10 Doctor Who Episodes You WERE NOT Ready For

Doctor Who can change so much from week to week that you never really know what you're in for. One week you're watching a pretty scary story about the devil, and the next you're watching Peter Kay in a sweaty rubber suit. Basically, that's the Whoniverse in a nutshell. Because of this limitless potential, Doctor Who has so many ways to surprise and shock viewers, and there have been many episodes in the modern series that have caught people completely off guard. The episode itself could be highly unique and subversive, or there could be some huge I'm Ellie for WhoCulture, here with 10 Doctor Who episodes you were not ready for. 10. Sleep No More Mark Gatiss' Sleep No More is one of the most divisive episodes in the show. At the time, it had the lowest viewing figures of any episode of the revival, but with a decent 61% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it also has its fans as well. This divisiveness largely stemmed from the unexpected concept and execution of the episode, which took a big swing that many would argue didn't pay off. Playing out like a found footage horror film, Sleep No More was a radical departure from your typical Doctor Who fare, even foregoing the show's classic opening title sequence in favour of a custom title card. There are very few episodes in Doctor Who history that do this, so it's no surprise that people were weirded out by Sleep No More right from the off. It was also a standalone episode in a series that had consisted entirely of two-parters up to this point. Another reason why it feels like an oddball not just in Series 9, but in all of modern Who. And for some extra WTF points, it also ends on an unresolved cliffhanger, which left millions of viewers feeling suitably jarred. Mark Gatiss was planning to write a sequel at one point, but it never came to pass. Based on the mixed reception of the original, that was probably for the best. 9. The Well The Well spends its first half essentially creeping up on you before shouting BOO in your ear and devolving into complete and utter carnage for the final 20 minutes. Even those who did stumble across the odd theory or supposed plot leak tying this episode to 2008's Midnight will have had a shiver run down their spine at the mentions of galvanic radiation, extonic stars, and a planet made of diamonds before that creeping realisation hits you, the Doctor, and the soldiers simultaneously. Also literally, in the latter case. It's a masterfully executed slow burn that knows precisely when to wallop you in the face with the big reveal, and though perhaps the rest of the episode doesn't live up to the first half, it was all worth it for that big moment. A Midnight sequel? In a year of our lord 2025? Insane stuff. Who saw that coming? Well, apart from all those people on Reddit. It's always difficult to do a sequel to something so beloved, but The Well probably surprised a lot of people with how good it was. It certainly didn't scale the heights of the original, but it by no means tarnished it either, which is an accomplishment in and of itself. Now, before we continue, I just want to take the time to tell you about a great offer we have on the channel from our friends at Norton VPN. We've all been there. There's a movie, or a TV show, or even a watery spinoff of a popular sci-fi franchise that you want to watch, only to realise that it's locked to a streaming service in some distant mythical land, like Iceland. Well, Norton VPN can help you out there, as you can very quickly change your virtual location and unlock your content while away from home. Just scan the QR code or use the link down below to get 54% off your first year subscription, which works out as little as $4.17 per month, or around £2.50 a month if you live in Old Blighty. That's a few quid per month to unlock a world of content and keep yourself safe and secure online while you're at it. And there's even a 60-day money-back guarantee, so you can't really go wrong. Number 8. Fugitive of the Jadoon Fugitive of the Jadoon saw the introduction of a new incarnation of the Doctor, an incarnation that no fan had seen or heard of up until this point. Neither of these Doctors can remember living the life of the other, which was both a confusing and intriguing development. However, this new Fugitive Doctor did possess her own police box TARDIS, indicating that she came after William Hartnell's first Doctor. I dunno, it's still a little bit unclear. To quote the curator, who knows. As if this revelation wasn't shocking enough, fans were also treated to the return of the beloved Captain Jack Harkness. Like the Fugitive Doctor, this reveal was kept completely under wraps, making for a jaw-dropping surprise when the cheeky Time Agent's voice was first heard talking to a rather confused Graham O'Brien. It was expected that this episode would be a standard mid-series romp focused on the Jadoon, who, despite the title, are basically a subplot in their own story. Absolutely nobody expected it to change the fabric of Doctor Who as we knew it, and bring Captain Jack back to boot. Number 7. Blink. After the complete and utter disaster that was Love and Monsters in the previous series, an episode that doesn't feature the Doctor was a concerning prospect. But Blink made that concern disappear almost instantly. After finding out that the Doctor and Martha had been sent back in time without the TARDIS, the eccentrically named Sally Sparrow, brilliantly played by Carey Mulligan, finds herself stuck in the middle of helping the Doctor and running away from the creepy weeping angels who are stalking her. Creepy weeping angels. Well, there's a bit of a tongue twister for you. A mixture of peak sci-fi, timey-wimey writing, quality acting and direction, and the introduction of the scariest Doctor Who monster of all time, is what made this episode successful. Despite the absence of the Doctor, Blink just worked, with Sally being a strong enough protagonist to carry the episode single-handedly, and the angels strong enough to make you forget that the Doctor wasn't even there. And that's not to forget Larry, of course. What a guy. After The Empty Child, The Doctor Dances, and The Girl in the Fireplace, it was expected that Stephen Moffat would deliver the goods with his next episode. Was it expected that he'd deliver one of the best Doctor Who stories and villains of all time, in an episode that barely features the Doctor? No. No, it was not. Number 6. Asylum of the Daleks After the announcement that Karen Gillan and Arthur Darville would be making way for Jenna Coleman as the new companion, it was expected that we'd first meet her after the Ponds had left the show. That's how it works. That's how it had always worked. And since Doctor Who is such a stickler for tradition with these things, there was no reason to suspect otherwise. But then, during Asylum of the Daleks, we meet Oswin Oswald, living her rather odd day-to-day life trapped in the Dalek asylum after crashing there a year prior. Fans would be forgiven for thinking that the Doctor was going to save Oswin and have her join the TARDIS crew, and that the new companion had simply been brought forward. But that wasn't the case at all. Turns out that Oswin never escaped from the Daleks after the crash and she became a Dalek herself, and the truth was too much for her to handle, so she created a Soufflé-riddled world inside her head. In simpler terms, Oswin Oswald died. It begged the question of how Oswin could have died if Jenna Coleman is the next companion, and it also begged the question of what the hell is going on. Fans would eventually find out that there were multiple versions of Clara scattered throughout the Doctor's life, and that Oswin was one of them. But at the time, nobody expected Jenna Coleman to be introduced in the way that she was. Stephen Moffat would come out and thank those who had seen the episode early for keeping the twist a secret, which you have to imagine wouldn't be the reality in this day and age. But luckily, 2012 audiences played along. Where do we even start with this one? From its earliest bits of marketing, fans could tell they were in for a real treat with The Power of the Doctor, with old favourites like Ace, Tegan, and Kate Lethbridge-Stewart confirmed to return. But none of us were truly prepared for the sheer volume of surprises that The Power of the Doctor had in store. This episode was never promoted as a multi-Doctor special, so seeing the return of Doctors 1, 5, 6, 7, and 8 was a joyful surprise for all Who fans. Watching the 5th and 7th Doctors have a heartfelt chat with their respective companions was the icing on the cake, gaining closure for things said and done in the past. There was also the companion support group at the very end of the episode, which brought back characters like Mel Bush, Joe Grant, and Ian Chesterton, much to the surprise and delight of just about everybody with eyeballs. But it was the ending that had fans truly shocked. It's easy to forget now, but at the time, it wasn't known who Jodie Whittaker would regenerate into, with both Shruti Gatwa and David Tennant having previously been announced to appear in upcoming episodes. Many will have expected it to be Gatwa who would appear, due to him specifically being announced as the Doctor months prior. Instead, though, we got ol' Spiky Hair himself reprising the role of the Doctor on screen for the first time since 2013. Cue the WHAT? Number 4. Listen. Series 8 had begun under solid, if unspectacular circumstances. We had the usual post-regeneration trauma episode, an early Dalek story to help cement Peter Capaldi as the Doctor, and the schlocky fun of Robot of Sherwood. And then, out of nowhere, listen. Did anyone expect something quite so cerebral, so strange, so unique, this early into the Twelfth Doctor's run? We don't typically see episodes like this at this stage. Listen feels more like something you'd see in a Doctor's second series, when they're properly established and the writing can take more risks. A bit like Human Nature and the Family of Blood, or Blink, and the aforementioned Midnight for the Tenth Doctor, all of which came later in his era. Moffat clearly thought to hell with that and delivered the WTF vibes up top, weaving an unsettling tale about fear, nightmares and creatures of the unknown. The episode is complex, flitting back and forth between Clara's dates with Danny and her struggles with the Doctor, before diving into Danny's own past and his distant future. But it never feels muddled, rather purposeful and plotted for maximum drama. And then just when you think you've seen it all, Clara ends up on Gallifrey and interacts with a young Doctor. So not only did we get something shocking and spooky and quite unprecedented for a Doctor's fourth episode, it was also a 50th anniversary sequel in disguise. Moffat has arguably never been more Moffat-y than this. Number 3. The Girl Who Waited The second half of Series 6 got off to a rocky start with the likes of Let's Kill Hitler and Night's Heroes, but out of nowhere came The Girl Who Waited. Like the previous series, Amy's Choice, the relationship between Amy and Rory was front and centre in this episode, while the Doctor's recklessness and morals, particularly where his companions are concerned, were also brought into question. The Doctor and the Pons land on the resort planet of Appalachia. Beautiful word to say, by the way. Appalachia. Where Amy soon finds herself alone in a different timeline, left to fend for herself as she waits for the Doctor to come and save her. Rory then finds an older, bitter version of Amy, who tells him she's been waiting for 36 years. The episode switches between old and young Amy, finally bringing them together when the Doctor promises Rory that the TARDIS can hold both versions at once. Rule 1. The Doctor Lies Coming from the guy whose only previous Doctor Who credit was the admittedly quite mediocre Rise of the Cybermen and The Age of Steel, few were expecting The Girl Who Waited to be such a tour de force of writing, direction, and acting, with Gillan delivering her best performance. Well, actually two performances, as Amy Pond. Writer Tom McRae has referred to The Girl Who Waited as his most accomplished piece of plotting ever. High praise, but more than earned. Number 2. Rose After a 16-year hiatus, Doctor Who announced that it was returning in 2005, with Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor and Billy Piper as his companion. Before the episode aired, fans criticised the new logo and the changing of the TARDIS, as well as the casting of pop star Billy Piper in such a major role, with some going as far as to send hate mail to the production team. You know, pretty standard stuff when there are big changes for Doctor Who on the horizon. Due to the ongoing criticism and previous behind-the-scenes drama that caused the show to be cancelled in the first place, there was a lot of scepticism that the 2005 revival was actually going to work. But, spoiler alert, it did. The first episode, Rose, peaked at 10.81 million viewers when it aired, making it one of the most-viewed New Who episodes to this day. The episode had the massive job of introducing the Doctor to both an old and new audience, and despite making the risky move of focusing more on the companion, the show made the good decision of bringing back an old monster, the Autons, to satiate some of that classic demand. In short, the whole thing worked wonderfully, even in the face of all the doubt that led up to it. Few expected Series 1 to be as good or as successful as it was, and even fewer expected Rose to catapult the show to another 20-plus years on our screens. And number one, the name of the Doctor. Excitement for Doctor Who's 50th anniversary was at an all-time high when this episode aired a few months prior to the big day. Fans all around the world were speculating about who would be returning in the 50th and what the overall story was going to be about. But introducing a previously unseen incarnation of the Doctor, played by the legendary John Hurt, no less? Yeah, nobody saw that coming. The name of the Doctor dropped this plot bomb as a tantalising lead-in to the 50th, with the words, Introducing John Hurt as the Doctor, sending Whovians into a frenzy of excitement. Also confusion and tons of speculation, as you'd expect. The reveal changed any and all theories people had about the 50th anniversary, with it now being clear that Moffat was planning something much bigger than we'd anticipated. This moment changed Doctor Who forever, and in some ways has normalised the idea that writers can look back and exploit potential gaps in the Doctor's life in this way. The actual 50th episode, the Day of the Doctor, was a roaring success, cementing Hurt's War Doctor as a crucial incarnation in the Doctor's life. It was a huge swing from Moffat, but it all felt worth it in the end. And that concludes our list. If you think we missed an obvious example, then please do let us know in the comments down below. In the meantime, I've been Ellie for WhoCulture, and in the words of Riversong herself, goodbye sweeties.