Angels on Song in two part return

The Weeping Angels are without doubt the greatest addition to the series' regular collection of monsters since the 2005 reboot. They must now sit right at the top table of monsterdom with the Daleks and Cybermen. A great idea, fantastic design and some cracking stories to showcase them at their spooky best, including the emotional end of the Ponds.

But I've have to say that my favourite Matt Smith story is the two-parter Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone. In some respects this is the perfect modern version of an old school adventure - with a nice amount of time to build up the tension.

River Song is back, having summoned the Doctor in typically extravagant style, under the guard of the militarised clerics of Father Octavian (Iain Glen) and offers more multi-layered mystery to the tale.

Amy has some superb moments here - getting stuck watching the tape of the Angel, having something 'in her eye' and having to negotiate the spooky forest with her eyes shut. There's also the payoff later in the series when it's revealed that the Doctor returned to Amy at this moment from later in his time stream. It's Moffat-y madness but it works.

We've got some classic chased-through-corridors material too as well as some added mystery to the 'cracks in time' arc. The setting and direction mean it really looks the part too. 

Smith is also good here - adding a more alien quality to the character than his predecessor and sparking nicely with Alex Kingston's cheeky Song.

I watched this again recently after originally loving it at time of transmission. It got even better with age. Forgotten how good this was given all that's gone since? I urge you to dig out the DVD/Blu Ray - its a classic. All pretty impressive given that it was the first one they shot too.

Other honourable mentions? The Snowmen is possibly the best Christmas special yet and the Eleventh Hour might be the best opener for a Doctor since Power. Plus, here's hoping these last two stories might edge this way into our thoughts...! Over to you Mr Moffat

Water way to build up to the end

I've often wondered how many groups of three stories in a row are as consistently excellent as episodes 2,3 and 4 of David Tennant's 1st series. Tooth and Claw, School Reunion and Girl in the Fireplace are all brilliant tales but, perhaps because I'm so used to them together, I'd find it hard to split any one of them off and single them out.

Here you've got Rose and the newish Doctor at their peak - before they got a little too cosy and cheesy - the right blend of fun and action plus Queen Victoria, Sarah Jane Smith and Madame du Pompadour. The return of Sarah Jane in particular was wonderfully handled, the Girl in the Fireplace was a clever little one off from that man Moffat but if pushed I'd possibly favour the underrated Tooth and Claw. the setting, action and wolf make it classic Who fare from start to finish.

As a consistent run it's pretty hard to beat - maybe the best since series 5 under Troughton? As a Pat fan you'd struggle to top Tomb of the Cybermen, Abominable Snowmen, Ice Warriors, Enemy of the World, Web of Fear, Fury from the Deep and Wheel in Space all in a row and all after the previous series ended with the Evil of the Daleks.

Anyway, back to Tennant and the finale of that series is also worthy of mention - with the nice twist at the return of the Daleks, Daleks v Cybermen and then THAT ending set to one of Murray Gold's finest pieces.

With all that said then my favourite 10th Doctor story has got to be in the Rose series then right? Well, no. While that series was consistently strong (after my favourite trio comes a Cyberman shaped lull but then Idiots Lantern and the Ood two parter are right back on form) I'd fast forward to the very end of Tennant's tenure and pick the companionless special The Waters of Mars.

The greatest strength here, for me, is Tennant's superb performance. He handles the Doctor's transformation from happy-go-lucky arrival on the planet to the painful realisation of what's going to happen to the crew right through to his raging-against-the-inevitable 'Time Lord Victorious' ending. It's a stunning acting display, quite possibly the best from a leading man in the series' 50 year history.

The fact that it comes right at the end of his and Russell T Davies' tenure is all the more remarkable. 

The story is also pretty good. We never quite discover the menace that takes over the crew other than 'it's in the water'. Another classic Who idea backed up by the chilling yet simple design of the infected crew. 

The crew themselves are a pretty decent set of characters - some less so than others but we do at least care when they make their desperate attempts to fight what we, thanks to the Doctor, know to be their inevitable fate. There is even an acknowledgment in the script of the annoyance of the gadget thing - a cheeky bit of parody.

Adelaide Brooke's character also shines as she tries to squeeze more information out of the Doctor and then realises that he's gone too far. It's a cracking performance from Lindsay Duncan.

The ending is pretty chilling - and dark - too. I suppose you couldn't do this every week but it does show the viewer the answer to the age old 'why can't he just...' type questions.

Waters also came as something of a nice surprise too. All the hype around the specials was leading to the end of the line for Tennant but here was a tale, just before the finale, that did something fresh and interesting with the character. 

It's nearly here

So with one day left to go and a google doodle to play all day. It must be time to write about my favourite eleventh doctor story. Surprisingly it's another easy choice, despite their being so many good stories to choose from. So what is it.

The Snowmen.

So why do I love this story so much. Firstly, we are introduced to Clara. With a brief hint in the Asylum of the Daleks we get to meet her finally. She's lovely and beguiling. She has an adventurous side which leads her to follow the Doctor. Throw that in with Jenna's Coleman acting and the beautiful melody by Murray Coleman and you get brilliance.

Interesting fact, since the comeback in 2005, every companion has entered the Tardis, for the first time, during night time.

Then we have Madam Vastra, Jenny, and Strax, who bring the comedic element to the story. They are great companions for the Doctor to have looking after him, since the sad events of the Angels of Manhattan.

And this is all before we get to the story, which brings back the Great Intelligence.Mr Moffatt weaves a great story around these characters and it has brought me back to watch several times.

So there we go, my 11 top stories,

Now the Day is nearly here. See you afterwards.

It's Impossible

The title to this post should give you a clue to my favourite tenth Doctor. Yep, easy choice for me the double parter Impossible Planet and Satan Pit are my top Tennant story.

So why do I like this story. It came somewhat out of the blue. When series 2 was being filmed, we knew a lot about the opening half of the series, but next to nothing about the latter half. And so, out of nowhere, this story appeared and it was great.

What's not to love about a space base, and an ancient evil picking the crew off one by one. This story is close to Doctor Who doing Alien or Aliens. Two great horror movies, but set a real, out on the limb of space atmosphere. Something the director, James Strong, brings across.

The design and portrayal of Ood are amazing. In many ways we feel very sorry for this race. They have been enslaved by the human race and made to do what Humans want, then they get enslaved by the beast (more on him later) and made to do his evil race. Their voices are chilling and beautiful at the same time.

The beast is a great idea and voiced superbly by Gabriel Woolf (a welcome return). He just works as a villain. The way we hear the word 'Toby' is particularly chilling Praises must go to the rest of the cast, who play their respective roles fantastically. Whether lamenting the demise of a fellow crew member, or bravely trying to save their own lives, it's a great ensemble cast.

So, one more day, and then the big day to go. Best start thinking about my favourite Matt Smith story. 

Are you my favourite?

Indelible images are an important part of what makes a top Who story. On our little quest so far I've plumped for 'the ones' with the Cybermen popping out of the sewers near St Paul's, the blank faced Auton police, the Doctor in the deerstalker and Sharaz Jek so far.

A worthy addition to that illustrious lineup has to be the gas masks and the accompanying  'Are you my mummy?' catch phrase of the people sporting them in the Empty Child/Doctor Dances.

Since the 2005 re-boot the gas masks and the Weeping Angels are surely the top two additions to the series' folklore?

As well as that strong, long-lasting image this terrific two parter also has: a well realised Blitz setting, a smooth and as yet not overused Captain Jack, Billie Piper revelling in her role as Rose, Eccleston blending his serious and playful sides and some good writing from someone called Steven Moffat. What happened to him?

There's also the intriguing Nancy, Richard 'One Foot In The Grave' Wilson and the TARDIS phone ringing.

Fathers's Day is a top piece of TV, Dalek, Rose and the finale are good fun but Empty/Dances is where everything that's good about this short and sweet era converges. Fantastic indeed.

So, home straight - three days to go

Three days to go and my excitement levels are rising dramatically and today we head back to 2005 and Christopher Eccleston blazes onto our screen with a simple word.

'Run'

So what is my favourite ninth Doctor story. This is a hard choice as there are so few to chose from. So out of his ten stories, where do I go. It's easy really, it will have to be the Unquiet Dead by Mark Gatiss.

I said in my post on the Talons of Weng Chiang, that I love a victorian gothic horror story and this is another perfect example.  The design of this episode is, to quote the Doctor, fantastic. It really feels like Victorian Cardiff.

The cast is headed by Simon Callow playing Charles Dickens. A perfect piece of casting. He plays the role with such style. The rest of the cast featuring a pre Torchwood Eve Myles rise to the script and we are treated to an excellent ghost story.

David.

Return of the Mc was just reward

What an absolute joy it was to see Paul McGann step back onto our screens for The Night of the Doctor. A great entrance too ('I'm a Doctor. But not the one you were expecting'). It may have been a little anniversary treat for the fans but it also neatly squared off McGann's rather strange 'era' and was more than deserved for his superb showing in the TV Movie.

I know we've allowed books and audios here nice the Eighth Doctor's adventures are largely played out 'off screen' but I'm still plumping for the TV Movie.

Here's why: You can say what you like about the show as a whole (and it undoubtedly failed in its long term aim to spark a series) but the new Doctor himself is brilliant.

McGann sets the tone wonderfully for a new incarnation as an adventuring English gent, capturing all of the spirit of the character with just enough originality to make it fresh, fun and intriguing.

Put simply, if this - and he - was dreadful then the books, audios etc might well have carried on with the 'classic Whos' and ignored him.

I've always liked Big Finish but I've also always felt that little bit of an extra sense of excitement when it's a McGann tale - it feels like instead of filling in blanks we're treading brand new ground. How lucky too that PM's voice is so rich and works so well in bringing audio adventures to life...

But, back to the story, and it also manages to - redesign the TARDIS interior in a way that surely inspired the later reboots, show how the Doctor can work as a modern television character and tick along at a fair pace action wise. In short, it's actually a really good opener for this Doctor, far better than the first stories of Doctors 5, 6 and 7. It also looks great.

It's just a shame that it had to 'chase America'. The irony is that the show seems to have gone back to looking across the Pond (the show not Amy and Rory!) now. Rather than going over there and matching what American TV shows do, the series is now much more about being 'that quirky old British show'. That seems to have been more successful way of going about it - albeit with many nods and concessions to the US of A these days...

I also enjoyed the Eight Doctors and War of the Daleks of the early books and of the audios am particularly fond of the 1st two series of Chaley stories, Dark Eyes, Max Warp (for fun), Blood of the Daleks and the brilliant Book of Kells. 

Special mention must go to Sheridan Smith's Lucie Milller too. A kind of a cross between Rose and Donna, Lucie is an absolute treat of a modern Who companion. And, thanks to The Night of the Doctor, hers and the rest of the ongoing audio tales are all canon now! (It even seems right that the Dark Eyes Doctor is not far from the one we saw on screen too) 

 

He's back and it's about time to.

When we started this, there was only one 8th Doctor TV story. So we decided to broaden the scope for the 8th Doctor. Our favourite story could come from TV, book, comic strip, or Big Finish audio. Then the Night of the Doctor came along and now we had 2 8th Doctor TV stories, and love them both.

But my favourite story has to be Nick Briggs audio adventure Sword of Orion.

So why do I like this story. Because it has everything I love about Doctor Who in. A mysterious deserted space ship with a hidden menace to explore. A space ship under siege from Cybermen. Being unsure of if the human characters are safe to be around, or not.

This is an audio story, but due to good directing by Nick Briggs, this story comes alive and paints fantastic visual. The stand out scene is when some of the crew are captured and the cybermen begin to convert and upgrade is played magnificently.

If Steven Moffatt ever wants to plum the depths of Big Finish's output then here is an excellent story to start with.

Remember Remembrance

Battlefield eh? Interesting choice. That story is my very first Doctor Who memory. I was scared witless watching with my older sister. I remember the odd little Doctor and the terrifying Destroyer. And that's about it. Still it intrigued me enough to come back...

And when coming back years later it was joy to see the Brigadier(s) and the Doctor as 'Merlin', revelling in the freshly rediscovered McCoy-era mystique. You can't help but think that that paved the way for the modern-Whos, with all three, to varying degrees, built up to have a mythology that surrounds them - even leading to Matt Smith's incarnation trying to make the universe think he was dead to escape the spotlight such notoriety eventually brought...

But the best story? For me it has to be Remembrance of the Daleks. An action-packed anniversary year blockbuster packed full of rightly revered set piece moments. If old Mr Moffat can top this we'll be in for a ride and a half on Saturday night.

There's the familiar-yet-spooky school setting, the menacing girl, THAT cliffhanger scene where the Dalek ascends the stairs, the ponderous cafe moments and more manipulating from McCoy.

Theres oodles of nostalgia crammed in but the show  just about manages to hold back from teetering over the precipice into a navel gazing death (hello Attack of the Cybermen!).

It wouldn't be a favourite of mine if I didn't mention the strong guest stars it seems but, while I may sound like a broken record, it's true again here. Gilmore and co seem worthy of UNIT-esque revisits and have now received such recognition with their own audio series.

It's not just well-rounded characters here though, but a well-rounded script too that tackles the issue of racism too that makes this a strong serial. 

To cap it all off the Doctor and Ace have, by Remembrace, clicked as one of the show's most enduring double acts.

Ps - i'll always be grateful to Sylvester McCoy for replying to a letter I sent him during library sessions at school. It arrived a good while after mine was sent but contained Sylvester's characteristic cheeky charm and made this then-young fan particularly happy. Panama hats off to you!

Doctor Number 7 please

So day seven, and after a brief struggle with my favourite sixth Doctor story, were into my Doctor. I was just old enough to watch the last few stories of Sylvester McCoy's Doctor. I grew up watching Silver Nemesis and Remembrance of the Daleks on VHS. Sylvester is my Doctor. So which story do I like.

Battlefield.

Unit, knights in armour, explosions, battle scenes, and a big blue demon thing. These were all very appealing to my four year old self, and they still do all theses years later.

This story is full of nice character pieces. The fact that Ace feels left out of saving the Doctor by the Brigadier. The dynamic between Ancelyn and Bambera was great. It was also good to see Jean Marsh playing the villainous Morgane.

All in all I enjoy this story. It gets even better with the extended edition on the DVD.

Baggers.

Six days to go.

So, six days to go till the big day and were on to the sixth Doctor. Another difficult choice for me today. The Sixth Doctor is not a Doctor who is not highly regarded by whodom. And I struggle to choose which is my favourite. His tories are good, but none of them stand out as great.

So which one do I choose. I think I am going to have to go with the Attack of the Cybermen. The first half of the story is great. Mysterious Policemen, a return from Lyton, and something hidden in the sewers.

The second half is even more of a romp. Running around Telos, trying to stop the Cybermen from activating a time ship. The tombs of the Cybermen look fantastic and the death of Lyton, is highly gruesome as he is converted to a Cybermen.

However, the story does have some negative points. Michael Kilgariff return as the cyberleader. A role he played in the classic story Tomb of the Cybermen. Sadly he doesn't live up to his role, and was more of a fan pleaser than anything else.

So that is my favourite Doctor Who Story for the sixth Doctor.

Baggers.

It's a Revelation

Poor old Colin. Conventional fan wisdom these days says he's proved how good a Doctor he could've been given better material. Yet there were still a couple of real gems to be found in his TV era.

It's easy to see why the viewer at the time struggled to get past the terrible opening story, odd decision to make the character so unhinged at 1st and the woeful costume. Then came the 'incomprehensible unless you'd got every Doctor Who fact at your finger tips' Attack...!

Look beyond that though and there's two genuinely classic stories that are more than worthy of rubbing shoulders with the series' finest.

Firstly, and most obviously, is Vengeance on Varos. This is way ahead of its time in offering a macabre critique of 'reality television' and contains a cracking guest turn from Martin Jarvis.

But my favourite is the (in my book) underrated Revelation of the Daleks. 

Set amid the funeral home 'Tranquil Repose' with Davros as the 'Great Healer' this is as dark as it gets. Davros using the dead for new Daleks is pretty grim - as is the representation of the half converted Stengos. For me it's the Daleks, and particularly Davros, at their manipulative best. Once they start shouting and shooting they're infinitely less interesting.

Baker's Doctor, perhaps helped by the blue cloak over the costume, rises to the challenge with a top class Doctor-y performance. Peri too is settled into her role well here and is an excellent foil.

On top of all that is a cracking collection of well-rounded characters. I suppose that has been something of a theme of my selections so far but good one-off stars are a sign of a good script and a rich tale.

Here we've got Clive 'yes Hyacinth' Swift as the slimy Jobel (and who could forget his 'de-wigged' demise?), the Orcini/Bostock double act, the besotted Tasambeker, the duplicitous Kara and even Alexei Sayle's DJ. Natasha and Grigory are perhaps a little less well sketched but are still decent additions - as are Takis and Lilt. It's hard to think of a guest cast stretching to quite so many memorable one-offs.

All that and it proved the 45-minute format could work. See you in 2005! 

Fifth Doctor finishes with a flourish

Warriors of the Deep AND Adric?! There's a double whammy admission and a half!

For me the highlight of the Fifth Doctor's reign comes at the very end, with the wonderful Caves of Androzani. 

It's packed with rich characters, political backstabbing and some pretty adult themes - drugs and arms. Add to that the gritty setting and the direction of Graeme Harper and you've got yourself a classic bit of telly.

In some respects you could think that this isn't really a Doctor Who 'bit of telly' but that's the beauty if the show - the variety of stories and scenarios the 'traveller in a time machine' basic premise throws up. Maybe you can't go quite this dark every week on Who but when it's this good - and to finish a Doctor off - then why not?

The dark 'is he quite the baddy he seems?' Sharaz Jek and John Normington's Morgus are two of the most well-rounded and memorable guest characters. Oh and Ash from Hustle is in there too! The gun runners are a little more two dimensional but they still work.

Caves is also a triumph for Davison - pushing his vulnerable and caring Doctor to the limit - you do wonder if there's a tinge of regret in there somewhere that he hadn't had something quite this good to go on in the rest of his reign. 

Poor Peri is thrown straight into this mess with Nicola Bryant handling all that is thrown at her - Jek and all - with aplomb. 

There's also two cracking cliffhangers - the firing squad and the rocket crash - and a well handled regeneration scene to throw in for good measure.

Caves has to be up there in my top 3 of all time - a sheer joy that still holds up with age.

Other notable mentions for the Fifth Doctor? Resurrection was a VHS that I wore out through constant rewatches, Earthshock and I'm looking forward to seeing if I enjoy Planet of Fire as much when I snap that up on DVD. I've got good memories from UK Gold...!

Way down deep for day five.

So, with this blog post. I'm going to admit to something that will probably get me kicked out of Doctor Who fandom. My favourite fifth doctor story is.....

Warriors of the Deep*

I was eight or nine when I first heard this story on tape. Narrated by Peter Davidson. I feel in love with this story, set on a deep sea base. Even better it featured both the Silurians and Sea Devils, two of my favourite monsters.

I can remember saving up to buy the VHS when it came out in late 1995 and loving it. It was the first who story that I owned for myself. Could the actual episodes hold up to what I had imagined whilst listening to it. It did and I loved it. I've watched the story countless time and I still enjoy it.

Yes the sets are overly bright, and the Myrka doesn't work. However, this is a story of the time. In it's broadcast, the world was in the midst of the Cold War and this story truly embraces it. The writer, Johnny Bryne, should be proud of this.

Though the productions values hamper this story, thanks to the Margaret Thatcher's sudden announcement of an election, cut this story short, I still enjoy watching this story. This also frustrates me as this story could have been so much better with those extra weeks.

People often talk about the negatives of this story, but I think they should sit back and just enjoy the story and they may find a hidden gem, that is once classified as a waste of time.

Also the cliff hanger to episode 1, with the Doctor falling to his death was great.

Despite this. I still enjoy this story, and it is my favourite Peter Davidson story. I also quite enjoy Earthshock, Resurrection of the Daleks, and The Five Doctors.

Baggers.

*I'm also quite a fan of Adric. I'll get my coat now shall I?

Baker's got Talon-t

It's a tough call. While Pyramids, Horror, Terror and City are rightly seen as classics I've always had a soft spot for the hideously underrated Ribos Opeation.

But there's two clear leaders for me. Genesis of the Daleks and the Talons of Weng Chiang. 

Genesis looks great, contains some wonderful ideas and single-handedly reinvigorates the Daleks by adding in that Davros fuelled back story.

Genesis contains some of the series' most gripping moments - with Baker's Doctor squaring off memorably with Davros and then engaging in one of the series' best moral dilemmas with the 'do I have the right?' sequence.

To borrow a naff Americanism it's a certainly a 'game changer'.

But what of Talons? Well it's no 'game changer' in that way but it's equally unforgettable.

Tom's Doctor is at his absolute mercurial best and is ably assisted by Leela. Like a male Jamie, Leela brings the best out of the Doctor and, as with that Doctor-companion relationship, it's interesting that the viewer is placed in between the two in terms of 'knowing what's going on'. 

The partnership brings out the full range of humour and drama from this script and revelled in the Victorian setting. And who can't fail to have loved Tom's Sherlock Holmes deer stalker?! 

The story also gives us two of the most cherished guest characters in the show's history. The brilliant Jago and Litefoot. 

There's also the creepy magic show, shadowy old theatre, and sinister homunculus.

So, ignoring the daft rat, I'll have to, on this rare occasion, agree with my fellow blogger and plump for Talons. There's not much in it but the latter is laced with fun - just as Tom's Doctor was when in his prime. Plus, on relatively recent DVD viewing I found Genesis to have slipped a little from how I remembered (maybe an 8/10 now instead of a 9), whereas Talons had had the opposite reversal of fortunes.

Four Days in, and on time :)

After the ease of the Third Doctor, the forth Doctor is another problematic Doctor for me. Two stories stand out for me. The Talons of Weng Chiang and the City of Death.

Why do I love Talons. I have an unhealthy love of dark Victorian streets, shrouded in mist and this story panders to this love. It has great characters. Who can forget Mr Henry Gordon Jago and his esteemed friend Professor Litefoot. These two make the story alone.

The whole production is done superbly and is a great swansong to the Philip Hinchcliffe years. With a few niggles aside, yes I’m looking at you Mr Giant Rat, this story is a timeless classic.

But what about the City of Death. One of the Doctor’s first foreign adventures, with location shooting in Paris. Again, it’s a cracking story, with superb characters. Duggan and the Count Scarlioni. Who can forget the classic image of seven Mona Lisa's.

The location is stunning and the music from this story is very memorable. Upon my recent trip to Paris, I wander around humming the music to myself. I’m even humming it as I type this. I even sent my colleague a photo of the Eifel Tower,  with a message of  the final story.

‘Bye Bye Duggan’

So which story am I to choose. As much as I like City of Death, it’s not Talons of Weng Chiang.

Perhaps it was an easier choice to make.

Baggers.   

Three days in (sort off)

So apologies for missing yesterday, with the Night of the Doctor, DWM, and Science of Doctor Who, I got a little distracted, and who can blame me.

However, I shall make up for that with two posts today.  So for starters, what is my top Jon Pertwee story?  There are many to choose from, Invasion of the Dinosaurs, The Three Doctors, The Silurians. There all good stories, but there is only one for me.

The Sea Devils.  It’s a cracking story, which sees the Pertwee and Roger Delgado on top form. They play off each other so well, and again their relationship takes a new sense with the master being a prisoner, for now.

It was nice to see a change from the usual UNIT family, with the Navy taking a turn in this story. It was a nice change and Captain Hart is a fine character, who should have come back.

The location shooting was very good, and helped the feel of the story. Though the prison, didn’t feel that prison, the naval base and abbanondedish sea fort were fantastic. A few years ago I was surprised to be at a wedding in Portsmouth looking out at the very sea fort that the Doctor and Jo visited. I did keep an eye out in case a Sea Devil appeared.

So that’s my favourite Third Doctor story.

Baggers. 

It Auton be a Delgado tale

So from Troughton on to the action-man, largely earth-bound, anti-authority third incarnation of Jon Pertwee. And he's also superb. Don't allow anyone to suggest that earth-bound means 'dull'. Far from it.

Building on from the blueprint of The Invasion, this era has some top tales - with Day, Silurians, Mind all worthy of mention - as is the Green Death. 

The 'one with the maggots' is a very very close second for me. It's got the moral backbone, emotional farewell, memorable computer (Steeeeeeevens) and a cross-dressing Pertwee (!) at the top of his game.

Still, I'll jump from the end of the Jo Grant era to the start, and plump for Terror of the Autons.

Terror is positively teeming with iconic moments - the arrival of Roger Delgado's Master (it wouldn't feel right not picking one of his stories), the Auton policemen, the creepy chair death and the equally creepy toy killer.

Then there's the circus (can't see one these days without expecting the Master to pop out...!), some decent cliffhangers and the aforementioned beginning for Jo. 

I suppose it could be argued that the plot that strings these moments together is a tad on the flimsy side and the ending doesn't quite suffice. Still, they're more than outweighed by some wonderful material...and all from the pen from the superb Robert Holmes

It's a Stoney one-two for me...and my favourite slice of Doctor Who ever

Now this really is a tough one for me. Patrick Troughton has for quite some time been my favourite Doctor, long before it seemingly became fashionable (ie once Matt Smith name dropped Tomb of the Cybermen).

Why? Well, I love his fabulously subtle performance and, in particular, the classically Troughton way of making the Doctor appear a daft bluffer while actually being a super clever manipulator - a character that fed formidably off some memorable baddies. To me it's the humble 'unlikely hero' routine that is when the Doctor is at his best...and none match Pat for that. Never too silly, never too serious and never bettered.

There's also his wonderful rapport with Jamie and, getting swiftly back on message for the premise of this blog, some cracking stories.

Tomb, Evil, Web, Power all sit comfortably in my top 20 stories. It's also lovely to see Enemy of the World enjoy something of a reappraisal since its rediscovery.

But my favourite has to be The Invasion. It's a brilliant performance by Pat up against the equally superb Kevin Stoney (yes, him again!). Pat and Frazer are at their absolute peak here - with moments of genuine humour dotted throughout.

There's also the iconic moment of the Cybermen popping out of the sewers. The old silver foes are at their menacing best - with little to say, much lurking in the shadows and probably the nicest of their many design tweaks.

What else? The brigadier and UNIT (setting up the next era of the show nicely), the memorable music, the film noir-y look and Packer's character (a send up of the aggressive shouty guard brilliantly played by Peter Halliday).

What a joy, too, to have had the missing episodes so beautifully animated for us to enjoy at long last. Perhaps of all the animations these still seem to have worked best, matching the shadowy suspense of the action and completing the story perfectly. 

Overly effusive? You'll have to forgive me. This is, after all, probably my favourite ever tale...

Day two

Today is another hard choice, but for different reasons. So many of Patrick Troughton stories are classics, to me. Though many are sadly missing from the archives, I’m proud to have heard or seen all of his stories. So from out of all the good stories, what do I go for. Despite there being so many good stories, there is only one choice for me. The Web of Fear. You can imagine how happy I was to hear, earlier this year, that episodes, 2,4,5, and 6 had been discovered. The first time I watched episode two brought me to tears. It was great to see such a good story, nearly complete. It’s a shame that episode 3 is missing, but I hope that it’s out there, somewhere.

The reason why I love this story is because they get everything write. It’s telling that the London Underground wrote to the BBC, after this serial aired, asking how they managed to breaking into the underground. The BBC, of course hadn’t, and had made fantastic looking sets, that looked like the London Underground.

The director, Douglas Camfield, gets a great performance from all of his cast and the battle in the warehouse is fantastically shot, and played out. Nicholas Courtney, making his first appearance in the missing episode 3, appears as the Iconic Colonel Leftbridge Stewart. A legend is born in this story.

It’s even nice to hear the classic Space Museum music, which most notably appears in cybermen stories used during the warehouse battle. I think praise must also go to the writers, who have created a thriller in this base under siege story. Trying to work out who the Great Intelligance’s man is a great part of the latter episodes and the reveal is well done.

If there is a down side to this story, it’s that episode 3 is missing.

So what other Troughton stories do I like. There is so many to name. However, I’m going to go with Invasion, with Cybermen in the sewers. Fury from the Deep, with it’s killer seaweed. Moonbase, just because it’s a great story and a perfect way of bringing back the Cybermen, so soon after their initial introduction in Hartnell’s swansong Tenth Planet.

See you all tomorrow for Day three and Jon Pertwee. Many of his stories, were successful because of this and the semi sequel, invasion. Baggers.

First Doctor? It's all about the Dalek blockbuster...

I have to say, as someone with more than a passing mention in history, I love the William Hartnell era for its historicals. From Marco Polo to Reign of Terror, the Crusades to Aztecs etc I genuinely think the series justified its educational aim while at the same time offering well rounded characters in fun adventures. 

Hartnell's Doctor also seems best suited to the well-informed grandfatherly role that the historicals allow albeit a grandfather with a chuckle and glint in his eye when meeting and interacting with Robespierre, Nero et al...

That said - all they're all worthy of honourable mention - my favourite 1st Doctor story is the Daleks' Master Plan.

It is such a shame that we're cruelly robbed of the chance to watch much of this story which, in my view was the shows biggest 'blockbuster' to date. Are you watching Moffat? Top this with The Day of The Doctor if you can...

Effectively 13 epiodes when counting the Doctor-lite (see, this wasn't invented by Russell T Davies) Mission To The Unknown it had plenty of action and drama as well as a smattering of humour. Yes, I even love the novelty value of the Feast of Steven.

Critics would probably point to the fact that there's a lot of running around and a pretty thin premise for the plot. They'd maybe have a point but consider:

*the viewer/listener is always on edge from when Katarina dies. Years before Adric we had a companion die - who knew who might else might go?! She might not be a hugely established chapter but it's still a shock

*the Machiavellian Mavic Chen is magnificent. Hats off to Kevin Stoney - the first of three excellent guest roles for him

*Nicholas Courtney debuts. Ok, not as the Brigadier but basically as the 'space Brigadier'. 

*The Daleks are at their devious best, with political scheming to add to the usual shout-and-kill shtick. And if you think the 'time destructor' seems daft then come back to me when you've re-watched the 'reality bomb' in the Tennant/Tate finale

*The Monk is back and on top form

Add in the fact that the whole lot is held together by strong performances from Hartnell, Purves and Jean Marsh as Sara and you've got an epic classic.

Now all we need is someone to animate all this...any takers?!

11 Days to go

So the fifth anniversary is only 11 days away. The tension is high, and I can’t wait. I’ll be attending a cinema screening with my esteemed colleague. But before that, were going to give you our favourite stories. One Doctor a day, for 11 days.

So favourite first Doctor story. That’s a hard one. I enjoy William Hartnell’s tenure as the Doctor. He’s just not my favourite. If I want to watch a Who story, he’s not the Doctor I would head to. So what is my favourite story?

 It would have to be the Keys of Marnius. One of the first Doctor Who stories, but not one that is near the top of many people’s list. So why do I like it. I enjoy the adventure aspect to the plot. The plot is simple. The Doctor, with his three companions, Ian, Barbara and Susan, arrive on a shoreline made of glass.

They are soon involved in an adventure to save the planet Marnius, from the evil Vrood. The heroes are sent to different locations, around the planet, to rescue the keys, that will resolve the threat. With the Doctor sent to the last set, allowing William Hartnell to have a holiday, we see Ian, Barbara and Susan rise up and be centre stage.

I think the designer, Ray Cusick, has produced some good look sets and the actor do a fine job of interpreting Terry Nation' script.  All in all, I enjoy this story, a lot and that is why I’ve chosen this as my favourite 1st Doctor.

Then again, come back to me next week, and I’ll probably tell you another story, I’m that fickle. To that end, we’ll give you a few extra stories that we enjoy. For me I also enjoy the first truly historical story, Marco Polo. The first encounter with the Daleks, and for a final story, I like is the Dalek’s Masterplan.

Baggers.

See you all tomorrow for my top Patrick Troughton story.