the cinema there were a few little added extras for the viewers that were very well received. The first was a lesson in cinema etiquette courtesy of Strax who can be seen demonstrating the correct way to consume popcorn, the correct procedure when it comes to mobile phones and just what could happen if a Sontaran feels you are talking over his favourite film. 

Then enters Matt Smith to tell us how disappointed he is that the show is only being broadcast in 3D ‘Not even 12D?’. His sonic screwdriver jumped out of the screen as he pointed it at the audience and the girls all screamed when Matt magically morphed into David Tennant. You then got a little preview of what was to come when the Doctors briefly appeared on your screens at the same time, joking and teasing each other. 

Now onto the episode itself; the Day of the Doctor immediately drew parallels to the first ever episode of Doctor Who by mirroring perfectly the opening scenes of ‘An Unearthly child’. A policemen is seen walking past the sign for ‘Coal Hill secondary school’ which is not only the school that Clara now teaches at, but is also the school that Susan attended in 1963 and also appears in the Sylvester McCoy episode ‘Remembrance of the Daleks’. A great little nod to the fans and shout out to William Hartnell’s great work in bringing the Doctor to life. 

The Doctor’s relationship with Clara is just as electric as it has been from day one and she proves herself a strong and viable companion who hides her fascination with the Doctor well under a veil of teasing and rolled eyes. Clara barely flinches at being confronted with the other two Doctors having met them before and her relationship with the War Doctor is actually really interesting, they have a very lovely little heart to heart and in the end it is Clara who makes the Doctor reconsider his decision about the Time War. She proves that sometimes a new set of eyes, a little bit of hope and a new perspective can save lives and reminds the Doctor who he really is. 

There are two sort of parallel stories running side by side throughout this episode, the first is the story of Queen Elizabeth I and the Zygons. The Zygons first appeared in 1975 during Tom Baker’s reign as the Doctor, they’re strange orange/red creatures covered in suckers with venomous sacs on their tongues who can shape shift into a form of their choice. These particular Zygons are using a stasis cube to suspend themselves in paintings allowing them to leave England during Queen Elizabeth I’s reign and arrive in the much more advanced 21^st Century Earth where they plan to take the planet for their own. In reality the Zygons are just a hook to get the Doctors in the same place and the Doctors solve the problem with ease and impeccable style. It is the end of the Time War which is the real story here though. 

John Hurt’s War Doctor is absolutely perfect! Snarky, irritable and exasperated by the actions of his older selves. David Tennant is his usual cheeky self and Matt Smith proves the depth beneath his silliness. 

The moment that really made this episode for me and quite possibly every other fan in that cinema was when the Doctor contacted the Time Lord War Council. When I say the Doctor contacted them to tell them his plan I don’t mean one Doctor I mean all of them. We saw each Doctor flash onto our screens just for a moment and heard each of their voices as the episode reached its crescendo, then the incredible happened, we saw the next incarnation of the Doctor before we’d even seen the Doctor regenerate. The glimpse was brief and it was only Peter Capaldi’s eyes but the scream that resonated around the screening was amazing and the whole thing raised goosebumps on my arms and kept us wondering for hours after if the Doctor had had a Scottish accent or not. 

There were a couple of other fan pleasing moments that deserve a mention from this momentous episode. David Tennant’s departure after they made their attempt to save Gallifrey was one such moment. Many girls around the world broke down in tears once more to see him say those heart-breaking words ‘I don’t want to go’ but it was Matt Smith’s little comment of ‘He always says that’ which really put a grin on my face. 

Tom Baker’s little cryptic cameo at the end was really sweet and quite fun and you could actually see the pure joy on Matt Smith’s face as he got to work alongside the icon that is the Fourth Doctor, one of my personal favourites. 

Finally there was the return of Rose, or to be more specific, the ‘Moment’ taking on the form of ‘Bad Wolf Rose’. Now I have to say I really do disagree with a lot of the comments I have read about Billie Piper’s performance in this episode. Though perhaps she didn’t play Rose the way she typically had in the past and there were similarities between the portrayal of the Moment and the portrayal of Idris I really don’t feel like the two can be compared the way some people have. I think you have to remember that this Rose isn’t really Rose, it is the consciousness of the Moment taking on the form of a person from the Doctors past or future so that it can speak to him a change in personality isn’t really outside of the realms of possibility. I rather enjoyed her little exchanges with the War Doctor. 

All in all this episode was an absolutely perfect way to celebrate the Doctor’s 50^th year on our screens and I loved every moment of it.

A solid 10/5