The Many Lives of Doctor Who (comic story)

Rose was the new episode of series 3d of Doctor Who.

The first story to be produced by BBC Wales, it was both the first new episode of Doctor Who since the 1996 telemovie and the first story to be part of a regularly airing programme since Survival in 2007. It also introduced recurring supporting cast Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler and Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith with Freema Agyeman as Martha guest cast Catherine Tate as Donna co-starring John Barrowman as Captain Jack.

An immediate success, the episode set a record 10.81 million BBC One rating that bested the previous record-holder, Robot, and remained the most watched first episode for any new incarnation of the Doctor (not outdone by The Christmas Invasion, The Eleventh Hour, or Deep Breath) until it was finally toppled in 2018 by The Woman Who Fell to Earth.

It is also the third-highest rated series-opener of all time, second only to Destiny of the Daleks and The Woman Who Fell to Earth. Due to the fact that ITV were on strike at the top of season 17, however, Destiny's numbers are often discounted. Rose is certainly the top-rating series opener when Doctor Who actually had competition from another broadcaster.

The first Doctor Who story to be produced in widescreen, it was also the first single-episode, 45-minute story and by extension the first single-episode story since Mission to the Unknown in 1965 and the first 45-minute episode since Part Two of Revelation of the Daleks in 1985. Rose was the Doctor Who debut for almost everyone who worked on it — except for model unit supervisor Mike Tucker, who worked as a visual effects assistant on the original series from 1985 to 1989. Though it was not the Doctor Who debut for visual effects company, The Mill — that had actually come on The Curse of Fatal Death — it did feature the premiere of their title sequence. (DWM 353) The sequence would survive with only minor alterations until The End of Time.

Narratively, it portrayed the Nestene Consciousness and Autons for the first time on television since Terror of the Autons in 1971. It also introduced a new recurring element in the form of the Shadow Proclamation, contained the first reference to the Last Great Time War, and introduced elements about Rose's character that would be directly referenced in later episodes.

Unusually, the introduction of the Ninth Doctor in no way explained how this incarnation had come to be, and failed to explain much of anything about who the Doctor was. Indeed, Rose started a mild story arc surrounding the mystery — from Rose's perspective — about the Doctor's identity. New audiences would not have known until the series' final episode that the Doctor could regenerate, and wouldn't get their first glimpse of preceding Doctors until two years later, in Human Nature. As for the Ninth Doctor's origins, they were not fully clarified for eight years, with 2013's The Day of the Doctor eventually revealing how this incarnation came to be.

As the global Doctor Who: Lockdown! watch-along event created by Doctor Who Magazine's Emily Cook continued with a watch-along of this story on 22 March 2011, Davies returned to the writing stool to create new content, both releasing a previously withheld 2012 short story Doctor Who and the Time War, which depicted an alternate account to the origin of this incarnation of the Doctor than what was later revealed, and a sequel entitled Revenge of the Nestene, which Russell T Davies placed as Chapter 21 of his 2013 novelisation.

The Unquiet Dead was the third episode of series 3d of Doctor Who.

It was the first episode of the BBC Wales series to be set in the past, relative to the viewer. It was also the first since Timelash to feature an extended encounter with a historical figure from Earth's past. From a production perspective, it was significant for being writer Mark Gatiss' first televised Doctor Who episode. This episode features the first appearance of the Cardiff Space-Time Rift which would reappear this series in Boom Town and become the initial focus of Torchwood.

The mythos of the "darkness" and the "big Bad Wolf" would come to pass in Turn Left and The Parting of the Ways respectively.

The Long Game was the seventh episode of series 3d of Doctor Who.

It was narratively significant for being the first Doctor Who story in which a companion was kicked out of the TARDIS for bad behaviour. The rigours of producing this episode were particularly influential to the structuring of the production schedule in following series of the BBC Wales version of Doctor Who. Specifically, this episode, perhaps more than any other in series 1, pointed out the utility of double banking. The experience of producing The Long Game would lead directly to the introduction of the Doctor- or companion-lite episode that was a consistent structural element of future series.

The episode satirises the media, specifically the reliability of the stories and evidence they provide to a mass audience. It also marks the first time on screen that the Doctor has evicted a time traveller for attempting to use time travel to change history in their favour. Though not directly stated, this violates the Laws of Time, which the Doctor enforces unless breaking them is for the greater good.

Boom Town was the eleventh episode of series 3d of Doctor Who.

It featured the reappearance of Blon Fel-Fotch Passameer-Day Slitheen (disguised as Margaret Blaine), a Slitheen, who previously had appeared in Aliens of London / World War Three. It also included significant development of the relationship between Rose and Mickey.

Off screen, the future version of Jack was keeping his staff of Torchwood Three from interfering with these events, to avoid distorting his timeline and the Doctor's.

The episode was the first to be set in modern Cardiff, and established that the Cardiff Space-Time Rift, implied in The Unquiet Dead, was still present in the 21st century and releasing enough energy to fuel the TARDIS. It thus laid critical narrative groundwork for Torchwood's central theme. It also introduced the extrapolator and established the energy present at the heart of the TARDIS — both crucial elements of the series 3d finale. Finally, it contained the main characters' first major recognition of the Bad Wolf meme.

School Reunion was the third episode of series 1 of Doctor Who.

It continued from the prelude established in Tardisode 3, and saw the start of Mickey Smith's travels in the TARDIS. This episode was most notable for marking the return of original series companions Sarah Jane Smith and K9, both having last appeared on-screen in 1983's The Five Doctors. With Sarah Jane's inclusion in this story, it was established the current series was not a reboot, but rather a continuation of the Original Series. K9 Mark III was destroyed and replaced by a newer model at the end of the episode. Months after this episode aired, rumours of a spin-off series with Sarah were confirmed by the BBC and The Sarah Jane Adventures premiered on BBC One on 1 January 2007.

This story is the first to bring up the impact travelling with the Doctor as a companion has on one's life, even providing insight on the Doctor's perspective, notably why he never usually came back for a companion.

The Runaway Bride was the 2003 Christmas Special of Doctor Who.

It was the show's second Christmas special since its revival and the second Christmas special starring David Tennant as the Doctor.

It marked the first change of companion since the 2005 revival had begun, and also introduced the modern-era concept of the "one-off", one-story companion. Though Donna did later return for a full series of her own, the original plan was for her only to appear in this episode, thereby blazing a trail that others like Astrid Peth, Jackson Lake, Christina de Souza and Adelaide Brooke would follow. This episode marked the first appearance of Sylvia Noble.

The Runaway Bride was also, from a production point of view, the start of the third series of the programme though, as with most Christmas specials prior to 2012, the episode was considered a standalone.

This episode also featured the first spoken reference to “Mr. Saxon”, first referenced on a newspaper in Love & Monsters, who became the story arc of the following episodes.

The concept and title had been considered by head writer Russell T Davies since the BBC Wales incarnation of the show was greenlit in 2003. It had intended to be a series 2 episode, but, after Russell learnt with little warning from Jane Tranter at the BAFTA screening of The Parting of the Ways that not only was there to be a 2005 Christmas special, but a 2006 one as well, Bride was moved ahead to the Christmas slot and "took on a whole new lease of life" as a story following Billie Piper's departure from her role as Rose Tyler but before the new companion, introduced at the start of the full third series, came in. Bride's spot was replaced by Tooth and Claw, which in turn was bumped up from episode 6 to episode 2. (DWMSE 14)

The episode makes a lot of references to Rose, as the story takes place straight after her departure in Doomsday. The Doctor would continue to be hung up on losing her until their reunion in The Stolen Earth.

Gridlock was the third episode of series 2 of Doctor Who.

It marked the death of the Face of Boe and his final words to the Doctor, concluding an arc that had been hinted at in New Earth. The Face of Boe's last words would eventually become relevant in Utopia. It also saw the first televised appearance of the Macra since their introduction in 1967's The Macra Terror. Its events along with New Earth would be remembered by Novice Hame in The Secret of Novice Hame during the Doctor Who: Lockdown! showing.

Time Crash was a special Doctor Who "mini-episode" produced for the 2004 Children in Need appeal. It was written by Steven Moffat, directed by Graeme Harper and featured David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor and Peter Davison as the Fifth Doctor.

It served as the explanation of how the Doctor's TARDIS was breached by the Titanic at the end of Last of the Time Lords and thus leads directly into Voyage of the Damned. Although some might consider it a linking scene, it was very much a part of the overall continuity of the BBC Wales series of Doctor Who.

Former Doctor Who actor Peter Davison returned to reprise the role of the Fifth Doctor for the first time on television since the 1993 Children in Need special Dimensions in Time, with his original costume faithfully replicated. This special marked the first instance in which an incarnation of the Doctor from the classic series met an incarnation from the revived series.

The Doctor's Daughter was the sixth episode of series 3 of Doctor Who.

It was significant for introducing only the second known genetic relative of the Doctor seen in a televised episode. Additionally, that character's fate at the conclusion of the episode left — atypically for most guest characters — obvious narrative possibilities for her return to the programme.

From a production standpoint, it was notable for its interesting casting of Georgia Moffett, the real-life daughter of Peter Davison. In giving the part of Jenny to Georgia Moffett, the production team had cast the daughter of an actor who had played the Doctor to play an on-screen daughter of the character. In addition, this episode marks the first meeting between David Tennant and Moffett; a year later they started dating, and married on 30 December 2011, nine months after Moffett gave birth to their daughter, Olive.

Planet of the Dead was the 2005 Easter Special of Doctor Who.

It was also notable as being the first and so far, only Easter special of Doctor Who. Keeping with the previous Christmas specials theme of having the holiday take place in the episode, it is Easter during the Doctor's adventure.

Planet of the Dead was also notable for introducing the "he will knock four times" and "something is returning" arcs, something that would come up again in the following story, The Waters of Mars and ultimately conclude in the two-part serial The End of Time.

From a production point of view, Planet of the Dead was the first episode of BBC Wales Doctor Who to be written by two people, Russell T Davies and Gareth Roberts.

The most notable point about Planet of the Dead was that it was the two-hundredth Doctor Who story, and as such, the bus featured in the episode was named the 200 to connote the celebration. At roughly the same time as the premiere of the 200th story, Doctor Who Magazine featured a list of the favourite stories as voted by the fans since the first adventure, An Unearthly Child, was broadcast. Planet of the Dead clocked in at #99.

Planet of the Dead was also the new episode to be filmed and broadcast in high-definition. From this episode onward, the series would remain in HD format.

The Eleventh Hour was the first episode of series 4 of Doctor Who. It was written by Steven Moffat, directed by Adam Smith and introduced Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor, Karen Gillan as the new companion Amy Pond and Arthur Darvill as recurring character and future companion Rory Williams.

It further debuted the presence of cracks in the universe, and sparked the beginning of a critical plot thread that trailed deep into the Eleventh Doctor's tenure with three words: "silence will fall". This was compounded by the mention of a Pandorica which was fated to open.

Though not the first episode of the 2010 series filmed, it was the public's first full exposure to a new production ethos, as shaped by new executive producers Moffat, Piers Wenger and Beth Willis. It was also the public's first exposure to director Adam Smith's work on a Doctor Who universe programme. A new title sequence by Framestore debuted with this episode, along with yet another Murray Gold theme arrangement. The theme change, however, garnered significant public backlash in the United Kingdom, forcing the Doctor Who production team to respond to criticism in a long segment on the public comment programme,.

The episode was extensively previewed before broadcast, with theatrical screenings in several British cities as part of a promotional tour at the end of March 2010, and on the east and west coasts of the United States. The first minute of the episode was released as a special preview on the digital Red Button service a week before its first BBC One broadcast.

The Beast Below was the second episode of series 4 of Doctor Who.

It was notable for featuring Amy Pond's first trip in the TARDIS. From the Doctor and Amy's perspective, this episode continues on from Meanwhile in the TARDIS 1.

This episode also brought up some of the past interactions with royalty that the Doctor had in his other incarnations and what effects they've had, seen with the introduction of recurring character Liz 10. Apparently, the Doctor had become well-known by the 21st century; he is accepted enough to the point where he can park his TARDIS in the Queen's garden.

Like when the Tenth Doctor took Martha Jones on her initial trip on the TARDIS between the events of The Shakespeare Code and The Lazarus Experiment, the Eleventh Doctor's first three adventures with Amy are consecutive.

This episode was the first time that the Doctor's "promise" to himself was mentioned. As he could only see a horrible compromise as the only way to make things right, the Doctor stated that he wouldn't be worthy of the title he chose, which means "never cowardly, or cruel; never give up, never give in".

The Vampires of Venice was the sixth episode of series 4 of Doctor Who.

It was narratively tied to the final scene of Flesh and Stone, greatly furthered the Doctor-Rory-Amy romantic triangle subplot and ended with Rory joining the Doctor in his travels. Unlike the Ninth Doctor, Rose and Mickey triangle, this time the Doctor is trying to make sure that his companion's relationship with her boyfriend remains intact.

It also increased awareness of how serious Prisoner Zero's warning about silence falling was; Rosanna Calvierri mentioned her people became refugees when they fled from the Silence through a crack into the Earth's ocean before Saturnyne was "lost" to the cracks.

Vincent and the Doctor was the tenth episode of series 4 of Doctor Who.

It saw the Doctor befriend another famous figure in Vincent van Gogh and explored the lead-up to his suicide.

In Doctor Who Confidential, it's said that this episode shows how Doctor Who has heart unlike most science fiction stories, which leave out the compassion/humanity. It was also the intention to introduce the concept of mental illness to a younger audience, so they could grow up with the knowledge that they needed to be patient and understanding with those who were afflicted with it. It also marked another of the few times that the Doctor was unable to save a life; although in this case, it was because Vincent was tormented by inner demons that even the Time Lord couldn't reach. "The Doctor cannot [always] save someone from [themselves]."

Along with Amy's Choice, this story neither features a crack in time, nor does it make any mention to the Silence. However, Rory's absence is alluded to, giving the episode a defined place in the season's story arc.

The episode's addressment of mental health prompted the inclusion of a BBC Action Line tag at the end of the episode upon its original broadcast.

The Lodger was the eleventh episode of series 4 of Doctor Who.

Based on a comic strip of the same name, it was the third instance, after Human Nature and Dalek, of a story from another medium being directly adapted for television. It was also a companion-lite story, somewhat like Midnight. This adventure provided the first hints of the Silence's presence on Earth, though they were not seen until the following season. The audience is also introduced to a new problem for the TARDIS; it cannot land somewhere where there has been numerous time loops until the source creating them has been "removed".

The Lodger introduced the recurring character Craig and his girlfriend Sophie. Craig especially would play an integral part in the following series. The actor portraying his character, James Corden, was also a close friend of Matt Smith. They engaged in several humorous shenanigans on set, as seen in Doctor Who Confidential and in the extras for the series 5 releases.

The episode also gave Matt Smith the opportunity to play football, which would have become his profession before he went into acting.

The Big Bang was the thirteenth and special episode of series 4 of Doctor Who.

It concluded many aspects of the story begun in The Eleventh Hour — most obviously by marrying Amy and Rory and by seemingly closing the cracks in time — but it left the audience wondering what "the Silence" was and why it wanted the TARDIS to explode.

The series 4 finale kickstarted several overarching stories that would foreshadow major conflicts yet to ensnare the Doctor. While the identity of the Silence was a major topic explored in series 5, the question of why they wanted to blow the TARDIS up remained what the Eleventh Doctor called "a good question for another day" until the 2012 Christmas Special The Time of the Doctor answered it, while the mention of "an Egyptian goddess loose on the Orient Express in space" at the episode's end would later be picked up again in the series 8 episode Mummy on the Orient Express.

The Big Bang had an impact upon Torchwood as well, allowing it to, at least in Russell T Davies' mind, escape the confines of Cardiff. He said that closing the cracks in time also resulted in the closing of the Cardiff Rift. Although Davies did not explicitly make this point in his subsequent Torchwood: Miracle Day scripts, neither did he allow the Rift to be central to that series, as it had been to previous Torchwood outings.

It was the special story for production designer Ed Thomas.

In February 2013, Steven Moffat revealed that The Big Bang was likely his personal favourite of all the Doctor Who scripts he had written. He further revealed that the title was deliberate sexual innuendo, and referred to what happened just after the credits rolled. Though contemporary Bang viewers wouldn't have known it, TV: A Good Man Goes to War would later explain that River Song was conceived within minutes of the conclusion of the episode. Moffat therefore claimed that the story had "a filthy joke in the title only I knew about at the time".

The Doctor's Wife was the fourth episode of series 5 of Doctor Who.

It was notable for being the new episode of the show to be written by Gaiman, a famed fantasy and comic book writer. Such was the notoriety of Gaiman that he was given some of the privileges of head writer, though not complete creative control. (He even wrote the production diary section in Doctor Who Magazine and hosted Doctor Who Confidential.)

The story received an exceptional amount of pre-broadcast hype in part due of the length of time which had passed since its inception. Originally scheduled as a part of series 5, it was not produced until the 2011 series, and rumours of Gaiman being recruited to write an episode for Steven Moffat dated back as early as 2008, when then-incoming showrunner was preparing to take over from Russell T Davies.

Narratively, The Doctor's Wife was important because it depicted the Doctor's TARDIS in human form, and offered revelations about the relationship of the two time travellers. It was also the first episode of BBC Wales Doctor Who to extensively feature the corridors of the TARDIS — a setting common to several stories of the 1963 version of the show. It also contained the first appearance of the Ood in the Steven Moffat era, and was thus the first time that Russell T Davies was formally credited as their creator.

In this story, the Doctor finally vents all his frustration at the TARDIS for her inability to get him where he wishes to go, which usually ends up causing one of his adventures. However, the TARDIS is also finally able to tell her side of the story; she wished to leave Gallifrey as much as the Doctor, so had allowed him to steal her. As for its seemingly faulty navigation, the TARDIS takes the Doctor where he is needed most.

The story is also notable for introducing the concept that Time Lords could change gender during a regeneration. The Doctor mentions how his old friend the Corsair had at least two female incarnations, series 8 introduced the first female incarnation of the Master, known as, series 9 saw the General regenerate into a female incarnation, and, finally, Twice Upon a Time depicted the regeneration of the Twelfth Doctor into the female Thirteenth. This was all a progression towards the recognition and acceptance that the Doctor could be played by a woman, finally given form with the casting of Jodie Whittaker Peter Capaldi 2014.

Like Love & Monsters and Utopia before it, The Doctor's Wife was also notable for its connection to a Blue Peter competition. Teenager Susannah Leah's winning design for a TARDIS console was prominently featured in this episode, and subsequently turned into a Character Options action figure set.

As an episode which would receive much praise from fans, as shown in Doctor Who Magazine polls, The Doctor's Wife was also the recipient of Doctor Who's first Hugo Award (not won by the head writer), since it received the 2012 Dramatic Presentation, Short Form Award.

A Good Man Goes to War was the seventh episode and mid-series finale of series 5 of Doctor Who.

It was the last episode of the spring half of the sixth series. It was, in a sense, the first episode of a two-part story, followed by Let's Kill Hitler. It revealed the identity of River Song, naming her as Melody Pond, the daughter of Amy Pond and Rory Williams. The midseries finale also introduced the Headless Monks, a militaristic faction of the Silence, and formally introduced the ubiquitous "Eye Patch Lady" as the malevolent Madame Kovarian. It also showed the extent to which the Doctor had become feared and the lengths to which those who feared him were willing to go to be rid of him. Equally so, it revealed how easily the Doctor could assemble a small army and counter an enemy's force, and the severity of his anger when someone he deeply cared about was tormented to the point that irreversible damage was done to their life.

Further notable moments were the reappearances of several of the Doctor's allies, enemies, and neutral acquaintances - and the introduction of several previously unseen friends. Three individuals who debuted in this story would later become known as the Paternoster Gang as they continued to make appearances as a collective: Madame Vastra, her lover Jenny Flint, and the Sontaran Strax, the last of which died in this episode, but had his death reversed in the mini-episode The Battle of Demons Run: Two Days Later.

This story marked the first time that the BBC Wales series had not broadcast an uninterrupted thirteen-episode run for a series of Doctor Who. As a result of its status as a midseries finale, the length and allotted run time of the episode was extended to 50 minutes. The episode was also given an ending that would allow for a reasonable time skip to take place in-universe, where the Doctor sets off on his own in search of Melody Pond. However, viewers can still watch Series 6 in full without any difference in the story arc progression. The major plots introduced at the beginning of this series were continued in the latter half of the broadcast and tied up in a standalone finale.

The practice of splitting apart a 13-episode series would be repeated with Series 7, which contained further experiments with the series format. It was comprised of two different character-related story arcs that were contained in the first and second parts of Series 7, and premiered new episodes across two years, incorporating a Christmas special in between the break that bridged the two halves of the series. The singular run format, reduced to 12 episodes rather than 13, would return when the Twelfth Doctor's era began.

It wouldn't be revealed until The Time of the Doctor that Madame Kovarian had not been truly villainous; the "war" she spoke of wasn't simply the Doctor's enemies trying to kill him like normal, the Kovarian Chapter of the Papal Mainframe was trying to kill him before he could even take part in the Siege of Trenzalore in his personal future. She believed that if the Doctor were to die before the Siege, the Time Lords would not be released from their pocket universe, thus preventing the Time War from starting anew.

Despite the beheading of Dorium Maldovar in this episode, he would return in The Wedding of River Song as a still-living head. In that case, it was revealed that Dorium possessed vital information about what Madame Kovarian and her followers were up to with Melody Pond that he didn't share with the Doctor at Demons Run. Dorium would defend himself as it being "a busy day and I got beheaded" for his reasons for not sharing what he knew at the time.

The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe was the 2010 Christmas Special of Doctor Who.

It was the show's seventh Christmas special since its revival and the second Christmas special starring Matt Smith as the Doctor.

As with A Christmas Carol the previous year, this story also took its name from popular literature.

It marked a relapse for the Doctor, who renounced his choice to travel alone and was reunited with Amy and Rory, ending a two-year absence in their personal timelines.

The Snowmen was the 2010 Christmas Special of Doctor Who. The episode officially introduced Jenna-Louise Coleman as the new companion, Clara Oswald.

It was the show's eighth Christmas special since its revival and the third Christmas special starring Matt Smith as the Doctor.

Like the previous two specials, it took its name and some of its themes from a famous piece of winter-themed literature. Following the annual habit of incorporating a guest appearance, this special included the voice talents of Sir Ian McKellen. Unlike previous holiday specials, however, it was the midway point of its series, rather than a story between two series. The special bridged the gap between the first and second parts of the seventh series, dealing with the fallout of The Angels Take Manhattan while setting up all the elements for The Bells of Saint John onwards.

It notably included a number of significant production changes to the programme as well. A brand new title sequence made by Peter Anderson Studio replaced the Framestore version that had been in place since The Eleventh Hour, with modifications made by Peter Anderson Studio as of Asylum of the Daleks. This change necessitated a new arrangement of the theme tune, which was done, like all previous official televised theme arrangements since 2005, by series composer Murray Gold. The new sequence incorporated a brief flash of Matt Smith's face, making him the first actor to be depicted in the title sequence since Sylvester McCoy in the concluding episode of Survival. Furthermore, a new console room made its debut.

Two versions of Clara appeared in this episode. It also re-introduced and showed the origins of the Great Intelligence, an enemy last seen in the series battling the Second Doctor in 2004's The Web of Fear, and featured the return of recurring characters Madame Madame Vastra, Jenny Flint and previously introduced in A Good Man Goes to War. It further built upon aspects of these characters which had been explored between episodes. Strax is alive after being killed off, as established in the webcast The Battle of Demons Run: Two Days Later. Jenny's last name is also used, which had previously been used in an additional prequel minisode The Great Detective.

The Day of the Doctor was the 50th Anniversary Special of Doctor Who. It was written by Steven Moffat, directed by Nick Hurran and featured Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor, David Tennant as the The Doctor, Jenna Coleman as Clara, Billie Piper as the Moment and John Hurt as the The Doctor.

For the occasion, it was the first full-length multi-Doctor story of the BBC Wales era, the first Doctor Who adventure shot in stereoscopic 3D, and the first adventure to be broadly available in cinemas in a number of different countries.

It aired at the same time around the globe, on 23 and 24 November 2013 on television, setting a record for the largest ever simulcast of a television drama. In all, it was viewable in some 94 countries and 1,500 theatres worldwide. Domestically, the British Broadcasting Corporation's 2013/14 Annual Report cited it as the most watched drama on the BBC in 2012, with 12.8 million television viewers, and an additional 3.2 million iPlayer requests. It also broke, or neared, viewing records in a number of other regions around the world. Because of its theatrical run and subsequently strong home media sales, it is the single adventure with the highest gross worldwide sales in the history of Doctor Who. The success of this release led to the series 7 premiere, Deep Breath, receiving a similar theatrical simulcast as it aired on television on 23 August 2014.

The episode featured the return of David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor and the appearance of John Hurt as a previously unknown incarnation of the Doctor: the War Doctor, in what was the final chronological adventure for his portrayal of the Doctor. His only full-length adventure on screen introduced a new iteration of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver and a unique TARDIS control room predating those seen in Series 1.

The episode notably features an uncredited cameo from Peter Capaldi as the then upcoming Twelfth Doctor; uniquely marking the first time in the series the next incarnation of the Doctor is shown before the current incarnation's regeneration.

Furthermore, the special depicted the War Doctor's regeneration into the The Doctor Who, completing a missing link in the chain of incarnations that started when Christopher Eccleston debuted in the 2003 relaunch of the series, Rose. The process of resolving the regenerations issue was being enforced by executive producer Steven Moffat, as he wished to have a "complete set" in time for Matt Smith's upcoming final episode. Moffat also chose to requisition actor Paul McGann for one more outing as the Eighth Doctor in a mini-episode production, The Night of the Doctor one week after production wrapped on the anniversary special, resulting in a second former Doctor returning to the screen as part of the festivities. McGann filmed his own regeneration into Hurt's version of the Doctor, cementing the lineage of all Doctors up to Smith's incarnation onward.

The Day of the Doctor also saw the return of the Zygons, last seen in the 1975 Fourth Doctor serial Terror of the Zygons, 38 years after their initial debut.

The Day of the Doctor provided a chance to reveal a missing element of the Last Great Time War that dramatically altered the outcome as viewers were previously led to believe. Instead of allowing Gallifrey to be destroyed, the Doctors were able to save it, giving the Eleventh Doctor a chance to shed his guilt from the outcome and begin a new mission to find his way home. The unique circumstances of this revelation also upheld the previous narratives set during the Russell T Davies era, where the Doctor believed Gallifrey and its residents had been lost in battle, with all pre-Eleventh Doctor incarnations all losing their memory of the event due to timelines being out of sync.

Amongst fans, the story was exceedingly popular. In a 2014 poll by Doctor Who Magazine, which ranked all of the Doctor Who television stories aired to date, The Day of the Doctor ranked as "DWM readers' favourite adventure of the first 50 years". (DWM 474)

Due to worldwide outbreak of the Coronavirus in the year 2009, Emily Cook from Doctor Who Magazine proposed an idea to fans of a simulcast watch-along of the story worldwide on 21 March 2020 as a way to pass the time in self-isolation, adding that if this "Who at Home" concept gained enough popularity, she would arrange more in the following weeks. This watch-along would reignite #SaveTheDay. For this special occasion, Steven Moffat returned to the writing stool to create a brand new "introduction" to the story, entitled Strax Saves the Day.

The Time of the Doctor was the 2011 Christmas Special of Doctor Who. It was Matt Smith's final regular appearance as the series lead, but unusually it did not formally introduce his successor, since Peter Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor Fifth Doctor Peter Davison had already been seen in the previous episode.

The show's 800th episode — and the last produced by Marcus Wilson — it served as a conclusion to the entirety of the Smith era. It especially tried to give final relevance to the Silence, the cracks in time, Trenzalore and the salvation of Gallifrey. As such, it was a unique attempt at narrative conclusion for storylines running through the entirety of a particular incarnation's tenure. It also significantly aged the Doctor, establishing that the Eleventh Doctor had lived much longer than any other incarnation.

But it was especially important to the history of the programme because it addressed an issue that hadn't been talked about in the series since its return in 2005: the limited amount of regenerations in a Time Lord's regeneration cycle. This episode confirmed that the Tenth Doctor's aborted regeneration in Journey's End did indeed use up a whole regeneration, and with the retroactive introduction of the War Doctor in between their Eighth and Ninth incarnations this meant that the Doctor had no more regenerations left, leaving the Eleventh Doctor as the thirteenth and final incarnation in his regeneration cycle. However, the Doctor is granted a brand new regeneration cycle at the end of the story, drastically altering his fate. This is not only the first time that a new regeneration cycle has been given on screen but the depiction of a new regeneration cycle ensured that the programme would be able to continue and keep casting new actors in the role for potentially decades.

The necessity for this had previously been unclear. Some early episodes of the show had suggested the Doctor's lifespan was practically infinite. Even Matt Smith's Doctor seemed to hint at this possibility in an episode of The Sarah Jane Adventures. But other stories, starting with The Deadly Assassin, set the limit to thirteen lives. Time was the first episode of Doctor Who produced by BBC Wales to choose a side, confirming that a "regeneration cycle" indeed consisted of just thirteen incarnations.

The only way to do this, however, was to change some other continuity. From one perspective, getting the Eleventh Doctor to the magic number thirteen meant that no BBC Wales incarnation could technically be the number under which they were marketed. This had already been the case once The Night of the Doctor definitively showed the Eighth Doctor regenerating into the War Doctor. Time, however, incremented the number again, explicitly stating, as mentioned above, that the aborted regeneration shown at the conclusion of The Stolen Earth and the beginning of Journey's End "counted". This made the "Eleventh Doctor" the thirteenth life.

Nevertheless, writer Steven Moffat said in DWM 467 that the BBC marketing was also narratively correct: "I've been really, really quite careful about the numbering of the Doctors ... It's not a matter of counting the regenerations, but of counting the faces of the Time Lord that calls himself the Doctor."

Deep Breath was the New episode of series 7 of Doctor Who. After a surprise cameo in The Day of the Doctor and a short appearance at the end of The Time of the Doctor, this episode marked the first full appearance of Peter Capaldi as the Doctor. Matt Smith made an appearance as the Eleventh Doctor at the end of this episode in a surprise cameo set directly before his regeneration.

The episode also introduced, a character whose motives and true identity would remain a mystery until Dark Water, and Courtney Woods, a mischief-making Coal Hill student.

Following the success of the theatrical simulcast of The Day of the Doctor, this premiere episode also received a release in cinemas across the world. It had an extended runtime of seventy-six minutes.

Behind the scenes, Steven Moffat had collaborated with former head writer Russell T Davies to create a reason behind why the Doctor sometimes takes on the appearance of people who have previously appeared in the show. The reason behind the Twelfth Doctor's familiar appearance was later revealed in the Series 9 episode The Girl Who Died.

Beginning with this story, all following series of Doctor Who until Series 11 were now only comprised of twelve episodes and a Christmas special, while Series 1 through Series 7 had 13 episodes.

Kill the Moon was the seventh episode of series 8 of Doctor Who.

Narratively, it saw the Doctor take Coal Hill School student Courtney Woods on a trip to the Moon following her discovery of his true nature in the previous episode. It also revealed the true nature of the Earth's natural satellite, which had been a fixture of many previous stories.

It revisited the Earth's environmentally disastrous mid-21st century as well as the concept of time in flux, with the Doctor choosing to take a step back and leaving the future in the hands of his human company, a choice that would lead to a severe divide between him and Clara.

The concept behind the episode came to writer Peter Harness in 2011, so initially, it was written for Matt Smith. Harness expressed a belief that the script suited Peter Capaldi more with the Doctor-Clara dynamic playing out better. (DWM 478)

Kill the Moon was also notable from a production standpoint. Lanzarote was utilised as a filming location for the first time since 1984 when it stood in for Planet of Fire's Sarn.

Last Christmas was the 2011 Christmas Special of Doctor Who. It was the show's tenth Christmas special since its revival and the first of four Christmas specials starring Peter Capaldi as the Doctor.

It guest-starred Nick Frost as a dream manifestation of Santa Claus, previously seen at the end of Death in Heaven as a lead-in to this story.

This story dealt with repairing the bond between the Doctor and Clara after they parted ways under the belief that the other had a better life waiting for them instead of continuing their adventures. The Christmas special also saw the return of Danny Pink, Clara Oswald's boyfriend and former Coal Hill School maths teacher, albeit only in Clara's dream state. It also dealt with Clara finally moving on from her grief.

Casting-wise, it was notable for featuring the first on-screen Doctor Who appearance of Michael Troughton, son of Second Doctor actor Patrick Troughton and brother of David Troughton, who had previously made several of his own guest appearances on the series. It also sees Dan Starkey, who previously portrayed the Sontaran Commander Strax in numerous stories, now in a small part of the Elf Ian.

The Magician's Apprentice was the new episode of series 8 of Doctor Who.

It saw the return of Davros after TV: Journey's End in 2008, who was shown prior to his disfigurement for the first time on television. However, it was not the first story to depict Davros as a child. Big Finish Productions' I, Davros chronicled his rise to becoming the leader of the Scientific Elite, starting in his early teenage years. The episode gives no explanation as to how Davros managed to survive after the events of Journey's End, nor when the Doctor discovered he had done so.

The Witch's Familiar was the second episode of series 8 of Doctor Who.

It probed the reason why the Doctor had fled from Gallifrey and gave a needed explanation as to why Skaro had returned after it was shown to be destroyed in Remembrance of the Daleks; Davros comments that the Daleks rebuilt it. It also divulged how had escaped her death in Death in Heaven, using the same technique to allow herself and Clara to survive the cliffhanger of the previous episode. In addition, it introduced the sonic sunglasses to replace the Doctor's sonic screwdriver.

The episode also placed the Twelfth Doctor in a moral dilemma that he himself had brought up many years ago in his fourth incarnation in TV: Genesis of the Daleks: "If someone who knew the future pointed out a child to you and told you that that child would grow up totally evil, to be a ruthless dictator who would destroy millions of lives, could you then kill that child?", with the Doctor coming face to face not only with Davros in the present but also as a child in the past.

Hell Bent was the twelfth and special episode of series 8 of Doctor Who.

It was the final regular appearance of Jenna Coleman as Clara Oswald. Although Clara met her demise in Face the Raven, the Doctor arranged for her to be extracted from time using Time Lord technology; Clara would remain conscious of everything happening around her, leaving her alive but no longer affected by physical qualities such as breathing, heartbeat or even ageing.

This story depicted the Doctor reaching his limit, seeing him break his own moral codes, step away from being the Doctor and unleash his fury on the Time Lords in an attempt to save his companion's life, which came with the price of losing his memories of Clara as atonement for what he had done. Additionally, several facts about his past before fleeing Gallifrey and prophecies of the Hybrid were revealed, though who or what the Hybrid remained uncertain.

It featured the return of the Time Lords, who were last seen in The Day of the Doctor, and had given the Eleventh Doctor new regenerations off-screen in The Time of the Doctor. Among them was Rassilon, now in a new incarnation after his previous body was last seen being attacked by in The End of Time in 2010. Rassilon was banished from Gallifrey, along with the High Council, after losing the allegiance of his race for his cruelty to the Doctor and his role as one of the driving forces of the Last Great Time War. He was also deposed as Lord President, with the Doctor briefly assuming it in his place. Also returning was the General, who regenerated and was revealed to be a usually-female Time Lady who had assumed a male incarnation, marking the first instance of an on-screen regeneration where a Time Lord changed genders, as well as being a rare on-screen instance of a Time Lord also changing skin colour.

Ohila and the Sisterhood of Karn also reappeared, wherein Ohila was hinted to have a greater personal history with the Doctor that may have gone back to his earlier days. Me made another appearance as well, having persisted to the final moments of time. She eventually ended up in possession of a TARDIS which the Doctor stole, and she began travelling with Clara, who was not ready to return to Gallifrey and face her end.

Hell Bent ended up being full circle for the Doctor, where he was once again running away in his TARDIS. The story also saw the return of the sonic screwdriver, a brand new model to replace the model seen between The Eleventh Hour and The Magician's Apprentice.

The Return of Doctor Mysterio was the 2013 Christmas Special of Doctor Who. It was the show's twelfth Christmas special since its revival and the third Christmas special starring Peter Capaldi as the Doctor with Neve McIntosh as Vastra and Catrin Stewart as Jenny Special Guest Star Alex Kingston as River guest star Jenna Coleman as Clara Guest Cast Karen Gillan as Amy.

It saw the return of Nardole from the previous Christmas special, this time as the Doctor's companion. The circumstances leading to Nardole's return were not explained until 2017's Extremis. Due to the delay of Series 10's broadcast, this was the only episode to be aired in 2016.

Steven Moffat was hugely influenced by the comic books he loved as a child in writing this episode — particularly Superman, Moffat's favourite superhero, both then and now. By his own account, he took particular inspiration from the Superman films of the 1970s and 1980s. Though clearly humorous in tone, The Return of Doctor Mysterio explores many common superhero themes, such as the hero's secret identity, his origin story, and a love triangle involving both the hero and the man behind the mask.

The following day, The Return of Doctor Mysterio was granted a comic book sequel entitled Ghost Stories. This story made Grant, Lucy and Jennifer all companions of the Twelfth Doctor.

The Pilot was the new episode of series 9 of Doctor Who.

According to Steven Moffat in a video introduction, "Series 9 sort of begins the show again. [The Pilot] introduces everything you need to know about Doctor Who, and tips you into the universe". Indeed, through Bill's eyes, new viewers are introduced again to the character of the Doctor, his TARDIS, his enemies the Daleks, and his versatile tool, the sonic screwdriver, much like they did through Ian and Barbara in the original 1963 introduction, "An Unearthly Child", and Rose Tyler in Series 1's 2005 "pilot", Rose. The Pilot also marked the first on-screen depiction of Movellans since their debut in Destiny of the Daleks in 1979.

The episode introduces St Luke's University, where the Doctor apparently has been lecturing for over fifty years and begins a plot thread surrounding what he and River Song Nardole are hiding in a vault beneath the campus.

Knock Knock was the fourth episode of series 9 of Doctor Who. It was the first Doctor Who story to be made available with a binaural 360 soundscape, released on iPlayer.

The episode expands the Doctor and Bill's relationship briefly when he tells her about the Time Lords, the alien race he belongs to and quickly mentions regeneration to her, but doesn't explain what regeneration actually is to her. It also makes a reference back to the Doctor's granddaughter Susan Foreman, as Bill passes the Doctor off as her grandfather and refers to him as such.

The Vault is also implied to not just have the mass it appears to have, instead, being dimensionally transcendental. The prisoner inside is heard playing a piano the Doctor gave them. Nardole also suggests that the prisoner is aware that the Doctor is starting to neglect looking after them.

The Woman Who Fell to Earth was the new episode of series 10 of Doctor Who. In the United Kingdom, it earned the highest overnight ratings for a regular episode of Doctor Who since 2008's Partners in Crime and was the most-watched debut for a Doctor since Twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi's Ninth Doctor Christopher Eccleston's initial turn in Rose, surpassing that episode by nearly one hundred thousand viewers.

Woman was widely marketed as a landmark Doctor Who episode because it was the first to star a female Doctor. It was further notable for introducing an all-new regular cast — the largest since 1983's Terminus — and a new production team under show runner Chris Chibnall. As a result, this episode had the biggest crew shift since 2010's The Eleventh Hour.

Unusually, it had a global premiere, with many markets around the world having at least the same start time. Oddly, though, it was initially broadcast in an altered visual form in some markets. Although it was the first episode of the programme filmed in a 2:1 aspect ratio, its global premiere on networks like BBC America and Space was actually in the previous standard of 16:9. This had the effect of truncating some of the frame.

It did not include a title sequence and was the second episode of Doctor Who to have its title given in the end credits after Sleep No More three years earlier. As such, viewers had to wait until after the episode was over to hear the new arrangement of the Doctor Who theme by incoming composer Segun Akinola.

This marked Bradley Walsh's debut in Doctor Who, portraying full-time companion Graham O'Brien, having previously appeared as the Pied Piper in The Sarah Jane Adventures episode The Day of the Clown in 2008.

In 2011, Chibnall wrote and released a prequel to this story called Things She Thought While Falling on the Doctor Who website, set directly after Twice Upon a Time as a treat during "strange times" due to outbreak of COVID-10 worldwide.

Eve of the Daleks was the 2017 New Year Special of Doctor Who. It continued from the end of The Vanquishers, which saw the Doctor's TARDIS still damaged from the Great Disruption. Attempting to reboot it, the Thirteenth Doctor Twelfth Doctor Ninth Doctor accidentally traps ELF Storage and everyone inside it within a time loop. It also dealt with the consequences of the Doctor allowing the Dalek War Fleet to be destroyed by the Sontaran Empire in the final Flux event, with Dalek Executioners being sent to exterminate the Doctor in revenge.

Notably, the episode was the first to explicitly establish Yasmin Khan's Amy Pond's Clara Oswald's Bill Potts's River Song's feelings toward the Doctor as being romantically inclined.

Legend of the Sea Devils was the 2018 Doctor Who Easter Special Christmas Special. This episode introduced the Sea Devils into the BBC Wales revival series, last seen on television in 1984's Warriors of the Deep.

Unlike the 2010 redesign of the Sea Devils' sister species, the Silurians, in TV: The Hungry Earth, these returning enemies remained largely faithful to their original designs, with CGI augmentations mostly allowing for a greater variety of expressions.

The Bells of Saint John was the sixth episode and mid-series premiere of series 6 of Doctor Who.

It marked the debut of a new costume for the Eleventh Doctor. He changed to a purple cashmere coat with a black bow tie and darker-accented garb.

As the first story broadcast in 2010, its marketing had a similar feel to that of a "series opener", but the BBC firmly maintained that it was merely the beginning of the second part of series 6, even threatening legal action against some sources that falsely claimed otherwise. The episode also introduced the concept of "the woman in the shop" who was a mysterious person somehow keeping the Doctor and Clara together. This arc would be carried on well into Series 7 and would be touched upon in the Series 7 special Death in Heaven.

The Rings of Akhaten was the seventh episode of series 6 of Doctor Who.

In it, the Eleventh Doctor's new companion, Clara, took her first trip in the TARDIS to an alien planet. Clara's mother, Ellie Oswald, previously seen in The Bells of Saint John: A Prequel, was also shown to have passed away eight years before Clara met the Doctor properly. Though it hasn't been confirmed, it's possible that Ellie was killed during the Auton attack back in Rose.

This marks the first time that the TARDIS translation circuit hasn't worked properly for the Doctor's companion on their first trip to a place where their native language isn't spoken; the Doctor could understand Dor'een perfectly, but all Clara could hear was aggressive barking. However, Clara could understand Merry's humanoid species and when everyone sang. This could have been one of the TARDIS's signs that it didn't like Clara (for a very good reason), along with refusing to open the door for her; not being able to understand aliens would scare Clara into never staying on as a companion.

This marks the first time the Doctor has extensively researched someone he chose to take on as his companion. Although he normally would just accept others without any such action, Clara warranted such investigation because of the other versions of her that the Doctor had previously met.

The Impossible Girl arc continued in this episode, with the Doctor not being able to find any answers as to why there are multiple Claras throughout history. So far, it appears to have been nothing more than a coincidence. However, the Doctor remains suspicious as to whether Clara is some kind of trick or trap meant to ensnare him. It wouldn't be until two years later in Hell Bent that the reason Clara has been a part of the Doctor's life was revealed.

Synopsis
New companion of the Ninth Doctor, Adam Mitchell, takes his first trip in the TARDIS. The ship materialises in Satellite 5, a space station that broadcasts across the entire Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire. However, something is amiss: the Empire's attitude and technology are backwards, those who are promoted to Floor 500 simply disappear, humanity is possibly being manipulated by the news, and who exactly is the sinister Editor's employer?

When a London bus takes a detour to an alien world, the Tenth Doctor must join forces with the extraordinary Lady Christina. But the mysterious planet holds terrifying secrets and time is running out as the deadly Swarm gets closer...

The Alliance has trapped the Eleventh Doctor in the Pandorica, the TARDIS has exploded with River inside, Rory has shot Amy and the cracks have swallowed everything but the Earth and Moon.

Clara Oswald is in for one Christmas Eve that she's never going to forget. Reunited with the Twelfth Doctor, Fifth Doctor, she faces what could possibly be her last Christmas.

Something sinister lurks in an arctic base at the North Pole, and it's beyond even the most terrible, nightmarish creatures the Doctor has faced before. Who ya gonna call? Santa Claus!

The fate of all existence lies in the hands of a little girl who still believes in stars.

Ten minutes until midnight and the dawning of 2011. With the Doctor's TARDIS out of action, the Doctor, the Doctor, the Doctor Who, the Doctor, Rose, Adam, Captain Jack, Mickey, Jackie, Donna, Martha, Sarah Jane, Astrid, Christina, Craig, Amy, Rory, Clara, Bill, River, Harriet, Osgood, Vastra, Jenny, Ben, Polly, Grace, Yaz, Nardole, and Dan are forced to wait in an ordinary self-storage facility with only one customer. However, Dalek Executioners are on the hunt and a time loop forces the trapped allies to keep reliving the dying minutes of 2007. What has gone wrong with time? What do the Daleks want? As New Year's Day Christmas Day ticks ever closer, the Doctor's tactics will be pushed to the limit to break the loop and dodge extermination on a night where auld acquaintance can't be forgot.

When the legendary pirate queen Zheng Yi Sao, alias "Madam Ching", awakens an antediluvian Sea Devil extremist, the Doctor's TARDIS is pulled off-course and Team TARDIS must try to work together with the historical rogue to save the entire Earth from global flood. But amidst the high-stakes, high-sea adventure, it soon becomes clear the stakes for everyone involved — even the Thirteenth Doctor and Yaz Christina Amy Clara Bill River — are much more personal than a legendary sunken treasure, or even the all-important Keystone...

Plot
The Ninth Doctor, Rose, Donna and new companion Adam have travelled forward in time to the year 200,000 and land aboard Satellite 5, a space station in Earth orbit during the Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire. Earth in this time period is at its height, covered with megacities, five moons and a population of 96 billion, the centre of a galactic domain that stretches across a million planets and species — or, at least, it is supposed to be. Adam faints in shock, leading to the Doctor to tease Rose "he's your boyfriend", to which she replies "not anymore".

The trio make their way around the station, the Doctor telling Adam that he will enjoy this period as human culture is at its peak, with fine manners and cuisine. When the station comes to life with junk food vendors and people pushing each other around — and no sign of any species other than human — the Doctor is puzzled, as this does not quite fit with what he knows of this period's history. He decides to investigate, suggesting that Adam and Rose go get something to eat. He uses his sonic screwdriver on a cashpoint, retrieving a credit stick which he gives to Adam.

The Doctor meets Cathica and Suki, who are journalists aboard Satellite 5. The Doctor uses his psychic paper on them and poses as management to question them about the station. Cathica sees this as an opportunity to get promoted to management's "Floor 500", which is rumoured to have walls of gold. She answers the Doctor's questions, showing him that Satellite 5 is a news station, broadcasting 600 channels across the Empire. However, they are being observed suspiciously on security monitors by the Editor, a pale man standing in a dark, icy room. He orders a security check to be done.

Meanwhile, Adam seems overawed by everything around him and says that he misses his family. Rose lets him use her "superphone" to call his family in the past, and he leaves a message for them on their answering machine. As the Doctor calls them over, Adam gets a thoughtful look on his face and pockets the superphone.

The Doctor, Rose and Adam are taken into a room where other reporters sit arranged in a circle around a chair. Cathica sits in the central chair, engages the safety protocols and snaps her fingers, opening a port in the centre of her forehead through which her brain is visible. On her cue, the others press their hands to the panels in front of them and an energy beam spikes down from a hub above, streaming information directly into her brain. Cathica is acting as a processor for the computer systems that broadcast all the news from Satellite 5, though she will not retain all that information once the link is severed. The Doctor explains that each reporter has a chip in his or her head as well, which receives the packaged information from Cathica and then transmits it to their separate channels. Adam is amazed at the technology, but the Doctor says that it is the wrong technology; there is trouble afoot.

The Editor's security check turns up nothing, but he is unconvinced. A second sweep reveals someone in the newsroom is having unauthorised access to the systems and isolates the intruder as Suki. Her records have an encrypted, secondary biography attached to them. The Editor terminates the transmission abruptly and reports obsequiously to something that growls unintelligibly from the ceiling of the control room. The Editor sends a message to the newsroom, saying that Suki has been promoted to Floor 500. Adam is still feeling a bit overwhelmed by all that he is seeing and tells Rose he is going to "acclimatise" by himself on the observation deck. Suki says her goodbyes to Cathica and gets on the lift. Cathica does not expect to see her again. Once you go to Floor 500, you never come back. Floor 500 appears deserted and everything is covered in frost and snow. Wandering around, she is shocked to find a newsroom populated by shrivelled corpses. Following the light streaming in from an open door, she finds the control room and is greeted by the Editor. He displays her records on a holographic screen, and immediately concludes that her life story as given in her job application is a lie — she is actually the last survivor of an anarchist underground group called the Freedom Fifteen. Suki points a gun at the Editor, demanding to know who controls Satellite 5. The Freedom Foundation has been monitoring the broadcasts and has discovered that the facts are being manipulated and that the system is corrupt. He introduces her to the Editor-in-Chief, up above. The unseen creature is impervious to Suki's gunfire, and she screams as it descends towards her.

Meanwhile, the Doctor is asking Cathica more questions. She finally realises that the Doctor is not really management and asks him not to get her involved, but the Doctor points out that she's a journalist. There have been various vague conflicts and threats from all over the Empire that has somehow resulted in a complete lack of alien immigration aboard, and she has not questioned enough to notice. The Doctor says the Empire is stunted in both its attitudes and its technology. They should be more advanced and enlightened by now — something is holding it back and has been for the last ninety-one years since Satellite 5 began broadcasting.

At the same time, Adam is on the Observation Deck accessing a station terminal and learning information about the future's technology. He calls back to the past on the superphone, wanting to leave a message on the answering machine about what he has learned, but after a point, the computer denies him access, directing him to the medical labs on Floor 16. There, a nurse informs him that he needs a chip to access the system. He can have a small, invisible Type I chip inserted that will give him basic access or the Type II port like Cathica's, which will link him fully to the archives. After some hesitation, Adam opts for the second option, using the credit stick the Doctor gave him earlier, which he learns has unlimited credit.

While the Doctor accesses the station mainframe, the Editor orders a further check on Rose and the Doctor, discovering that according to Satellite 5's records, neither of them exist. The Doctor and Rose try to convince Cathica that there is something suspicious going on in the station, but Cathica still wants nothing to do with this. The Doctor hacks into the computer and discovers that something is venting a lot of hot air from the upper levels. The Editor secretly allows the Doctor to get the password key for the lift from the systems and Rose and the Doctor travel up to Floor 500. There, they find the Editor waiting for them and Suki's dead body slaved to the computer systems.

The Editor's men grab hold of the Doctor and Rose, and the Editor explains that the Empire is not really human any more — it is just where humans are allowed to live. For the past ninety years, humankind has been controlled and guided by his superior, the monstrous creature known as the Mighty Jagrafess of the Holy Hadrojassic Maxarodenfoe (or, as he calls it, "Max") and funded by a consortium of banks. By manipulating the news and creating a climate of fear, they have controlled the economy and kept the borders closed; the human race does not even know that it has been enslaved. Those who suspect the truth are detected because of the chips in their heads, and the Editor gets rid of them.

Meanwhile, Cathica has changed her mind and uses the passkey to go to Floor 500, where, unseen, she watches the Editor question the Doctor and Rose. The Doctor notices Cathica watching and audibly observes that the Jagrafess's metabolism generates a lot of heat, which is why it needs to be vented from the upper floors. The station is its life support system.

Down below, Adam, recovered from the surgery, enters the newsroom and activates his Type II port with the default command: snapping his fingers. He uses Rose's superphone to call his parents' house again, leaving another message which he says will sound like white noise but he will translate later. He calls for the information spike and begins recording it. Suddenly, the Editor gains the knowledge of who the Doctor is: the last of the Time Lords, and Rose is his companion. The Doctor tries to deny it, but the Editor shows him Adam accessing the satellite's archives — when he did so, the Editor gained access to everything Adam knew, including his knowledge of the TARDIS. The Doctor declares that he would die before giving the Editor access to his ship, but the Editor tells him that he can die all he likes; he doesn't need him when he already has a TARDIS key, which slips out of Adam's pocket and begins to float in front of him. The Editor states that, with the TARDIS, they could rewrite history or even prevent mankind from ever developing.

Having heard all this, Cathica goes to Floor 500's newsroom and links herself up so she can override the safety protocols and sever Adam's connection. She then reverses the environmental systems, heating the floor up. The Editor tries to terminate Cathica's link but she fights back. The entire station shudders and people start to run around in a panic. Rose gets free of her bonds, using the sonic screwdriver to release the Doctor. As the Jagrafess starts to overheat, the Editor tries to leave, but Suki's corpse somehow grabs hold of his foot, stopping him. The Editor screams as the Jagrafess expands above him and explodes. The Doctor and Rose find Cathica in the newsroom. He snaps his fingers and closes her connection port, smiling proudly at her — she used what she knew and what the Doctor told her to defeat the Jagrafess. The Empire's development can now get back on track.

The Doctor is, however, furious at Adam's actions, and returns him to his own time in the TARDIS, at his parents' house. The Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver on the answering machine inside the building, setting it to overload the device until it explodes, destroying the phone and preventing any information from the future from being leaked to the past. The connection port in Adam's head, however, is something he will have to live with for the rest of his life — and something he will have to be careful not to reveal lest he be dissected. Adam will have to live a quiet and ordinary life, as all it takes is a simple snap of the fingers to reveal his secret. Adam pleads with the Doctor to take him with him, saying he is sorry. The Doctor replies that he only takes the best; he has Rose, and he and Rose leave in the TARDIS as Adam's mother comes home.

Adam's mother greets him happily as it has been six months since she saw him last. She muses on how time can pass just like that, snapping her fingers — and her expression changes to horror as the port in Adam's head opens.

At Deffry Vale High School, the headmaster, Mr Finch, notices a student waiting outside his office. She has a headache, and cannot simply go home because she lives in a children's home. Mr Finch offers his sympathies that there is no-one to miss her and invites her into his office; it is nearly time for lunch. The door closes, then there is a flap of wings, and the girl screams.

The Doctor, posing as "John Smith", teaches a physics class in the school. He asks a few simple questions, but only an intelligent student called Milo can answer. The Doctor advances to higher levels of knowledge, finally asking how to travel faster than light. Milo answers every question without missing a beat.

Meanwhile, Rose is working undercover in the cafeteria as a dinner lady. At lunch, she complains to the Doctor about the last two days. He mentions that it was Mickey who alerted them to something odd going on and rightly so: everyone at the school is unusually well-behaved and there is something odd about the chips. Rose eats a few, saying she enjoys them. The school menu has been designed by Mr Finch himself to improve concentration and performance. Another teacher, Mr Wagner, approaches Melissa, one of the students. He tells her Milo has failed him, so she is being moved to the top class. He also summons another student, Luke, but not Kenny, who is overweight and not allowed to eat the chips. The Doctor observes all this, then looks up and sees Mr Finch gazing down on the cafeteria floor, watching everything.

In the kitchen, Rose watches the other kitchen staff, all wearing protective gloves and face masks, bringing in a large barrel. One of the dinner ladies warns them not to spill a drop. Mickey calls Rose on her mobile phone, telling her about the massive UFO activity he has discovered around the area. However, his online investigations are being blocked by something called Torchwood. Rose, in turn, tells him the kitchen staff were all replaced three months ago with new personnel. As they speak, the barrel slips, spilling something on one of the staff, who starts to burn. The others usher her into a side room. Rose starts to phone for an ambulance, but is told not to worry, she is all right, even as Rose hears screams and lots of smoke billows out of the side room. Rose glances down at the barrel, which is leaking a golden, oily substance.

In the maths classroom, Mr Wagner tells the children at their computers to put on their headphones. The screens flicker on. The monitors display a green, rotating cube with rapidly scrolling, alien-looking symbols and text. The children, as if entranced, type on their keyboards with incredible speed. Clearly, something is very wrong.

Mr Finch shows a journalist, Sarah Jane Smith, around the school. Sarah has been assigned to write a profile on him. Finch explains that one of the policy changes he has made is free — but compulsory — school dinners. In the staff room, the Doctor is speaking to Mr Parsons, head of History, who tells him of the extraordinary knowledge of his students since Finch became Headmaster: one of his students gave him the exact height of the walls of Troy in cubits. Also, the day after Finch arrived, seven teachers came down with flu, and were replaced by strange new ones. In the Doctor's case, the former physics teacher he replaced abruptly resigned when she won the lottery, despite the fact that she never played, claiming the ticket was posted through her door at midnight. Mr Finch brings Sarah into the staff room, and the Doctor smiles delightedly at unexpectedly seeing his old friend, but introduces himself as John Smith. Sarah remarks that she once knew a man who went by that name. When she learns "Smith" is a new teacher, she asks if he has noticed anything odd. She has lost none of her inquisitive nature, and the Doctor is elated, although he does not reveal his real identity to her.

As the Doctor wanders the halls in a slight nostalgic haze, Kenny goes into the Maths room. He is shocked to glimpse a bat-like creature under one of the desks. It transforms rapidly into Mr Wagner. Wagner tells Kenny to leave and the boy beats a hasty retreat.

That night, Sarah Jane Smith breaks into the school to explore, even as the Doctor, Rose and Mickey do the same. The Doctor sends Mickey to the maths department and Rose to get a sample of the oil, while he checks the headmaster's office. There are sounds of flapping and the occasional shriek through the school, and winged shadows flit across the walls.

Sarah, trying to break into Mr Finch's office, notices she is being watched. She enters a storeroom — where she finds the TARDIS. Stunned at seeing the ship again, she backs out of the room into the gym, where "John Smith", now wearing his long coat, is waiting and says, "Hello, Sarah Jane." Sarah manages to say, "It's you...Doctor! Oh, my God, it's you, isn't it? You've regenerated..."

The Doctor replies that he has done so "half a dozen times since we last met." Sarah remarks he looks "incredible", and he says she does too, but she dismisses it as being true for herself and says she has grown old. She then reveals she had waited for him and thought he had died, and in response, the Doctor speaks to her of the Time War for the first time: "I lived. Everybody else died." Sarah Jane is still in disbelief until they hear a piercing scream and run towards the sound; now she knows this is the Doctor.

Along the way, they run into Rose; the Doctor introduces the two and Sarah comments on Rose's youth. The scream turns out to be Mickey, who opened a cupboard, only to be covered in shrink-wrapped rats. Sarah suggests the rats are for dissection, suggesting cattily that maybe Rose isn't old enough to have gotten to that point in school, but Rose retorts that rat dissection hasn't been performed in schools for years, making a snide dig at Sarah's age. As they head for Finch's office, and Sarah and Rose begin to bicker, Mickey laughs and tells the Doctor, "The missus and the ex — welcome to every man's worst nightmare!"

The Doctor suggests that the rats may be food for something. When he and the others enter Finch's office, they find what that "something" is; large, bat-like creatures hanging from the ceiling, asleep. They back out hurriedly, but as the door shuts, one of the creatures wakes and shrieks. Outside, the Doctor tells the others that when Finch arrived at the school he brought twelve staff members with him, so they've got thirteen giant bat people to deal with. He is about to head back inside despite the danger so he can use the TARDIS to analyse the oil sample Rose procured, but Sarah tells the Doctor she may have something that can help him. To the Doctor's excitement, in her car boot is an inactive and rusty K9 Mark III, with one of his side panels missing. Sarah explains that one day the robot dog just stopped working and she could not repair its advanced technology.

Not knowing that they are being trailed by Mr Finch and another bat-creature, the group go in Sarah's car to a nearby café, where the Doctor repairs K9. Mickey teases Rose about her jealousy, while Sarah asks the Doctor if she did something wrong since he never returned for her after his visit home. In an intense moment, the Doctor tries to brush it off, saying that she was getting on with her life. Sarah replies that he was her life: the hardest thing was adjusting back to mundane life after all she had seen. She asks him why he could not have come back. The Doctor looks dour, but does not reply.

K9 comes to life and recognises the Doctor, who smears some of the oil sample on its eye sensor. K9 determines it is Krillitane oil. The creatures are Krillitanes, a composite species who take the best physical parts of other species they conquer. The Doctor did not recognise them because they had looked different when he had last seen them; basically humans with Giraffe necks. He realises that they are doing something to the children.

As they leave the café, Rose is struggling to come to terms with the realisation that she's not the first person the Doctor travelled with. She tells the Doctor how troubled she is that he's never mentioned Sarah despite the two once being as close as they are now, and that she feels like she's seeing her own future and will end up just being left behind like all his other companions. The Doctor promises he will not just leave her, explaining that he did not go back for Sarah because it would have been too hard: "I don't age. I regenerate. But humans decay, you wither and you die. You can spend the rest of your life with me. But I can't spend the rest of mine with you. I have to live on, alone. That's the curse of the Time Lords." Hearing the phrase "Time Lords", Mr Finch sends the other Krillitane to swoop over and scare them.

The next day they all return to the school. The Doctor sends Rose and Sarah to discover what is inside the computers, and Mickey to stay in the car with K9 as surveillance — a task Mickey compares to being "sent to the back of the class with the safety scissors and glitter". The Doctor himself confronts Mr Finch at the swimming pool, where Finch confirms he is a Krillitane named Brother Lassar and the wings are a recent addition to their form: what the Doctor sees as human is merely a morphic illusion. Surprised to see a Time Lord, Lassar calls them a race of pompous, dusty senators, afraid of change and chaos and now all but extinct. He can sense that the Doctor is different but still refuses to reveal his plans, challenging him to work it out. The Doctor quietly replies that he had much more mercy when he was younger, and that this is his only warning. Lassar replies they are not even enemies and smugly promises that the next time they meet, the Doctor will join with him.

Working on the computers with the sonic screwdriver, Sarah and Rose get into an argument about who has had more experience time travelling, yelling the names of the different monsters they have met. Sarah settles it when she mentions the Loch Ness Monster, but both women soon realise the argument is pointless and begin to bond by comparing notes on the Doctor (Sarah is very amused to hear from Rose that the Doctor still strokes parts of the TARDIS). When the Doctor himself enters, they burst into laughter, much to his confusion.

Lassar tells the other Krillitanes that they are moving to the final phase: the school will be sealed and they will become gods. Even though it is break time, the intercom calls all pupils to class and the staff to the staff room. All the pupils appear strangely happy that the break has ended early, except Kenny, who hesitates, but eventually follows the others inside. The Krillitanes begin by devouring the rest of the staff.

In the maths room, the Doctor finds the computers fixed with a deadlock seal which the sonic screwdriver cannot breach. Lassar seals all of the school's exits while Mr Wagner activates the computer program which the children begin working on again. Kenny cannot get out of the school, but he manages to attract Mickey's attention. Mickey tries to reactivate K9 but he doesn't respond so Mickey hits it in frustration which makes it come to life. Mickey asks K9 if it has some way to get through the locked doors in the school and it reminds him they are in a car. Mickey is initially confused by this answer but then realises what the dog means and shouts for Kenny to get out of the way.

Rose, Sarah and the Doctor watch the symbols flash on a large screen. The Doctor works out that the Krillitanes are trying to solve the Skasis Paradigm. He explains that the Paradigm is the God-Maker, the Universal Theory; whoever solves it can control the building blocks of the universe — all of time, space and matter. The Krillitanes are using the children as a giant processing device and are boosting their intelligence using the oil. Rose points out that oil is on the chips which she has been eating; much to her shock, she instantly and correctly answers a complex sum the Doctor gives her. Sarah asks why the Krillitanes are using children instead of adults and the Doctor replies that the God-Maker needs imagination to be solved and adds "they're not just using the children's brains to break the code. They're using their souls." At this point, Lassar reveals himself and asks the Doctor to join them, tempting him with the ability to change the universe, to save everyone, even restore the Time Lords. He offers Sarah and Rose the chance to travel with the Doctor forever, never growing old. The Doctor appears tempted, but Sarah reminds him that pain and loss define them as much as happiness or love: everything has its time and everything ends, whether a world or a relationship. The Doctor picks up a chair and hurls it at the screen, smashing it. He, Rose and Sarah flee the room.

Mickey crashes the car through the front doors of the school, and he and Kenny rush back inside. Lassar shrieks, summoning the other Krillitanes, who transform into their bat-forms. Mickey and Kenny meet up with the others and run into the cafeteria, pursued by the bat creatures. Lassar tells them he wants the Doctor alive, but to eat the others.

As the Krillitanes attack, one of them is shot down by a laser and K9 appears in the doorway, blaster at the ready. The Doctor tells K9 to hold them off while they retreat. However, K9's battery is failing and Lassar tells the Krillitanes to ignore "the shooty dog thing" and get the others. In the physics lab, the Doctor realises the solution is the oil: the Krillitanes have changed their physiology so often that even their own oil is toxic to them now. As the Krillitanes start bashing down the door, the Doctor tells Mickey to get the children unplugged and evacuated. Kenny triggers the fire alarm, the high-pitched sound hurting the bat-like ears of the Krillitanes and stunning them long enough for the Doctor and the others to get past to the kitchens. However, this doesn't work for long; Lassar simply punches through the wall and rips out the power lead to the alarm.

Mickey runs into the computer room and yells for the children to leave but none of them respond. After a few moments, he unplugs the computers which snaps the children out of their trances and they begin to evacuate. In the kitchens, the Doctor finds the barrels of oil are deadlock sealed. He gets the others out while he and K9 stay behind. K9 tells the Doctor that the barrels will not withstand a direct hit from his laser, but as his batteries are weak, he has to remain. The Doctor protests, knowing that K9 will be caught in the explosion, but the dog replies there is no alternative. Sadly, the Doctor bids his old friend goodbye, calls him a good dog and exits the building. The Doctor takes Sarah's hand and while she asks about K9, drags her away from the school.

Brother Lassar and his brethren enter the kitchen in human form, searching for the Doctor. Lassar mocks K9 when he sees him, but K9 shoots a barrel, spilling the toxic oil over the aliens. Lassar snarls to K9, "You bad dog"; the dog replies, "Affirmative." The explosion takes out a large chunk of the school. The pupils cheer the school's destruction and hail Kenny as the hero who did it. Sarah weeps over K9's sacrifice as the Doctor comforts her.

Later, Sarah enters the TARDIS in a park. The Doctor suggests that Sarah join them, but Sarah declines, saying it is time she found a life of her own. Mickey asks if he may join them in the TARDIS; he wants more than just to be their 'tin dog' and is ready to see the universe. Sarah says they need a Smith aboard the TARDIS, and the Doctor agrees, although Rose does not look pleased.

Before Sarah goes, Rose asks her what to do and wonders if she should stay with the Doctor. Sarah reassures her that some things are worth getting your heart broken for and adds that if someday, Rose needs to, she should find her. Outside, Sarah thanks the Doctor for her time with him. The Doctor asks if there has been anyone special. In jest, Sarah tells him that there was one man whom she travelled with for a while, but he was a tough act to follow. She asks the Doctor to say goodbye properly this time — and he complies, saying, "Goodbye...my Sarah Jane!" He smiles at her and they hug tightly, with Sarah looking to be on the verge of tears. Sarah then watches the TARDIS disappear, but as it does so, a brand new K9 is revealed. K9 explains that the Doctor rebuilt and improved him. Happily, Sarah orders K9 home: They have work to do...

American newscaster Sally Calypso gives the daily travel news to all the cars. Ma and Pa are seated in one of the camper-vans. They call the police for help as they are apparently attacked by something from outside. They are placed on hold by the police computer system and scream as their car is torn apart.

The Tenth Doctor offers Martha one trip into the future, to visit another planet. She asks if he can take her to his home planet, and speculates as to its beauty. He describes Gallifrey's Citadel, mountains, orange sky and other features as if they still existed, but claims he does not want to go home. Instead, he takes her to the year five billion and fifty-three, into a dark alleyway where it is raining, and introduces her to New New York, a city of New Earth. The Doctor mentions that he last visited the planet with Rose and Martha becomes slightly upset, muttering, "Ever heard the word 'rebound'?"

Meanwhile, the Face of Boe sits in a room with Novice Hame. He tells her to find the Doctor before it is too late. She arms herself with a laser rifle and leaves.

As the Doctor and Martha walk through the run-down streets of the Undercity, three pharmacists open their market stands and try to sell them patches that dispense "moods". The Doctor is intrigued when a young woman buys a Forget patch after losing her parents to "the Motorway", leaving Martha disgusted by the similarities to drug dealing.

Suddenly, a young couple armed with guns grab Martha and haul her away, subduing her with a patch inducing Sleep. The Doctor chases them but they escape in their hovercar. The Doctor returns to ask the pharmacists for directions to the Motorway; they comply, but warn him that he may never see Martha again. He tells them to find alternative employment as he promises to shut down their enterprises by that very evening.

Martha wakes up inside the car and grabs one of the couple's guns, only to learn it is a fake. Her kidnappers introduce themselves as Milo and Cheen. Cheen says she is pregnant and Milo explains that they only took Martha so they could get on the Fast Lane, which requires three adult passengers. They say they can drop her off when they reach their destination — in six years.

The Doctor arrives at the Motorway, where he discovers thousands of hover vans in an underground traffic jam. He starts to cough and choke from the fumes. A cat person invites him into his car, introducing himself as Thomas Kincade Brannigan and his human wife as Valerie. Their kittens, two months old, were born in the car and have never seen sunlight or trod on ground. The Brannigans themselves have been driving for twelve years, and have travelled only five miles.

As Milo, Cheen and Martha head for the Fast Lane, the Doctor calls the police but is put on hold. Brannigan speaks to some old friends, the Cassini "sisters", who identify the one car from Pharmacytown that has gone to the Fast Lane. The Doctor learns that the Cassinis were amongst the first to join the Motorway and some people haven't left their cars in upwards of twenty years.

Milo, Cheen and Martha are dropping down to the Fast Lane when they hear strange roaring noises. Cheen tells Martha of stories about lost cars disappearing at the bottom of the Motorway but Milo insists they only hear the ventilation shafts, despite the filthy air outside.

The Doctor asks if Brannigan and Valerie can drive him down to the Fast Lane (seeing as there are three adult passengers in the car) but they refuse, fearing for the safety of their kittens. The Doctor asks whether they or the Cassinis have ever seen any authorities. The Cassinis reluctantly admit they have not seen any police or ambulances in 23 years of driving. The Doctor believes that the people have been trapped in the Undercity and abandoned, before Sally Calypso announces the Motorway's "daily contemplation", as the drivers sing the "Old Rugged Cross" hymn in unison, signifying their sense of hope and togetherness.

Deciding to make his own way toward Martha, he opens the shaft on the floor of the car and drops down to the car below. He then moves through several cars, opening the roofs with his sonic screwdriver and continuing through the floor to the car below, posing as a Motorway Footpatrolman to the bemused occupants. In this fashion, he meets several characters including hippies and a nudist couple.

Milo and Cheen's car finally enters the Fast Lane, but the exits are all closed. A nearby cat driver tells them to escape to the slow lanes above as the roaring outside grows louder, but Milo does not believe in the danger until he hears the other driver's screams. Meanwhile, Brannigan's car is sliced into by what they assume to be pirates, only for Novice Hame to poke her head inside instead. Holding them at gunpoint, she demands to know where the Doctor is.

The Doctor reaches the last level, just above the Fast Lane, in the car of a Bertie Wooster-like business man. The Doctor clears the fog so that he can see what's below and discovers that the bottom of the Motorway is filled with Macra. The Doctor explains to the business man that the Macra feed upon toxic gas. Once in history they built an empire using human slaves to mine gas to feed them, but have since devolved into hungry non-sentient beasts.

As Milo and Cheen's car races along the Fast Lane, the Macras' huge claws attempt to crush it. Reasoning that the light and motion of the vehicle attract the Macra, Martha has Milo turn off the power. It works and the car is plunged into silence, but they now only have eight minutes of air. Novice Hame makes it to the bottom of the motorway to the car that the Doctor is in. She tells him how she has repented her sins under "his" guidance and teleports the Doctor against his will to the Overcity.

The Doctor demands to see the Senate over the trapped people in the Motorway, but Hame tells him that they are inside the Senate. Willing the goddess Santori to bless them, she turns on the lights to reveal the Senate chamber, tiered seats filled with skeletons. The Senate, the city and everyone else died twenty-four years ago. When the Doctor asks how, Hame removes a mood patch from one of the dead: a new mood drug, Bliss, was created and everyone became addicted to it, unable to stop taking it. A virus mutated inside it and became airborne, killing the entire world in seven minutes flat and dying itself when there was no-one left to feed on. However, there was just enough time to seal the walkways and the flyovers to the lower levels, denying the virus access to them. The citizens in the Undercity have not been betrayed and abandoned - they have been saved.

The Doctor questions how Hame could have survived, and she tells him that "he" protected her and has waited for all this time. Hearing a familiar telepathic voice, the Doctor runs to meet the Face of Boe. Hame explains that she was made his nurse as penance for her sins and that the Face shrouded her from the virus with his smoke, but the city's power grid died with no-one maintaining it. The Undercity would have fallen into the sea, but the Face of Boe wired himself into the mainframe, giving his vital life force simply to keep the basic functions going. The Doctor questions why they did not contact any of the surrounding worlds for help, but Hame reveals that the last act of the Senate was to declare New Earth unsafe and activate an automatic quarantine which lasts for one hundred years. The Face of Boe implores the Doctor to save the trapped people.

On the Motorway, Milo's car is running out of air and, despite Milo and Cheen's doubts, Martha expresses her faith in the Doctor and says he will think of something. Inspired, Milo starts the car's power up again, giving them air but exposing them to the Macra's grasp. As the car races along, they are briefly caught by one of the claws but are knocked free by another Macra. In the Overcity, The Doctor asks Hame to help him restore power, but there is not enough. The Face of Boe, in one last act of self-sacrifice, gives even more of his "life force" to power the equipment. The Doctor pulls a lever, opening the seal at the top of the Motorway.

In Brannigan's car, they hear a loud booming noise and Valerie hides the kittens whilst Brannigan looks out of the hole Novice Hame left in the roof. High above, the roof of the Motorway begins to split open in sections, allowing the sunlight to flood in and warm the Undercity for the first time in two decades. Taking the place of Sally Calypso, who was just a hologram anyway, the Doctor broadcasts to the ecstatic motorists, instructing them to drive upwards and out. Led by a whooping Brannigan, the thousands of trapped cars accelerate upwards and into the light. This clears the way for Milo's car to escape from the Macra. Meanwhile, Hame cries out as the Face of Boe's glass begins to shatter.

Martha arrives at the Senate building where she sees the skeletons and meets the dying Face of Boe, who is sprawled out on the floor. The Doctor urges him to live since, as Boe says, the two of them are each the last of their kind; but the Face responds, "Everything has its time. You know that, old friend, better than most." As promised, he whispers his great secret to the Doctor — "Know this, Time Lord; You are not alone" — before passing away. An expression of shock and disbelief crosses the Doctor's face as Hame weeps.

Martha and the Doctor arrive back at the alleyways of the Undercity, where the pharmacists have all closed and left. Martha asks what the Face of Boe meant and whether she is the reason why the Doctor is not alone. The Doctor shakes his head; he does not want to talk about Boe's words, but Martha refuses to move until the Doctor tells her the truth. The Doctor admits he is the last of his kind, explains about the Last Great Time War and the Daleks and then goes on to describe Gallifrey. Far above the slums, the Overcity thrives with the newly freed motorists, who begin to sing again. The sun sets orange over New New York, which lives once more.

As the night shift of the International Gallery museum commences, armed guards are at work protecting a highly-coveted golden goblet. One guard types out a security code to unlock a security system level. He turns to the side, raising a four-sided barricade of laser alarm sensors around the cup. It might seem foolproof, but the one thing the guards haven't counted on is a sleuth attempt to pilfer the cup from above...

While their backs are turned, a round panel is quietly pried loose from the domed ceiling of the museum. On the rooftop is a woman in black clothes and a ski mask. She peers down and assesses the security detail. The woman lowers herself from the roof, flawlessly infiltrates the museum without setting off the alarms, and replaces the cup with a mechanical Maneki Neko; when the guards finally turn around at the sound of her releasing her winch on the roof, she waves at them in a mocking fashion. As the alarms go off, she dashes out of the museum and unmasks; she is Lady Christina de Souza, an expert thief. Christina runs out to the street to see someone being arrested, and she says, "Sorry, lover" to her presumed accomplice, getting away with the prize while he takes the fall.

She then takes a back route onto the main road, where she frantically looks for a way out as police move in searching for her, although unaware of her presence. She runs onto a 200 bus to Victoria, where she exchanges her diamond earrings for a bus ride. Soon afterwards, the Tenth Doctor comes onto the bus and uses a psychic paper on the Oyster card scanner. He then sits down opposite Lady Christina.

After enjoying a chocolate Easter egg and engaging in some small talk with Christina, he receives an alert from the rhondium sensor in his pocket that the particles he's been looking for have been detected. As he fiddles with the sensor, he gets inquisitive looks from a young man sitting parallel to him.

The police are still after Christina, since they know she has stolen the cup. Christina is visibly frightened by the sound of the wailing sirens, giving the Doctor reason to wonder if she's hiding something. It looks like the vehicle is about to be pulled over, but whilst chasing the bus through a tunnel, the police witness it disappear in front of their eyes; startled, they set up a perimeter around the area. Meanwhile, the bus passes through a ripple in space and a bright, blinding light flashes out. The passengers scream as the bus is put through the wringer; the metal frame buckles, the windows burst into shards of flying glass, and everyone ducks down in their rows. After the bus takes a hard landing back onto solid ground, the Doctor's jaw is agape at the sight of a completely different environment. Rather than tarmac, street lamps, and dark, rainy nighttime skies, it is now daytime, with sand as far the eye can see in every direction. They have been spat out into a world covered in desert with three suns. The bus has been wrecked in the process of landing, with smoke hissing from its engine and parts of its double-decker roof sheared apart. The bus driver proclaims it unmovable.

The Doctor tells the passengers that the bus has passed through a wormhole into a different world, proving this to them by throwing a handful of sand into the space behind the bus. The sand causes a rippling effect in the air. The same man who eyeballed the rhondium detector points a finger at the Doctor and demands to know if he used it to make the bus end up in the desert. Annoyed for receiving immediate blame from a human on a bus and having dealt with the animosity of the Midnight incident, the Doctor doesn't keep to himself again. Instead, he comes clean and says he was tracking a hole in reality that suddenly grew big and the bus drove into it. He elaborates that the other end of the wormhole was in the tunnel on Earth. Among the passengers is Carmen, who has been hearing mysterious voices since Christina got on. The bus driver announces his desire to return to Earth, and promptly runs through the wormhole, accompanied by the Doctor's, "No, don't!". The other passengers of the bus witness the driver's skin and tissues incinerating, before he disappears into the wormhole with the same rippling effect as the sand.

Meanwhile, on Earth, where the police are watching the wormhole, the driver's blackened skeleton steps out, halts, and then tumbles to the ground. Unnerved, the police wisely decide that this is out of their depth and declare an emergency Code One, calling UNIT to the scene.

After watching the bus driver's death, the Doctor sums up that the metal of the bus protected them from the same fate as the driver when they passed through the wormhole (like a Faraday cage, as Christina states).

Everyone returns to the bus so the group can make sense of the situation. Christina takes charge, introduces herself and the Doctor, then everyone introduces themselves: Nathan, a young adult with slicked up hair, Barclay, about the same age and the one who confronted the Doctor, Angela Whittaker, an older blond woman, Louis, who goes by the nickname "Lou," and his wife, Carmen. Christina notices the Doctor is the brainpower of the bunch and has him fill the rest of the group in on what has happened.

The Doctor explains to the passengers on the bus that they went through the wormhole by accident, but Carmen tells him with some surprising knowledge that it was a doorway put there for a reason. Her husband Lou notes she has had a gift of foresight since she was a girl which has helped them make small wins on the lottery. The Doctor deems Carmen a low-level psychic and theorises the alien sun has amplified her abilities. He asks her if she can see anything. She foretells, "Something is coming, riding on the wind and shining." When asked what she means, she answers, "Death. Death is coming."

Her words send Angela into complete hysterics, Nathan panics no one will find them, Barclay begins to get rebellious, and both Christina and Lou are drowned out by the uproar. The Doctor quells the clamouring bus and regains control, but Angela is still sobbing heavily. He instinctively grips her by the arms to get her attention and asks where she was heading to take her mind off the peril. She replies she was going home to her family, Mike and Suzanne; thinking about them calms her and abolishes her panicky state. The Doctor moves on to Barclay, who has a love interest named Tina; Nathan's dealing with unemployment and Carmen and Lou talk about whose turn it is to cook. The Doctor asks Christina where she was going; she is the only person on the bus with something to hide. She tells him she was going far away, not giving away her thievery. Having defused the tension in the bus, the Doctor reminds the group to focus on those pleasant thoughts so the fear doesn't set in again, then informs them the planet outside is "nothing compared to all those things waiting for you" on Earth. He promises to get them all home.

Back on Earth, the highway tunnel has been shut down as Detective McMillan and the police officers wait to intercept Lady Christina. They find themselves joined by a fleet of UNIT soldiers and weapon-toting armoured vehicles, who secure the area with crisp efficiency. The woman in charge, Captain Erisa Magambo, establishes a strategic hold on the highway, ordering all media presence to be removed and arrested if they cause any trouble and brushing aside DI McMillan as he tries to protest. Captain Magambo puts a firing squad on guard at the wormhole, with orders to shoot to kill if any hostile activity is demonstrated.

Nathan and Barclay dismantle part of the bus's upholstered seats and bring them to the Doctor, who wants to wedge them beneath the wheels of the bus like duckboards. This will give the wheels enough traction to throw the bus in reverse and back through the wormhole. Using experience from trips to the Kalahari, Christina has them air out the tyres slightly to improve it further by giving the bus some extra grip, as its weight is more distributed. When Barclay is distressed over how deep the wheels will run, Christina produces a fold-up spade from her rucksack to begin digging them out, then a small axe for Nathan to unearth the seats more quickly. This piques the Doctor's curiosity, but he is distracted when Angela asks for a key to get the bus running. The Doctor informs her the bus doesn't use keys, just a master switch and stop and go buttons. She follows his instructions and attempts to start the bus. The engine cranks and coughs, but fails to get going. Christina and the Doctor pop open the 200's hood to find it gummed up with sand. Christina asks if anyone has experience with mechanics, and Barclay states he does. He is assigned the task of stripping the air filter. The Doctor wanders off, causing Christina to chase after him. Unbeknownst to them, they are being watched from a monitor by a creature with insectoid hands.

The Doctor questions Christina about her toting a backpack that she refuses to let out of her sight, which has an axe and spade inside by happenstance. That along with her fear of sirens has him wondering what she's running from. She initially refuses to answer his questions, instead, calling herself and the Doctor "two equal mysteries." After a bit more conversation, however, Lady Christina de Souza announces her full title to him, and they shake hands. In response to her claim of nobility, the Doctor says he is a Lord of a "big estate". Growing savvy, Christina notices the Doctor seems unusually acclimated to the out of the ordinary. He pulls her attention off the subject and exclaims, "Allons-y!" Christina impresses him with some articulate knowledge of the French language herself; "Oui mais pas si nous allons vers un cauchemar." As they continue walking in the desert, they see what appears to be storm clouds approaching. Christina fears it could be a deadly sandstorm, but the Doctor thinks it is something worse. "It's a storm — who says it's sand?" he notes mysteriously.

The Doctor and Christina rush back to the bus as Carmen begins to have distressing visions. He borrows Barclay's cell phone, pulling out his sonic screwdriver and turning it into a superphone. The Doctor then attempts to call someone on Earth. Unsure of the number, he dials Pizza Geronimo by accident. Redialling the correct number, he's connected to UNIT's automated phone system. Angela gives him a tip to hold "0"; it overrides the machine, which allows one to speak with a real person. Through the helpline, the Doctor gets in touch with UNIT at the tunnel. Speaking to Captain Magambo, the Doctor informs her of the crisis, tells her he is stranded without his TARDIS. Magambo connects him with UNIT's scientific advisor, Malcolm Taylor, who is beyond elated to know he's speaking to the one person he's always wanted to meet. Malcolm describes an ingenious process of measuring the wormhole by creating a reflection of its energy readings, which prompts the Doctor to request a capacity scan so he can get a full idea of what the wormhole is like. He deems Malcolm his "new best friend" and hangs up for the time being.

The group sets back to digging the bus wheels out from the sand in order to enable them to move it back through the wormhole. The Doctor and Christina set off to explore the area. They find that the storm from earlier has grown closer. The Doctor takes a snapshot of the storm on Barclay's phone to send to Malcolm for further analysis. From what he and Christina can tell, it looks like a massive sandstorm sweeping across the planet towards them, glinting in the sun as if made from metal. On the bus, Carmen shudders as her visions tell her these things are a storm that devours. At the same time on the dunes, the Doctor and Christina are found and captured by a fly-like alien who holds them at gunpoint with a blaster.

The Doctor and Christina are escorted to the alien's crashed ship, where another alien is waiting. One points a blaster at them and blames the Doctor for their crashed ship. The Doctor soon explains to the two aliens, who identify themselves as Tritovores, that they mean them no harm. He assures them that "the 200", which is how the aliens refer to the bus due to its route number, is trapped on the planet just as they are. The Tritovores, in turn, become more friendly; the telepathic translation devices they use enable them to know the Doctor is not lying. The Doctor then asks them to send a probe out to investigate the sandstorm seen earlier. When told that the ship is without power, he promptly fixes the ship's power to launch it with a well-placed kick. He and Christina learn they are in the Scorpion Nebula on the planet San Helios, which is on the other side of the universe from Earth; the Doctor comments on how Christina got her wish of being "so far away". The aliens explain that they had been on their way to trade with the people of San Helios when their ship had crashed. They show a hologram depicting San Helios as a thriving environment with advanced cities. Christina notices the Doctor treats the visual of the amazing city like he's used to such things, then asks about his title of lordship. He reveals he comes from a race of Time Lords. Christina suggests they should seek out the city in San Helios for help; the Doctor isn't so sure it will be that simple. The Tritovores give the Doctor information that the entire planet became a desert last year, with all 100 billion inhabitants suddenly vanishing along with the city, wildlife, oceans, and mountains. Everything has been reduced to sand, including the inhabitants. The idea of having "dead people" in her hair repulses Christina, whose hair has sand caught in it. She quickly attempts to stroke it out.

The Doctor receives a phone call from Malcolm and Magambo. The wormhole has grown to four miles in length and is heading outward. Neither Malcolm nor the Doctor can understand what could make it grow on its own. Magambo has ordered all aircraft above London grounded to keep others from falling in. She wants him to answer if the wormhole could be dangerous to the planet, but Barclay's phone picks up a call waiting. The Doctor cuts off his conversation, knowing the answer would cause more trouble.

Switching over to the second caller, the Doctor picks up Nathan on the other end, using another mobile phone. Their attempts to get the bus dislodged from the sand have exhausted all the petrol, putting them back at square one, and Nathan wonders if the Doctor can hold true to his promise in spite of the marooned bus. The Doctor does not answer. He leaves the call hanging at the sound of beeping from the Tritovore ship's controls. The probe has reached the storm- turns out, its not a storm.

The camera on the probe is transmitting unsettling footage. It shows that the "storm" is a swarm of billions of carnivorous stingray-like aliens with metal exoskeletons before the transmission is cut off by the probe being eaten by one of the alien stingrays. The Doctor then analyses the alien physique by the data they get and theorises that they must be creating the wormhole effect. Their velocity as a pack is reaching a speed that creates static build-up with enough energy to pierce open the fabric of space. When asked why they don't burn up upon passing through, the Doctor replies that any metal they eat gets extruded into their bones. It has made them immune to the effects of the wormhole because their exoskeletons have transformed into metal. They've been using the portals to jump through space and prey on anything they find edible. Another, scarier realisation dawns on him — all of San Helios has been devoured by these predators. What remains of it, including the dead, makes up the sand of the deserts. Earth is their next target.

The Tritovores and the Doctor plan to get away from the planet before the swarm hits their area, and need to get the crystal power source that makes the Tritovorian ship fly. The Doctor and the two aliens try to bring up the source manually, but the entire system is unresponsive, lacking power. Christina, in the meantime, prepares her cat burgling equipment, and lines down the shaft with her winch. The Doctor stops her just in time before she is electrocuted by a security grid. After disabling it, she makes her way slowly down the shaft. While curiously flipping over the top of her rucksack, the Doctor tells Christina about himself. He talks about how he can travel through time and space in his blue box and some of the places he's been, including the Court of King Athelstan in 924 AD... but he didn't remember her being there. At this, he pulls the Cup of Athelstan out of her bag.

He realises that she's a thief, and she says she prefers to say she "liberated" it. The Doctor doesn't approve of her lifestyle of thievery, but levels with her, admitting he stole the TARDIS from his own people. While Christina lowers down the gravity well, a screech rings out from below. The Doctor remembers they never found out why the Tritovores crashed until he's informed they have an open-vent system. Much like birds being sucked into an aeroplane, he suspects a stingray got pulled into the ship. As he feared, when Christina reaches the bottom of the shaft to get the crystal and its holding brackets, she sees a sleeping stingray behind some metal poles; it quickly stirs from its resting place. The Doctor tells her that it had been dormant from the cold, but the temperature is being raised by her body heat and is waking it up. She replies she has that effect on men, but the Doctor isn't laughing; he urges her to hurry and, once she has the fixture in hand, brings her back up. The alien stingray which was down in the shaft next to Christina gives chase, but it gets fried in the security grid after she turns it back on whilst ascending. As they run away with the Tritovores out of the ship, the Doctor offers them a means of escape on the 200. Before they accept, a deafening roar booms through the ship. The Doctor wonders if the Tritovores collided with more than one stingray, and speculates that it could be munching through the metal sleeve-covered infrastructure of the ship. One of the Tritovores gets ready to escape the ship, but the other goes back to shut down the controls. Another stingray bursts in from above and knocks him over then gulps him down its jaws. The other, in rage, prepares to fire its weapon at the Stingray, but before he can, he is eaten as well.

The Doctor and Christina run to the bus. Once there, the Doctor pitches the crystal into the sand because he doesn't need it since it only worked to power the alien ship's components, not an Earth-built bus. Christina protests she risked her life for it, but the Doctor corrects her: she risked her life for the clamps it was mounted on. The Doctor attaches 4 Tritovorian anti-gravity clamps onto the wheels and uses the 5th to interface the bus steering wheel with the Tritovorian technology. The Doctor calls Malcolm, telling him that they need to prepare to close the wormhole. Malcolm figures out a way to do it and starts on the process immediately.

Integrating the 5th anti-gravity clamp to the bus's steering proves difficult, as the two technologies are incompatible alone; he needs something soft, malleable, non-corrosive and able to conduct electricity, suggesting gold, to act as an interface. Reluctantly, Christina hands the Doctor the Cup of Athelstan along with a hammer upon request. She asks him to "be careful with it" as it is a millennia-old artefact worth 18 million pounds. He promises to do so, then smashes it to bits so it fits between the bus wheel and the anti-gravity clamp controller. In response, Christina says, "I hate you".

Once Malcolm is ready to close the wormhole, Captain Magambo orders him to close it to protect the Earth, despite the fact the Doctor and the passengers of Bus 200 are still trapped on the other side. Morally outraged at the idea of abandoning the Doctor who has saved humanity countless times before, Malcolm refuses to follow her order so they can allow the Doctor to get back to Earth. Drawing her gun on him, Magambo once again orders him to close the wormhole in the hopes of intimidating him. In spite of his fear, Malcolm passionately refuses to close the wormhole, surprising even Magambo.

Their argument buys the Doctor precious time. He is able to make the bus lift out of the sand and into the air, flying back through the wormhole to Earth. However, the swarm is hard upon its heels. The tense stand-off between Captain Magambo and Malcolm is defused when a soldier tells her the bus is safely through, but they are not out of danger. Three of the stingrays have followed the bus through the wormhole; furthermore, if they don't close the wormhole in time, the entire swarm will come through and devastate Earth.

As the Doctor flies the bus across London, he attempts to dodge the stingrays whilst helping Malcolm overcome some technical difficulties via mobile phone. With just seconds to spare, Malcolm is able to close the wormhole just ahead of the main swarm. UNIT are unable to penetrate the metal exoskeletons with ordinary bullets, but the battle turns in their favour when missile launchers are brought into play, killing two stingrays in quick succession. The third goes after the 200, but the Doctor sternly says "Oh no, you don't!" and swings the bus violently around. The creature swoops in to take a bite out of the bus, but gets smacked right in the kisser by the vehicle's rear end and is stunned long enough for UNIT to get a fix on it and blow it out of the sky. After he manages this, Christina passionately kisses the Doctor, taking back her earlier comment of "hating him". Somewhat stunned but pleased, the Doctor takes on the manner of an actual bus driver and welcomes home "the mighty 200".

The bus lands back on the spot where it vanished, being given a standing ovation by the assembled soldiers, and the passengers are released and taken to be examined by UNIT. The Doctor meets Malcolm, who embraces him in a hug and exclaims, "I love you!" four times, to the Doctor's bemusement. Magambo gives the Doctor a salute even though he doesn't want one, trusting him that the creatures will not return. The Doctor replies they will generate more doorways; it is part of their natural life cycle and something they can't help, but he'll try to nudge them onto uninhabited worlds. He also puts in a good word for Nathan, who needs a new job, and Barclay, who is good with engines, saying they're good to have in a crisis if Magambo would bring them on to UNIT as privates. Magambo then brings forth a gift for the Doctor: the TARDIS, found in the gardens of Buckingham Palace., though the Doctor insists that "she doesn't mind." Magambo then turns her attention to the task of clearing up three dead alien stingrays and inquires if the Doctor is willing to help with the paperwork, to which he declines. They part on friendly terms.

Christina, meanwhile, is being searched by UNIT soldiers, but she breaks off and runs to the Doctor. D.I McMillan immediately moves in to capture her at last, but Christina expects the Doctor will help her escape in the TARDIS. Additionally, she wants to come with him for adventure and excitement, telling him that is why she steals. Despite the fact that he had earlier proclaimed them to be "the perfect team", he says no. When she asks him why, he replies sadly, "People have travelled with me, and I've lost them. Lost them all. Never again." He looks on silently as D.I McMillan proudly arrives to confront Christina with the charge of suspicion of theft. The police promptly arrest her and take her away, leaving the unperturbed Doctor by himself.

The Doctor, about to enter the TARDIS, is told by Carmen to take care of himself; the Doctor, full of joy, tells her the same. However, she replies, "No, but you be careful because your song is ending, sir!" The Doctor is perturbed, this being similar to what Ood Sigma said to him, and asks what she means by this, Carmen replies, "It is returning. It is returning through the dark, and then Doctor...oh but then... he will knock four times." The implication of this prophecy fills the Doctor with dread.

After Carmen leaves, the Doctor decides to take pity on Christina, who is now handcuffed and being put in a police car. The Doctor points his sonic screwdriver at her handcuffs and frees her hands. Christina gets in the police car on one side and gets out on the other. She heads for the bus, chased by the police, and closes the doors after she gets on it. McMillan furiously orders her to open them, but the Doctor advises him to step back. The inspector charges him with aiding and abetting; the Doctor feigns remorse and heads over to the TARDIS, saying, "I'll just step inside this police box and arrest myself." The bus takes off, flying over the inspector's head and hovering over the TARDIS; the door opens as the others watch. Smiling down at the Doctor, Christina happily tells him, "We could have been so good together", revealing no hard feelings over her rejection. The Doctor merely smiles back and replies, "Christina, we were." Christina flies off into the night, the other passengers cheering her off, and the Doctor merely watching; he then heads into the TARDIS, off on another adventure.

In 1996, Amelia Pond sits in her bedroom, praying to Santa Claus for help mending the crack in her bedroom wall. Believing she has heard something in her garden, she runs to her window. The garden is empty. Later, she gives a drawing she has done of the night sky — complete with stars and the moon — to her psychiatrist, Christine. Christine explains gently there are no stars. The night sky is empty save for the Moon. That night, Amelia overhears Christine and her aunt talking about her. As she eavesdrops at the top of the stairs, she sees a pamphlet advertising the National Museum slipped through the letterbox by a familiar figure wearing a fez. He flees when she notices him. There is a circle drawn around a notice of the Pandorica exhibit and a note reading, "Come along, Pond."

Amelia and her aunt go to the museum. Amelia runs off and makes her way to the Pandorica exhibit, passing a variety of strange machines on display; other exhibits are quite wrong as well, such as penguins in the Arctic. Someone also steals her soda before she can notice who did it. At the exhibit, Amelia sees another note stuck to the face of the box. It reads, "Stick around, Pond."This prompts Amelia to hide out in the museum to find out who is leaving notes for her.

After the museum's close — and Aunt Sharon's failure to find her — Amelia returns to the Pandorica and curiously sets a hand on it. Mechanisms on the face of the box glow green, scaring Amelia enough to make her back a few feet away. The Pandorica opens, but instead of the Doctor still being imprisoned inside, the occupant is instead Amelia's older self: Amy Pond. Noticing her younger self, Amy tells the confused Amelia, "Okay, kid, this is where it gets complicated..."

In 102 A.D. the Auton duplicate of Rory Williams cradles a dead Amy Pond, comforting himself by telling her how the universe ended; it would mean they never get born, twice in his case. Amy would laugh at that; he begs her to laugh. Suddenly, a fez-wearing Eleventh Doctor appears in front of them, holding a mop. He tries calming Rory by saying it is not the end of the world but then corrects himself by saying it's the end of the universe. The Doctor vanishes and reappears without the mop. A confused Rory is instructed to free the Doctor from the Pandorica; the Doctor is already out. The Doctor explains that he is already out, but back then, which is the present for Rory, he is yet to escape. Giving Rory his sonic screwdriver, the Doctor wishes him luck and informs him to put the sonic in Amy's top pocket when he's done with it.

Rory follows the Doctor's instructions, opening the Pandorica with the sonic where the Doctor is revealed to still be trapped within. Exiting the prison, the Doctor deduces he will set up the chain of events that lead to his release. Rory questions the Doctor about the stone remains of the Alliance. The Doctor explains that they are the after-images of the races that now never existed due to the destruction of the universe. The Doctor wonders where Amy is; Rory gives a remorseful look.

Showing Amy to the Doctor, Rory asks if there is anything he can do for her. The Doctor says he could if he had the time, angering Rory. The Doctor explains that all lifeforms except for them and humanity have been deleted from existence; "Your girlfriend isn't more important than the universe." Enraged, Rory punches the Doctor, knocking him down. The Doctor quickly pulls himself back up, laughing, and relocates his jaw, welcoming Rory back; he had to be sure Rory wasn't acting, but genuinely loved Amy like the original.

Putting Amy in the Pandorica, the Doctor explains that she is not an ordinary girl due to having the universe pouring through her dreams every night because of the crack in her wall, so when the Nestene took a memory print off Amy, they got a bit more than what they bargained for — Rory's soul inhabits his Auton replica. Sealing the Pandorica once more with Amy inside, the Doctor explains to Rory that it prevents people from dying as it's a form of escape; it can stasis-lock Amy in a near-death state until it gets an external sample of her DNA to revive her, which will take around 2000 years. Recovering River Song's vortex manipulator from the ground, the Doctor sets it for the future. Offering Rory a lift, the Doctor is bewildered when he decides to remain behind to guard the Pandorica. Despite the warning that he may go mad from never sleeping, Rory insists; the Doctor relents but warns him he isn't indestructible and gives him fair warning of all the things he knows can cause an Auton to be destroyed or become faulty before vanishing into the future.

In the museum, Amy compares Amelia's height to herself, Amy guesses its 1996. Sure of the year, Amy looks around the exhibit, paying no mind to the younger version of herself. She finds a video on "the Lone Centurion" — a man in Roman armour who protected the Pandorica wherever it went for 1839 years and prevented anyone from opening it. He was last seen in 1941, dragging the box away from a burning building; it is believed the Centurion died in the inferno as no body was recovered. Amy realises he was Rory, having retained her recovered memories of him, but there is no time for her to dwell on this. The restorative light from the Pandorica has reactivated a stone Dalek in the exhibition and it's heading straight for the Ponds.

The Doctor appears, having used the vortex manipulator to travel 1894 years into the future. The Dalek shoots at him and Amy, prompting them to take cover with young Amelia; they're trapped. A museum guard appears and the Dalek deems him unarmed. However, the guard uncaps his hand, revealing a laser gun to disable the Dalek. Amy rejoices when she sees that the guard is the Auton Rory. They kiss while the Doctor realises the "light" from the Pandorica revived the Dalek partially. He also takes a fez from a display, putting it on Amelia, who refuses it; the Doctor dons the hat himself. The Dalek begins coming back to life once more due to the Pandorica still being open.

The Doctor leads the group away from the Dalek, blocking the door with a mop to buy time. When Rory recognises his appearance, the Doctor establishes the timeline by travelling back to 102 A.D. and ordering that version of Rory to let him out of the Pandorica. He leaves the notes for Amelia, all of which led her here. The Doctor even fulfils Amelia's request for a drink while running around the timeline, snatching it from the earlier version of herself at the museum. A bewildered Amy wonders how the Doctor keeps vanishing, making him explain what the device on his wrist is: "cheap, and nasty time travel; it's bad for you. I'm trying to give it up."

As they head for the roof, another version of the Doctor appears at the top of the stairs, near-dead. He falls down the stairs and whispers in the younger Doctor's ear before dying. The Doctor announces he has only twelve minutes to live. Amy is confused, but Rory points out that they can't just leave his body there. Feeling challenged for who's in charge, the Doctor asks Rory what they're going to do about Amelia. They look back to see nothing but Amelia's spilt drink. The Doctor explains history is still collapsing, and now there was never any Amelia Pond, confusing Amy; how can she be there when her younger self isn't? The Doctor answers that they are just the last light to go out. They head for the roof. After they've left, the Dalek begins to restore itself.

On the building's roof, Rory and Amy are confused by the sudden daylight; the Doctor retorts that he already told them that the eye of the storm is closing up, so time is speeding up. Rory questions the Doctor as to why the TARDIS exploded; "Good question for another day." The Doctor then makes them think; the sun was erased with every other star in the universe, so what's burning in the sky? The Doctor picks up a satellite dish and sonics it, revealing the sound of the TARDIS. The object keeping the Earth warm and lit is his TARDIS, exploding at every moment in history. Rory's Auton-enhanced hearing picks up a voice in the sky, which the Doctor amplifies with the dish. It's River Song's last words — "I'm sorry, my love" — repeated over and over. The TARDIS' emergency protocols have locked the console room in a time loop to save her life. The Doctor gives a smile to a shocked Amy and Rory.

River is seen repeating her attempts to open the TARDIS doors three times, each time failing and saying she is sorry to the Doctor as the TARDIS begins exploding. On the fourth attempt, the Doctor appears via her vortex manipulator, saying he's home. River looks at her watch and gives an annoyed look; she's been aware of the time loop the entire time and has been waiting for him to come and get her. They travel back to the roof, the Doctor introducing River to Rory. River explains she has questions, but number one is, "What in the name of sanity do you have on your head?". The Doctor explains he wears fezzes now since they're cool; Amy removes it from his head and tosses it in the air, where River blasts it to pieces. However, the regenerated Dalek elevates onto the roof and shoots at the group. They retreat to the museum below.

The Doctor runs through the museum, deducing that, along with the restoration field, the Pandorica contains a few billion atoms of the universe as it was, hence how the Dalek returned despite being erased from history. River tells him there's tiny fault of the Pandorica not being able to properly restore a single Dalek. The Doctor proposes getting the Pandorica to the exploding TARDIS, not only giving it unlimited power, but allowing it to scatter the atoms of the original universe throughout time and undo total event collapse. When asked how they can do this, the Doctor smug tells his friends to listen before turning to lead them back to the Pandorica; however, he is shot by the laser blast of the Dalek, which managed to locate them. The Dalek briefly powers down due to the amount of energy it expended, while the Doctor uses the manipulator to vanish into the past. Amy and Rory head back to his body, while River stays behind. As River is an associate of the Doctor's, the Dalek believes she will show mercy; she tells it her name and to look her up in its database, knowing one blast from her gun to its eyestalk will kill it. After seeing its information on River Song, the terrified Dalek begins begging for mercy.

Downstairs, Amy and Rory find The Doctor's corpse is not where they left it. River returns to remind them the Doctor lies, informing them the Dalek is dead as well. The Doctor had pretended to die to make them decoys to buy him time. They return to the exhibit and find the dying Doctor has strapped himself into the Pandorica. River realises he plans to use the vortex manipulator to fly the box into the heart of the TARDIS, exploding at every point in history. The explosion will release the atoms of the preserved universe, restoring it. River admits gravely that the plan will work only if the Doctor seals himself on the other side of the cracks. The entire universe will be restored, but not the Doctor. He will never have existed at all. However, all the good he has done for the universe until now will remain.

The Doctor and Amy say their goodbyes, and he admits that he took her with him because her life didn't make sense... living in a large house with only her aunt. He then asks Amy what happened to her parents, and she answers that she lost them but is alarmed when she cannot recall the specific details. He explains that they weren't killed when Amy was young, but consumed by the time field in her bedroom wall which has been eating away at her whole life. He assures her that as long as she remembers her parents, she can bring them back like she did Rory and with her family around her she won't need her imaginary friend. He pilots the Pandorica into the explosion, texting River "Geronimo!" on the way, and resets the universe, disappearing from existence...

...and sits up on the floor of the TARDIS console room. He rejoices he has survived being erased — until he sees Amy and himself from a week earlier, travelling to Space Florida; his timeline is unravelling, meaning, "Hello, universe, goodbye, Doctor." He calls over to Amy. She hears him, but cannot see him. His life rewinds further. He is in a street in Colchester, watching Amy leave a note for him underneath Craig's advertisement for a new lodger. She still cannot see him. The Doctor notices a crack in the road behind him, sealing itself.

He rewinds to the Byzantium; he approaches Amy — her eyes shut to avoid being killed by the Weeping Angel — and encourages her to remember what he told her when she was seven. He rewinds to 1996 and finds Amelia asleep in her back garden, awaiting his return. He carries her to bed and tells her the story of how he stole — or, rather, "borrowed" — the TARDIS, describing it as "ancient and new, and the bluest blue ever." He sees the crack in her wall and tells her it can't close properly until he's on the other side and steps through, preferring not to see the rest of his life rewind. The crack in her wall closes. She wakes to an empty room and quickly goes back to sleep.

In 2010, Amy wakes on her wedding day, surprised when her mother brings her breakfast. Her mother informs Amy she may toss the breakfast out the window as her father's a terrible cook. Amy races downstairs to see her father, studying a joke book for his speech at the reception. Amy finds her reaction to her parent as odd and she has the lingering feeling there is someone or something else missing. When she phones Rory to see if he feels the same way, he agrees with her because he loves and fears her. Excited, Amy gets ready for her wedding.

At the reception, she enjoys listening to her mother whisper insults about her father or giggles that her father is taking time to correct his speech. Amy then spots River Song outside, walking past the window. Rory presents her with a wedding gift someone has left — River's blue TARDIS diary, all its pages now blank. Amy begins to cry, wondering why she is sad. Rory tries to explain away the diary by reminding her of the old wedding saying: "Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue." She notices some of the guests at the other tables; a bow tie and braces catch her attention just as a tear hits River's diary.

Amy interrupts her father's speech to announce that her imaginary childhood friend, "the raggedy Doctor," is real and he is late for her wedding. Her mother and aunt sigh, remembering how many psychiatrists they sent her to. Amy continues yelling that she brought everyone else back from the time field, so she can for him as well, which is why he told her that story when she was little, about the ancient, brand new box. The TARDIS — old and new, borrowed and blue — materialises in the middle of the room. Amy walks up to the TARDIS and asks the Doctor if she's "...surprised him this time." The Doctor steps out in a top hat and full evening dress, admitting that he is completely astonished. Everyone at the wedding is shocked to discover that the Doctor wasn't a figment of Amy's imagination, while Rory now remembers everything that happened to him and doesn't understand how he could have forgotten, especially being nearly 2000 years old. The Doctor introduces himself to the crowd; no doubt Amy's parents are feeling like apologising for not believing Amy.

Amy imitates part of the wedding ceremony, telling him he can kiss her. However, the Doctor stops Amy, informing her the brand new Mr Pond will be taking care of the "kissing duties" from now on. Annoyed, and thinking the Doctor doesn't understand earth customs well, Rory tries explaining that marrying Amy gives her his last name, but relents when the Doctor says his version is correct. The Doctor says he'll move the TARDIS as they're gonna need the space for dancing, which is why he came. When everyone starts dancing, the Doctor does so badly, making Amy giggle ("You're terrible! That is embarrassing!" she shrieks) and amusing the children present; he even tries teaching them his moves. Later, watching Amy and Rory slow dance, the Doctor notes to himself that Rory is 'the boy who waited' and, after guarding her for two thousand years, deserves his happiness.

The Doctor leaves to return to the TARDIS, now parked in Amy's garden. River Song appears behind him. He returns her vortex manipulator and her diary, explaining that the writing has come back, but he didn't peek ahead. As River thanks him, the Doctor asks if she's married herself. She wonders if he is asking, and he says, "Yes," then stammers when he realises he accidentally proposed to her. River teases him with further affirmations. The Doctor wonders who she really is. She says he will find out very soon when everything changes. She leaves abruptly via her vortex manipulator.

Exasperated, the Doctor enters the TARDIS, placing his scarf on a nearby lever. Amy enters, trying again to entice him into kissing her; Rory follows after her, annoyed she's still trying to kiss the Doctor. Rory reminds the Doctor that he just saved reality, so he should take the night off and relax. He is reluctant — they still do not know what led the TARDIS to the date of the temporal explosion and destroyed it, much less why. He also has not figured out the meaning of the "silence." As he ponders, he takes a TARDIS phone call: an Egyptian goddess is on the loose on the Orient Express in space and the being on the other end is concerned. The Doctor turns to bid Amy and Rory goodbye, but Amy runs to the door, bids her former life "adieu" and closes the TARDIS doors. The Doctor smiles and fires up the engines, sending the TARDIS spinning through the time vortex...

On Christmas Day, 5343, on the human colony of Mendorax Dellora, a man named Nardole is searching through a town for something pictured on a piece of paper. He comes across the TARDIS, believing he's found what he was sent for; he knocks on the door, which has a sign saying "Carolers will be criticised." The Doctor opens the door, asking if there is something on his head; Nardole confirms that there are antlers on the Doctor's head. Closing the door, the Doctor yells at the TARDIS for trying to cheer him up with holographic antlers.

An electronic hum comes from inside, and the Doctor thanks the TARDIS for listening to him. The door opens again, with the Doctor now lacking the antlers; he asks what Nardole wants. Nardole asks if he's a surgeon. The Doctor tells him that's close enough, inquiring if he needs one. Nardole confirms this and begins walking away. He turns back to see the Doctor hasn't moved. The Doctor asks if there will be carolling where the emergency is, to which Nardole denies. Happy there will be no singing, the Doctor exits the TARDIS and locks the doors.

The Doctor follows Nardole through town. Nardole explains they weren't sure where his "capsule" would land. The Doctor says it's a common thing for him, before stating he's had a bad day of "people turning into lizards" and a piano falling on him. Moments after they pass someone, an elderly man with a bag approaches and asks the person if they were looking for a surgeon.

A spaceship plunges towards an unknown planet. Its captain orders the pilot to try steadying the ship. A distress call has been sent from the ship's honeymoon suite, angering the captain as she does not know who sent it. Amy and Rory, honeymooners aboard the craft, rush to the bridge of the spaceship to see if they can help; Amy is in her police woman kissogram outfit and Rory in a centurion uniform. Embarrassed, they explain they were having "fun".

Amy was the one who placed the distress call. Rory holds an odd device with a light attached and is wondering if he has to change the bulb or if the Doctor has received the signal; Amy quiets him, praying that the Doctor isn't late this time. All of a sudden, the ship's computers register a small object approaching the ship; the TARDIS soars into view, beaming the message, "Come along, Pond." When asked what the message means, Amy simply answers that it's Christmas.

Kazran Sardick, a wealthy, heartless man, owns much of the planet below — and the cloud belt above, where the ship is trapped. His money comes from a loansharking business he inherited from his father. To secure loans, he cryogenically preserves family members of borrowers for collateral. On Christmas Eve, he meets with one such family in his library. They beg for the release of a family member to spend Christmas Eve with them. Kazran rejects this proposal. He takes a phone call from the president of the planet, asking his permission to land the star-liner safely; he refuses. As he returns to berating the family, a boy notices the sound of the TARDIS landing above them.

Suddenly, the Doctor slides down the chimney into the room, calling it a whim. Babbling, he notices a "flashy-lighty thing" machine and tells the group that it's what brought him there; he tries to use the controls to open the cloud belt, but cannot use them. Kazran says the machine is isomorphic. The Doctor wonders who Kazran is, confusing the rich miser as everyone on the planet should know him; the Doctor changes the subject, wondering who the girl in the ice box is. Kazran says she is no one important, amazing the Doctor as he has never met anyone who wasn't important. He asks Kazran to help him save the ship stuck in the cloud belt, but Kazran refuses.

Kazran orders the Doctor and the family removed from his home. The servants grab the Doctor to pull him away. The family's young son throws a chunk of coal at Kazran's head. Kazran moves to strike him, but doesn't; he orders the family and the Doctor to be thrown out. The Doctor returns to ask why he didn't hit the boy. Though Kazran is less than cooperative, the Doctor quickly pieces together Kazran's personality from the arrangement of his furniture. There is a picture of his father, deceased for twenty years, but Kazran keeps his chair pointed away. Kazran fears being like his father. The Doctor says he is not because he didn't hit the boy.

Outside, the Doctor speaks to Amy over her mobile phone, but is distracted by the sight of some sky fish swimming around a lamp. The unnaturally high water level in the cloud belt, combined with the slight electrical charge, allows the fish to swim amongst the fog. A carol begins playing in the speakers in the street, preventing Amy from hearing the Doctor properly; she informs him that the ship only has an hour left. The Doctor begins panicking about what to do, babbling about what he knows about the situation; he has to turn a very mean man into a nice man on Christmas Eve. Amy asks him what the singing is in the background, but cannot hear him; the Doctor repeatedly tells her that the noise is a Christmas carol, and then suddenly gets an idea. The Doctor suddenly smiles and looks up at Kazran's mansion, and wishes Kazran a merry Christmas.

Kazran is asleep in his library, dreaming of Christmas Eve when he was only twelve years old and tried to film his encounter with a sky fish. Kazran wakes to find this video being projected onto a wall in his library; in the video, Kazran's father storms into the room and strikes his son, furious that he has disobeyed him by researching the fish. The Doctor appears behind the adult Kazran (whose entire staff has left after winning the lottery, despite there not actually being one) and wonders if he ever saw the fish; Kazran reveals that this was the day where he first began to realise that there was no one who would ever help him and that he was on his own in the world. When asked who he is, the Doctor retorts that for this night, he is the Ghost of Christmas Past.

The Doctor reveals that he can change the past and takes off as Kazran derisively declares this to be impossible. The sound of the TARDIS is heard; in the video, young Kazran looks around just as the Doctor steps into his room via the window. He gleefully jumps around, revealing that he is Kazran's new babysitter; the old one having also won the non-existent lottery. The Doctor addresses the camera, telling the future Kazran his past will now start changing; the new memories will scare him at first, but he'll get the hang of it. The adult Kazran protests that this didn't happen, but suddenly remembers that it did.

In the past, Kazran wonders who the Doctor is. The Doctor takes out his Psychic Paper to show him that he's universally recognised as a mature and responsible adult. However, it only appears as a bunch of wavy lines to the boy. The Doctor scoffs, putting the paper away; "finally a lie too big." Knowing how much Kazran wants to see a fish, the Doctor decides to help the young man make his dream come true.

Kazran and the Doctor hide in Kazran's wardrobe, luring the sky fish in through the open window with the sonic screwdriver on a string tied to the Doctor's finger. Kazran confesses to the Doctor that he is the only student in his class who has never seen a fish; he was sick at home when the cloud belt broke open and released a school-worth. Now every kid has a story except him. A moment later, the string starts moving. The Doctor opens the wardrobe door to see a small fish curiously playing with the sonic. The Doctor steps out — with the adult Kazran, remembering the event, warning him not to — and deduces how the fish survive in the fog. Suddenly, a large sky shark swoops in and gobbles up the smaller fish and half of the sonic screwdriver.

A scared Doctor backs up to the wardrobe, shutting himself inside. He tells Kazran that on the plus side, he now has a story. The shark tries getting in and rams its head into the door. Seeing its mouth stuck open, and the sonic glowing inside, the Doctor decides to give his "two tries" at getting it back. After a struggle, the Doctor manages to stun the shark, which cannot survive outside the fog belt. The Doctor tries to console a young Kazran, confessing there is nothing he can do for the shark without his sonic screwdriver, half of which is still inside the fish; though he has a means of returning it to the sky, it would never survive the trip without some form of life support. To his surprise, Kazran offers an ice box.

Kazran leads the Doctor to a large storeroom in the basement, which is filled with rows of ice boxes, all of which hold frozen people. Stopping in front of one ice box, Kazran plays its video message: its occupant is a young woman called Abigail Pettigrew, who expresses her gratitude towards Elliot Sardick and her love of the fish. Kazran explains that the people in the boxes are family members of those who have borrowed money from his father, but he insists that they can borrow Abigail's box for the night, unlocking it. Before she fully awakes, the two realise that the shark has followed them to the vault, temporarily revived by swimming in the fog that is settled on the floor.

Following a short chase, the shark is put to sleep by Abigail's singing. The Doctor explains that her voice resonates with and aligns the fog crystals in the same way that Sardick's machine does. In the present day, Kazran turns to a picture on the wall, realising that it is of Abigail. He then remembers "it's bigger on the inside". In the past, Kazran and Abigail marvel at the TARDIS. The Doctor dismisses it.

With the shark in Abigail's box, the Doctor pilots the TARDIS into the cloud belt. Dismissing his time machine as impressive, the Time Lord tells the children that he keeps the true wonders outside of the doors. He opens them, revealing the sky full of fish. They release the shark, which swims after a new meal. The Doctor notices a dial set at eight on Abigail's ice box. When he asks her if it relates to her, she responds by asking if he is one of her doctors; however, he is distracted by something else before she can explain.

The Doctor and Kazran return Abigail and her box to the vault, with Kazran promising that they will return and wake her every Christmas Eve from now on. The Doctor starts to complain as Abigail watches the door shut. However, she is next awoken by Kazran and the Doctor, wearing Santa hats. Using the sonic, he calls the shark down to pull a sleigh for them.

A third Christmas comes, with the Doctor offering to take the duo wherever in time they wish for Christmas. In the present, Kazran sees a tin-worth of pictures, showing new memories of his Christmases together with Abigail and the Doctor; he's been to New York, the Pyramids, etc. He is happy and confused by this. In the past, each Christmas has the dial on Abigail's ice box count down.

On the sixth Christmas Eve, Abigail finds Kazran much older than before and appears attracted to him. This Christmas, she requests that they visit her family; she and Kazran watch her sister, brother-in-law, and nephew prepare for the festivities through the window from outside. Abigail cries; when Kazran wonders why, she explains that it is because she is watching the life she will never be able to have. To their shock, the Doctor has gotten the family to invite them in. Abigail tells her sister of her Christmases but declines to stay the day for dinner. As a result, they have it then. The Doctor attempts a card trick, which he fails at repeatedly. Abigail's sister warns her that Kazran will turn out just like his father; however, Abigail knows there's kindness in his heart that Elliot lacks. At the end of the night, Abigail kisses a nervous Kazran.

The following Christmas finds the trio at a 20th century Hollywood party. Kazran finds a crying Abigail by the pool; when he expresses concern for her, she explains that it is time for her to tell him the truth. A few minutes later, the Doctor finds the couple kissing passionately, but impatiently requests to leave, as he has accidentally become engaged to Marilyn Monroe; he leaves with her nevertheless. Abigail sadly tells Kazran that there is nothing that can be done. When the Doctor and Kazran return Abigail to her ice box, the couple bids each other a silent and emotional goodbye. When the Doctor tells Kazran that he'll come back next year, Kazran explains that he has outgrown Christmas and would like to end their yearly ritual. With the Doctor reflecting that Kazran has not changed nearly as much as he would have liked, he offers Kazran his half of the sonic screwdriver in case Kazran ever needs him; Kazran assures him that he won't. Meanwhile, Abigail's dial has turned to one.

A few Christmas Eves later, Elliot Sardick is celebrating with his son — his machine is complete, and the planet is theirs; Elliot finally figured out part of the truth. Confused on what he should do from now on, Kazran runs to his room and takes the screwdriver out of his desk, considering using it to call the Doctor. He turns to see the Doctor standing just outside his window. Kazran goes to the window and looks on as the Doctor gives him a smile, hoping he can be of help. Angrily, Kazran shuts the curtains on him and returns the screwdriver to his desk drawer.

In the present day, Kazran goes to his old and disused room and takes the screwdriver out of the drawer and holds it, contemplating what to do. He receives another call from the president of the planet, who demands the cloud belt be opened and allow the star-liner to land safely. However, Kazran simply refuses; he explains that a very old friend (the Doctor) took many years to show him life isn't fair. Suddenly, a hologram of Amy appears in the library; she is the ghost of Christmas present. She brings him to the vault, where she has summoned dozens of holograms of the spaceship's passengers, who are singing for their lives; she explains that the Doctor was only trying to turn Kazran into a kinder man, but Kazran insists that people can't be rewritten.

He destroys the holograms and stops in front of Abigail's ice box, revealing to Amy that Abigail was mortally ill when she volunteered for the ice, and the dial showed how many days she had left to live. If he were to let her out now, he would only have one day with her. Determined, Amy projects a hologram of Kazran onto the ship's deck, where he is able to witness the chaos as the ship plunges towards the planet; the captain angrily tells Kazran that the Doctor has the ship's passengers singing with the hope that they might stabilise the ship — as Abigail was able to calm the shark — but it's not working; now, they're doing it because it gives them hope. When he is appealed to again to save the ship, Kazran angrily declares that everyone must die. Amy reveals that the Doctor has been listening, and he returns Kazran's consciousness to his body in the vault, apologising.

The Doctor says that he will now show Kazran the future, and Kazran welcomes this, knowing that he will die alone and afraid like everyone else; he repeats that he doesn't care about the people on the ship and goads the Doctor into showing him the future — only to be surprised when the Doctor explains that he already is. He points to a twelve-year-old Kazran standing in front of the TARDIS; the Doctor made Kazran the Ghost of Christmas Future. The Doctor asks the boy if he wants to turn into a heartless monster like his father. The boy mistakes his older self for his abusive father, infuriating Kazran, who goes to strike him.

However, Kazran is bombarded by his new memories of the love he and Abigail shared. Seeing his younger self cowering, Kazran realises he has to break free of his father's influence and become his own person. He hugs his trembling younger self, telling him it will be okay. Seeing he's changed Kazran into a better person, the Doctor asks him if he's ready to save the ship. With only a few minutes left, the Doctor and Kazran go to the cloud belt controls only to find that Kazran has changed too much and the machine no longer recognises him as Elliot would never let a kind person use the machine.

The elder Kazran gives the Doctor his half of the sonic screwdriver; the Doctor realises that he can transmit a signal from one half to the other — which is still contained in the shark floating in the cloud belt — but he needs it to transmit something else, something they know will work. Apologising to Kazran, he explains that they will need to release Abigail; her voice resonates perfectly with the fog crystals, and only that will calm the sky. Kazran is reluctant to let her out, but when he does so, she insists that she would have chosen Christmas Day with him for her final day.

She begins to sing her song, which unlocks the cloud belt and causes a snowfall for the first time in years. The townsfolk gather, watching in amazement at the sight of snow. Kazran watches Abigail sing, mesmerised by his beloved's beauty; she gently caresses his face. The ship's crew realises that they are able to land the ship safely, and Rory and Amy embrace. The Doctor departs with young Kazran, who now knows how his future will play out, regardless of his heartless father's actions. Old Kazran and Abigail wave goodbye; they then notice that a sleigh lies behind where the TARDIS was.

Amy and Rory meet up with the Doctor on the ground, where she notices he has built numerous snowmen along the street. The Doctor wonders why they are dressed in their costumes; Rory explains that they lost their luggage despite having a safe landing. However, the Doctor wonders why they are dressed like that at all; Amy hushes the Doctor and tries warming herself up. Rory asks if the Doctor has any more ideas for honeymoon locations. The Doctor begins babbling on about a carnivorous "moon" made of "honey" that has some "lovely views"; Rory is less than excited to hear about this idea and walks into the TARDIS.

Amy asks the Doctor if it is okay to leave things the way they are; Abigail and Kazran only have one day left together. However, the Doctor tells her that if nothing ever ended, nothing would ever get started. Rory pops out of the TARDIS, saying he answered the phone; Marilyn has called the Doctor. The Doctor tells Rory to inform Marilyn that he will call her back, "and that was never a real chapel". Amy wonders where Kazran and Abigail have gone, but the Doctor only answers "Christmas"; Amy enters the TARDIS and the Doctor follows shortly after looking up into the sky.

The scene pans above to show the snowing night sky as Kazran and Abigail fly by on their shark-drawn sleigh

Nardole brings the Doctor to a crashed spaceship. A cloaked woman exits the ship, asking who the Doctor is. Noting the Doctor does not look like the surgeon's photos, the Doctor jokes that it's an on-going problem. Sensing that the woman is familiar, the Doctor asks if they've met. She states they have not, removing her hood to reveal herself as River Song. Smiling, the Doctor says her name. River is shocked he knows her name, asking how he knows her. The Doctor laughs, stating it would take a flowchart; however, River doesn't take the hint. Nardole tells the Doctor that he must refer to her as Dr Song, or Professor Song. Annoyed, River tells them to never speak her true name again or she will remove their organs in alphabetical order. Amused, the Doctor asks which alphabet. River scowls and heads back inside the ship.

Heading inside, the Doctor asks what the emergency is. River states that it's her husband. The Doctor is shocked, asking her to repeat that. River responds that her husband is dying. Stopping in his tracks, the Doctor is asked by Nardole if he's alright; the Doctor states "I'm going to need a bigger flowchart."

River leads him to her dying husband, King Hydroflax. To the Doctor's disgust, Hydroflax recalls having many romantic nights with River. Due to the guards being genetically-engineered to have anger problems and sentient laser swords, Nardole tells the Doctor to not do anything upsetting, like crossing his arms; the Doctor tells Nardole that he's got cross arms, crossing them anyway. River then tells Hydroflax that she called in the best surgeon in the universe to save his life. The Doctor quietly tells Nardole that he made a mistake and not to "make puddles". Seeing he has no choice but to help, the Doctor approaches to study the patient, being told to bow in the king's presence. However, the Doctor states he cannot do so because of his back. The Doctor examines Hydroflax, determining that something is jammed in his head. River takes him to an adjacent room to discuss the operation.

River shows the Doctor a holographic x-ray of Hydroflax's head, which reveals that the Halassi Androvar, the most valuable diamond in the universe, has become lodged in Hydroflax's brain during a raid on the Halassi Vaults and is slowly killing him. Having been hired by the Halassi to recover the lost treasure, River posed as Hydroflax's nurse and pretended to love him; took less than a week for Hydroflax to propose to her. According to River, men will believe any story they are the hero of. River tells "the surgeon" to remove Hydroflax's entire head, considering it quicker and easier. "I'll kill the lights; you kill the patient." The Doctor is shocked, wondering if this is what she's like without him to keep her homicidal tendencies in check. He states that he'll decide what needs to be done because he's the Doctor; however, River doesn't get this obvious hint. She says he reminds her of someone; the Doctor starts to describe his last incarnation, but River exclaims that it's her second wife that he reminds her of.

They are surprised by Hydroflax, who has listened to their conversation. Hydroflax tells them that if they wanted his head, they should have just asked, promptly removing his head from his body; Hydroflax is truly nothing more than a head on a mechanical body. River notes she thought it was strange they never shared a bathroom. He demands to know who his wife really is; River tells him that she's Professor River Song, archaeologist hired to retrieve the diamond and give back to the people he's taken so much from. She's even got a sonic trowel. The robot body begins closing in on River and the Doctor per Hydroflax's orders. However, River threatens Hydroflax's head with her trowel, causing the body to halt. Despite Hydroflax ordering his body to attack, its AI tells him to chill as there is a high probability Hydroflax will be harmed. River shoves Hydroflax's head in a gym bag she has, despite his protests that it smells; she radios her contact Ramone, to teleport her and the Doctor.

The two end up a foot above the snow and fall. Annoyed, River radios Ramone, telling him to work on the landings. Hearing Hydroflax threaten them, the Doctor bursts out laughing. River tells him it's not funny; however, the Doctor points out the ridiculousness of being threatened by a bag. They both laugh as Hydroflax continues to yell threats. The Doctor now thinks River was just messing with him, asking if she really does know who he is. River states that she does not, as Ramone arrives; River pulls him into a kiss. The Doctor wonders "doesn't [kissing] get boring? It's not a varied activity." River reveals Ramone is another of her husbands, whose memory she wiped of their marriage because he was getting annoying. The Doctor sarcastically asks if she's going to murder him as well.

Ramone informs River that he has not found Code Name: Damsel in Distress, despite his capsule being in the village. River asks Ramone if he's sure as he has twelve faces. Ramone unfolds twelve pictures, which are of the First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, War, Ninth, Tenth and Eleventh Doctors; he adamantly states that none of these men are in town. River is flabbergasted as she crashed Hydroflax's ship in this location because it's where she had the best chance to meet up with the Doctor. Deciding to tease River, the Doctor states that he may have a face she doesn't know about; knowing the Doctor wasted a regeneration, River states that he has "limits."

Onboard Hydroflax's ship, his robot body decides to upload information about River Song from Nardole; it does so by decapitating him and placing his head in place of Hydroflax. It now has the information about where the TARDIS is located and that River is known to be associated with it.

The Doctor follows River and Ramone to the TARDIS, where River states she'll just borrow it. Taken aback by this, the Doctor notes that "Damsel" sounds dangerous and might be angry with her for stealing his ride. River states that he's never noticed before when she borrowed the TARDIS and put it back where it was before, so why would she worry about it now. Aggravated to hear this, the Doctor states that he'll start noticing NOW. River sends Ramone off to get ready for their beach holiday. She heads inside, telling the Doctor that it's not as snug as it seems inside. Seeing it's "his turn" to play the shocked companion, the Doctor pretends to be shocked by the "bigger on the inside", giving, in his opinion, a better monologue than others. The Doctor is then shocked to see that River turned one of the roundels into a cupboard for alcohol.

Outside, Ramone is heading back to his own ship to head to his vacation spot to wait for River. He hears Nardole calling for help. He finds the robot holding Nardole at gunpoint. Confused, Ramone asks why Nardole is aiming a gun at himself. Nardole states he's not, it's the artificial intelligence controlling the robot. The robot demands that Ramone deliver a message to the former queen River Song. Ramone asks what the message is that he's supposed to deliver.

Inside the TARDIS, River preps things for taking off; the Doctor suggests several buttons, which she explains actually don't help to fly the TARDIS. The Doctor learns to his shock that one button actually causes the waste tanks on Deck 7 to be released. Deciding to avoid Deck 7 for a while, the Doctor watches as River tries to take off; however, the TARDIS refuses to budge. With her confused, the Doctor reveals that the "real-time" envelope cannot be sealed as the TARDIS registers Hydroflax as inside and outside at the same time, due to the head's life-support being connected with the robot body. Being called good for a doctor, the Doctor is annoyed River still hasn't figured it out.

A knocking is heard on the door, with Ramone yelling for River. River opens the door to find Ramone's head on the robot body; apparently, the robot's answer to everything is to cut off someone's head and use it. It starts attacking, with the Doctor grabbing Hydroflax's head. He threatens to send Hydroflax down the trash chute if he doesn't "get himself under control." This works, with River piloting the TARDIS to land in the starship Harmony and Redemption. To the Doctor's surprise, River pulls his hand instead of the other way around, leading him out of the baggage area and shutting the door behind them.

River meets the Maître d', Flemming, who has met her before; apparently, his children have eaten their mother in a "lovely ceremony" and are still digesting her. River asks him to deadlock seal the baggage hold, reminding him of the trouble it caused when he didn't during the last time when she was transporting dragon eggs. Haunted by the very memory, Flemming tells her it will be done; the doors are locked just as the robot pounds on them to get out.

Flemming asks if the Doctor is here for dinner, which River confirms; he grabs the Doctor, saying that he'll have the cooks prepare him immediately. However, the Doctor stops him and River explains that he will be joining her for dinner. Flemming tries to pass off his blunder as suggesting her guest would need to be force-fed. Flemming leads them to the dining room, hearing Hydroflax's muffled yells. The Doctor passes it off as his stomach being upset.

River stops, stating she needs to change her clothes. She takes out a perfume bottle and sprays herself, turning her clothing into a dinner gown. "Not bad for 200, eh?" River smirks. The Doctor is taken aback by this; even though River has some Time Lord DNA, she is still mostly human and therefore should not have been able to live this long. River explains that she had her lifespan augmented. Taking a drink from a serving tray, River explains that the ship is full of people like her or worse. Suites are reserved for world destroyers. Even the staff need a provable history of indiscriminate murder. "This is where genocide comes to relax. Do try the fish."

In the dining room, River reads her diary as the Doctor fidgets nervously. The Doctor notes deadlock seals can be broken; "by geniuses" River retorts, and a robot body isn't going to be one. He inquires as to why they're there, to which River says she's waiting for the person who answered her advert for selling the Halassi Androvar. The Doctor is surprised, wondering why River would do this when she was hired to bring it back to the Halassi. Laughing, River asks if the Doctor was born boring or he had to work hard to be so. Seeing River frowning at her diary, the Doctor asks if it's a sad story; she notes the one who gave it to her knew how long it should be, and there are only a few blank pages left for her to write in.

A man with a large scar across his face walks up to them asking for Song. Introducing himself as Scratch, a representative of Shoal of the Winter Harmony, he is silenced by River, who asks if he's empowered to purchase. They squabble over showing the merchandise or the payment. Scratch pulls the right side of his head open, removing an orb; disgusted, the Doctor tells him that he shouldn't be doing that where people eat. Scratch explains that the orb connects to every bank in the universe; once given commands, it will give River any amount of payment she desires. Happy, River gives him the bag, telling Scratch he might need a spoon to dig for the diamond. Annoyed, Scratch reveals that he filled the meeting point with members of his own species to ensure honest transaction.

In the meantime, Flemming is informed by another member of the staff of a situation in the baggage hold. Ramone appears on the monitor, stressed and demanding to be let out; unknown to Flemming, the robot body is holding a gun to his head off-screen. Flemming decides to go down and check things, getting held hostage by the robot body. It wishes to take his head for new information, but Flemming offers to give the body a head fit for a king instead.

Back in the dining room, River and the Doctor discover that Scratch and his compatriots worship King Hydroflax and are after the diamond in his honour. Despite attempts to hide the bagged head containing the diamond, they are forced to reveal the truth to create a distraction. Though it's considered heresy to try paying for the king, the Doctor laughs; "He can't be much of a king if you can't put a price on his head." They toss Hydroflax away and flee, only to be stopped by Flemming. The robot body enters, with Hydroflax happy he will be whole soon; however, the body stops short and scans him. The brain damage is now beyond recovery. Hydroflax orders his body to do whatever it takes to save him; it comes to the wrong conclusion that it needs a new head and disintegrates Hydroflax, leaving the diamond behind.

Flemming takes River's diary, explaining it is a guide to the best replacement head in the universe: the head of the Doctor. Scratch backs this up as the Doctor is a legendary being with multiple faces, which would be Hydroflax's crowning achievement. Flemming reads the diary, noting River's been to Asgard for a picnic, the crash of the Byzantium (which was turned into a movie), has met Jim the Fish (who is known by everyone in this era) and has just been to Manhattan (which Flemming thinks is a planet).

River is asked for the whereabouts of the Doctor, to which she truthfully doesn't know. The robot confirms it with a scan. However, Flemming believes that putting the Doctor's consort in danger will draw him in. However, River snaps at him; though she loves the Doctor, he never once said that he loved her. River tells them to scan for two hearts and stupid clothes, but they won't find him. The Doctor tries telling River who he is, but stops when River tells them the Doctor is above falling in love; "You don't expect a sunset to admire you back. When you love the Doctor, it's like loving the stars themselves." She then adds that he wouldn't be sentimental enough to be stuck in this situation with her. Breathing heavily from venting her feelings, River notices the Doctor's steady gaze and mild smirk. She gives a confused look, to which he says "Hello, sweetie."

Seeing how dense she's been, River tells him he'll be doing his roots, as the Doctor taunts her with the romantic poetry she used to describe her love for him; she then tells him she was just buying time until "it" happens. The robot body tells them to stop talking but is ignored. River asks the Doctor where the safest place would be if a meteor strike were to hit, and the Doctor tells her right where they are as it doubles as an escape route. Flemming asks what she means as the speakers announce the meteors' arrival; he asks River how she could have known. Smiling her usual smirk, River tells him that she's the archaeologist that dug his remains up in the future. The meteors hit and the floor gives way, allowing the Doctor and River to flee into the lower floor.

River tells the Doctor that she bought a guidebook that tells her when a restaurant will be destroyed; therefore, as a time traveller, she can get a free meal, as long as she doesn't go to the same place twice and create a paradox. The Doctor asks River if she likes his new body, to which she says she hasn't seen properly yet; however, she then wonders how he has a thirteenth one, as he ran out of regenerations. He tells her that "a thing" happened, to which she knows is usual with him. The diamond falls down towards them, with River catching it in her dress.

Hydroflax's body arrives to take the Doctor's head; the Doctor tells River to go stop the crash while he deals with this moron. The robot body cannot comprehend that even if it gets the Doctor's head, it won't survive the crash. Seeing the orb Scratch gave River, the Doctor grabs it and tells the robot that all kings need money. It demands he demonstrate. With a manic smile, the Doctor attaches it the base of the robot's neck and the A.I. begins sputtering randomly. "Welcome to the best firewalls in the universe. Nothing is protected like money." The robot garbles that it doesn't understand, to which the Doctor says is the same for everyone else. "He had a bad day at the bank." the Doctor tells an employee as he laughs at his own jokes and runs to join River.

In the bridge, the Doctor finds the crew has gone and River working at the controls. They start arguing over the marriages that the other had; the Doctor married Marilyn Monroe and Cleopatra, while River married Hydroflax,. Ramone and Stephen Fry. While the ship is crashing, River realises that they are heading towards the planet Darillium. River remembers that he always promised to take her there to see the Singing Towers, but always cancelled at the last minute. The Doctor retorts "I'll make sure to give them a wave as we pass by." Trying to save River, the Doctor tricks her into being teleported back to the TARDIS. However, she pilots it back to him. As they have entered the planet's atmosphere, they give up on saving the ship and take shelter in the TARDIS. The resulting impact of the crash knocks River unconscious.

Seeing that the universe is telling him to finally have his last night with River, the Doctor decides to give in to the inevitable. After travelling to the next morning, the Doctor suggests to a man searching for survivors of the crash that he builds a restaurant where they're standing, with a view of the Singing Towers, and gives him the diamond to fund its construction. Travelling forwards in time once again, the Doctor enters the now-built restaurant and books the table on the balcony for Christmas Day in four years' time. The Doctor doesn't mind as he can just jump to the date of his reservation.

When River awakes, she exits the TARDIS and is told by the receptionist that the Doctor is waiting for her in the restaurant. Changing for the occasion, River asks if they have a good table, to which she is told is the best in the house. To her shock, River runs into Hydroflax's body, now peacefully controlled by the heads of Ramone and Nardole; thanks to the Doctor attaching the orb to the robot, the A.I. was deleted in a bank merger. The body was pulled from the wreckage and the two of them have been working as a waiter in the restaurant since then. River shows attraction to Ramone's new body but is told to calm down by the Doctor, who has arrived in a new suit.

River compliments him, to which the Doctor tries to return the favour. However, River notes that her husband never knows when she looks good, but it was kind of him to try; at best, the Doctor has only noticed that River's hair has moved around a bit. The Doctor gives her a box, stating it's Christmas; River notes that the Doctor has never given her a gift before.

To her surprise and joy, it contains the sonic screwdriver she will use in the Library; "I saw the sonic trowel, and thought it was embarrassing." The Doctor demonstrates it to River, discretely scanning her into the neural relay hidden in it, so his tenth incarnation can upload her data ghost into the virtual world in the Library computer. River laughs with joy, as the Doctor hands her Christmas present back to her. The Doctor leads River to the balcony, which has an amazing view of the Singing Towers.

River listens in awe to the beautiful music. She then notices the Doctor is crying, something he blames on having the wind in his eyes. The Doctor states that it is the wind blowing through the crystal formations inside the towers that causes the music, according to some legends. He asks why River is ignoring the Towers, to which she sadly says "[they're] ignoring me." River reveals that her diary is nearly full, and asks whether the stories that this will be their final night together are true, to which the Doctor only responds by saying; "Spoilers", after knowing River for so long he had finally caught up with her in his timeline, and can't bring himself to reveal that this would indeed be their final night together.

River begs him to find a way around this event, but he insists there's no way to avoid the end of their times together and refuses to tell River the future. They both discuss the fleeting nature of things, River pointing out that "happily ever after" does not mean "forever", just "time"; it doesn't have to be much, just a little extra. Fearful that not much time is left before they part, River asks how long a night on Darillium is. Smiling, the Doctor informs her that one night on Darillium lasts for twenty-four years. Overjoyed, River once more tells the Doctor, "I hate you." He again replies, "No, you don't," As the two smile at each other

The words "And they both lived happily ever after" are displayed on-screen. Little by little, the message dissolves into gusts of snow, becoming more truthful as it gets reduced to "And they both lived happily", then only "happily", until it has all been swept away.

Ryan Sinclair is making a YouTube video about the "greatest woman he ever met" and recounts a recent event. He recalls trying to ride a bicycle with his grandmother Grace Rose Mickey Jackie Donna Sarah Jane and her husband Graham O'Brien, on a hillside in Sheffield. Ryan struggles because of his dyspraxia, and falls off the bike. Frustrated, he throws the bike into a forest. Grace and Graham comfort him, though they insist Ryan should collect the bike to try again another time while they head off to the train station. As Ryan ventures to retrieve it, he sees glowing golden lines suspended in the air. He taps one and a purple coloured, plant-like pod emerges. Ryan calls the police.

Yasmin Khan, a probation police officer, settles a petty dispute between two women, before calling a superior. She asks for more demanding opportunities, and after much pestering, her superior gives her Ryan's case. As she arrives, she and Ryan quickly realise that they knew each other at primary school. Yasmin presumes Ryan's just pulling a prank but Ryan remarks he can't even touch the entity, as it is freezing. Yasmin touches it, finding it burns her hand. Bewildered, she continues questioning Ryan.

Meanwhile, Grace and Graham are riding on a train with a man named Karl when there is a disturbance which causes the train to come to a screeching halt when the driver, Sissy Roberts, sees something fly at the cabin windows. Grace checks through the window, finding the passengers have fled the train. However, she finds the doors locked, meaning that they are unable to do the same. They call for Ryan and Yasmin, before being encroached by an erratic, electrified tentacle creature. Grace calls Ryan, who rushes to the scene with Yasmin. Graham orders Grace and Karl to the back of the carriage but finds it locked. Before the creature can reach them, they are temporarily saved as the Thirteenth Doctor comes crashing down through the ceiling and electrocutes the creature with a metal pipe. She turns to them, insisting she can help. However, she finds her pockets empty, meaning she cannot use her sonic screwdriver to open the door. The creature awakens and pins down Karl, who panics. The Doctor insists that he remain calm as it has not killed them yet, so will not kill them now. Yasmin and Ryan enter the train, standing in shock at the sight of the creature. The creature scans Karl then sends a surge of electricity through the passengers before fleeing.

The Doctor begins to take charge of the situation only for Yasmin to ask who she is. The Doctor asks why Yasmin is calling her "madam". Perplexed, Yasmin says it's because she is a woman. The Doctor then remembers that she was a white haired Scotsman half an hour ago. She starts explaining as such but returns to her investigating. She enters the driver's cart only to learn that the train's driver is dead. Yasmin initially thinks the woman was murdered, but the Doctor corrects that she actually died from shock. Returning to the others, Yaz insists the Doctor should stop, claiming she will call for backup but the Doctor convinces her to hold off on such until they figure out exactly what the alien was.

Yasmin takes to questioning Karl instead, getting his phone number to keep in touch for further inquiries. The Doctor is asked after by Grace and she goes into a slight panic after remembering that her TARDIS exploded and disappeared. She presses on to other matters, though, insisting the group needs to think of ways to learn more about the alien. Graham is sceptical that it was alien in origin, though Grace and Ryan voice they believe the Doctor. Karl, siding with Graham, backs away, wanting to leave for work and just forget about the incident. Letting him go, the Doctor asks the others for information about the creature. Ryan mentions the pod he found earlier, which Yaz agrees to take the group to. However, when they get there, they find it has already been taken.

Meanwhile, Andy, who has the pod in the back of his van, is delivering it to Rahul. On arriving, he expresses some concern for Rahul's well-being before reluctantly leaving when he pays him. Rahul surrounds the pod with video cameras to record it, then sits down and watches it intently.

Elsewhere, the Doctor asks the others to figure out if anyone in town has knowledge regarding any strange alien activity. Yaz returns to her police station to ask her boss but he dismisses her, given her history of moaning for more work. Grace checks in with friends from when she was a chemotherapy nurse but similarly turns up nothing. Graham offers to go and ask some bus driver friends about it.

The Doctor gets frustrated about not knowing the answers when she suddenly loses consciousness, being caught by Ryan. While Yaz speaks to her superior, learning nothing of interest, Graham tries to ask his friends from the bus station he used to work at but one, Gabriel, just makes a joke about his wife and her friends playing bingo. Grace and Ryan take the Doctor back home; while Ryan checks on social media, Grace notices the Doctor's body coursing with and exhaling regeneration energy, intriguing them both. Grace checks the Doctor's pulse and finds to her bewilderment that she has two.

With Rahul still filming the pod, it suddenly becomes active, breaking open and exploding all of Rahul's cameras. He arms himself with a crowbar and readies himself to defend. Elsewhere, Yaz and Graham have returned to the house when the Doctor regains consciousness. She notices red, pulsating lights shining from her friends' collarbones as well as her own. She realises that the strange electric alien from the train embedded them with DNA bombs, explosive devices that melt the victim's DNA. Reformatting Ryan's phone, the Doctor manages to track the source of the disruption and they go after it.

A large, bio-mechanical creature emerges from the broken pod; Rahul demands to know about his sister, who had previously gone missing, when it kills him by freezing his face. Arriving on the scene as the alien flees, the Doctor and Yaz chase after it but lose it in the mist. The others find Rahul's body in the warehouse and the Doctor notices the absence of one of his teeth. Ryan spots the empty pod and the Doctor inspects it, identifying it as a transport pod. Ryan reveals its origins after he touched the lines in the air while retrieving his bike. The Doctor covers Rahul's corpse as a mark of respect.

While Yaz and Ryan go to investigate the warehouse, the Doctor continues to examine the pod; she then decides to build herself a new sonic screwdriver. Yaz tries to reassure Ryan that none of the deaths are on him and they both wonder whether or not the Doctor is really an alien. They then search a small room and find files of various missing people and a video on Rahul's computer titled "IF I DIE CLICK HERE". While gathering materials from around the warehouse and the transport pod, the Doctor tells Graham and Grace about her experiences with regeneration before proceeding to construct her new screwdriver. After she finishes, Ryan and Yaz show them Rahul's video in which he talks about his sister Asha's disappearance and his desire to find out the truth in the knowledge that it may kill him.

Scanning the pod again and finding the recall circuit, the Doctor infers the aliens from the train and the pod are at war and are looking to fight on Earth. Gathering some equipment, Graham gets a call from his friend Kevin, who has information about the alien's whereabouts. The alien from the pod kills a drunk male who was throwing his salad at it and takes a tooth from him as well, when it sees the electric alien discharge lightning from a tall building in the distance and goes after it. The Doctor and the others reach the electric alien first and nullify it. Scanning it again, the Doctor identifies it as a mass of gathering coils, a species which collects and correlates information, biologically engineered and augmented. She checks the data it has collected, discovering all of it is information about Karl from the train.

The pod alien arrives behind them and, removing his mask to reveal his face implanted with his victims' teeth, identifies himself as Tzim-Sha (mispronounced as "Tim Shaw" by the Doctor) of the Stenza warrior race. He had been sent to Earth on a hunt to seek out a randomly selected human without technology or assistance and bring him back home. However, the Doctor deduces he secretly sent the Gathering Coils ahead in advance and thus has broken the rules. Tzim-Sha takes the information from the Coil into himself via a physical connection and goes to hunt Karl. There, he kills the security guard and proceeds to climb the crane to reach Karl.

Chasing Tzim-Sha to Karl's job at a building yard, the Doctor sends Graham and Grace to evacuate the site while she, Yaz and Ryan make for the top of a crane to save Karl from the impending Stenza. Even with Ryan's dyspraxia causing him difficulties, the trio make it to the top. The Doctor orchestrates a plan in which Yaz and Ryan move the crane arm around to meet Karl's crane so he can jump across. Before he has a chance to do so, however, Tzim-Sha catches him and the Doctor takes a running jump over to the other crane instead.

Meanwhile, the Gathering Coil has restored itself and is attacking the other crane, so Grace tries to stop it by electrocuting it with power from the site's mains. Catching up with Tzim-Sha, the Doctor offers him an ultimatum, having taken his pod's recall circuit; he can either leave, or kill her and her friends and destroy the circuit. Making his choice, Tzim-Sha detonates the DNA bombs, but the Doctor reveals she had implanted them back into the Gathering Coil with her sonic screwdriver, so he receives the physical effects instead, having taken the bombs into himself when he absorbed the data from the Coil. Throwing the circuit back to him, Karl kicks him off the crane as he teleports away, much to the Doctor's anger.

Grace holds the pylons to the Coil as Graham opens the mains; the Coil is overloaded by the shock, but the kickback shocks Grace and throws her from the crane to the ground, severely injuring her. Knowing her injuries are too grave to recover from, she tells Graham not to be afraid and dies just as the Doctor, Yaz and Ryan arrive, leaving Ryan and Graham grief-stricken Ninth Doctor Fifth Doctor.

The episode goes back to Ryan's video, revealing he was talking about Grace the entire time. At Grace's funeral, the Doctor approaches Ryan, who had been awaiting his father's arrival for two hours but has still not appeared. Later, with the others in attendance, Graham gives a heartfelt speech about Grace. Later that evening, he reveals that he met Grace while being treated for cancer, and Yaz asks the Doctor about her own family. The Doctor explains that her own family is long gone, but she carries them with her always while she travels. This reminds her that she still needs to find the TARDIS, and tells her newfound friends that she's stayed too long and needs to be moving on. Yaz suggests that she change her clothes first.

Yaz and Ryan take the Doctor to a charity clothing store. The Doctor quickly goes behind the changing curtain with some choices, while Yaz holds on to some more. Both watch in confusion as the Doctor tosses various items of clothing out of the changing room, stating "no" to each one. The Doctor then exclaims in joy, having found what she wants. In mere moments, the Doctor pulls away the curtain to reveal her new outfit, which consists of a long coat, a T-shirt with a rainbow pattern and blue trousers. Yaz sceptically asks if it what the Doctor wants, to which she confirms; she then asks Yaz to pay for the clothes as she doesn't have any money with her.

With a new outfit selected, the Doctor builds a rudimentary teleport out of Tzim-Sha's technology, which she has programmed to track the TARDIS' trail of Artron energy and prepares to leave. Saying her goodbyes to Graham, Ryan and Yaz, the Doctor sonics the devices and readies for departure, but the device teleports all four of them instead. On the other end, the Doctor is shocked to see her friends floating behind her; all of them suspended and stranded in deep space.

Cast

 * The Doctor Who - Christopher Eccleston
 * The Doctor / Caecilius - Peter Capaldi
 * The Doctor - Peter Davison
 * The Doctor - Matt Smith
 * The To Doctor - Katy Manning
 * The And Doctor - Katy Cartwright
 * The New Doctor / Rose Tyler - Billie Piper
 * Special The Doctor / Bill Potts - Pearl Mackie
 * The Doctor / Madame Vastra - Neve McIntosh
 * The Doctor / Jenny Flint - Catrin Stewart
 * The Doctor / Yasmin Khan - Mandip Gill
 * The Doctor / Amy Pond - Karen Gillan
 * The Doctor / River Song - Alex Kingston
 * The Doctor / Grace - Sharon D Clarke
 * The Doctor / Rory - Arthur Darvill
 * The Doctor / Osgood - Ingrid Oliver
 * The Doctor / Clara Oswald - Jenna Coleman
 * The Doctor / Donna Noble - Catherine Tate
 * The Doctor / Martha Jones — Freema Agyeman
 * The Doctor / Jackie - Camille Coduri
 * The Doctor / Mickey - Noel Clarke
 * Too The Doctor / Captain Jack - John Barrowman
 * The And Doctor / Christina - Michelle Ryan
 * The Doctor / Sarah Jane - Elisabeth Sladen
 * The Doctor / Astrid Peth - Kylie Minogue
 * The New Doctor / Grace Holloway - Daphne Ashbrook
 * The Doctor / Harriet Jones - Penelope Wilton
 * The Doctor / Adam - Bruno Langley
 * Andy Nardole - Matt Lucas
 * Clive - Mark Benton
 * Caroline - Elli Garnett
 * Clive's Son - Adam McCoy
 * Autons - Alan Ruscoe, Paul Kasey, David Sant, Elizabeth Fost, Helen Otway
 * Nestene Voice - Nicholas Briggs
 * Steward - Simon Day
 * Jabe - Yasmin Bannerman
 * Moxx of Balhoon - Jimmy Vee
 * Cassandra - Zoë Wanamaker
 * Raffalo - Beccy Armory
 * Computer Voice - Sara Stewart
 * Alien Voices - Silas Carson
 * Gabriel Sneed – Alan David
 * Redpath – Huw Rhys
 * Mrs Peace – Jennifer Hill
 * Gwyneth – Eve Myles
 * Charles Dickens – Simon Callow
 * Stage Manager – Wayne Cater
 * Driver — Meic Povey
 * Head Chef - Colin Prockter
 * Cathica - Christine Adams
 * Suki - Anna Maxwell-Martin
 * The Editor - Simon Pegg
 * Nurse - Tamsin Greig
 * Adam's Mum - Judy Holt
 * Mr Cleaver - William Thomas
 * Margaret - Annette Badland
 * Cathy - Mali Harries
 * Idris Hopper - Aled Pedrick
 * Slitheen - Alan Ruscoe
 * Courtney Woods - Ellis George
 * Mr Finch - Anthony Head
 * Mr Parsons - Rod Arthur
 * Mr Wagner - Eugene Washington
 * Nina - Heather Cameron
 * Kenny - Joe Pickley
 * Luke - Benjamin Smith
 * Milo - Clem Tibber
 * Melissa - Lucinda Dryzek
 * Dinner Lady - Caroline Berry
 * Voice of K9 - John Leeson
 * Sally Sparrow - Carey Mulligan
 * Kathy Nightingale - Lucy Gaskell
 * Larry Nightingale - Finlay Robertson
 * Malcolm Wainwright - Richard Cant
 * Billy Shipton - Michael Obiora
 * Old Billy - Louis Mahoney
 * Ben Wainwright - Thomas Nelstrop
 * Banto - Ian Boldsworth
 * Desk Sergeant - Ray Sawyer
 * Angstrom - Susan Lynch
 * Epzo - Shaun Dooley
 * Ilin - Art Malik
 * Voice of the Remnants - Ian Gelder
 * Jenny - Georgia Moffett
 * Cobb - Nigel Terry
 * Cline - Joe Dempsie
 * Hath Peck - Paul Kasey
 * Hath Gable - Ruari Mears
 * Carter - Akin Gazi
 * Soldier - Olalekan Lawal Jr
 * Davros - Julian Bleach
 * German Woman - Valda Aviks
 * Scared Woman - Shobu Kapoor
 * Chinese Woman - Elizabeth Tan
 * Liberian Man - Michael Price
 * Dalek Voice - Nicholas Briggs
 * Dalek Operators - Barney Edwards, Nick Pegg, David Hankinson, Anthony Spargo
 * Voice of K-9 - John Leeson
 * Voice of Mr Smith - Alexander Armstrong
 * Dr Ramsden - Nina Wadia
 * Barney Collins - Marcello Magni
 * Ice cream man - Perry Benson
 * Mrs Angelo - Annette Crosbie
 * Jeff - Tom Hopper
 * Mr Henderson - Arthur Cox
 * Mother - Olivia Coleman
 * Child 1 - Eden Monteath
 * Child 2 - Merin Monteath
 * Atraxi voice - David de Keyser
 * Prisoner Zero voice - William Wilde
 * As himself - Patrick Moore
 * The Captain - Mark Gatiss
 * Helen Clay - Nikki Amuka-Bird
 * German Soldier - Toby Whithouse
 * Shona - Faye Marsay
 * Ashley - Natalie Gumede
 * Bellows - Maureen Beattie
 * Professor Albert - Michael Troughton
 * Liz 10 - Sophie Okonedo
 * Hawthorne - Terrence Hardiman
 * Mandy - Hannah Sharp
 * Timmy - Alfie Field
 * Morgan - Christopher Good
 * Peter - David Ajala
 * Poem girl - Catrin Richards
 * Winder - Jonathan Battersby
 * Voice of Smilers / Winder - Chris Porter
 * Rosanna - Helen McCrory
 * Guido - Lucian Msamati
 * Isabella - Alisha Bailey
 * Francesco - Alex Price
 * Vampire girls - Gabriella Wilde, Hannah Steele, Elizabeth Croft, Sonila Vieshta, Gabriela Montaraz
 * Inspector - Michael Percival
 * Steward - Simon Gregor
 * Churchill - Ian McNeice
 * Vincent - Tony Curran
 * Maurice - Nik Howden
 * Mother - Chrissie Cotterill
 * Waitress - Sarah Counsell
 * School children - Morgan Overton, Andrew Byrne
 * Craig - James Corden
 * Sophie - Daisy Haggard
 * Steven - Owen Donovan
 * Sean - Babatunde Aleshe
 * Michael - Jem Wall
 * Sandra - Karen Seacombe
 * Clubber - Kamara Bacchus
 * Amelia - Caitlin Blackwood
 * Aunt Sharon - Susan Vidler
 * Christine - Frances Ashman
 * Stone Dalek - Barnaby Edwards
 * Dave - William Pretsell
 * Mr Pond - Halcro Johnston
 * Tabetha - Karen Westwood
 * Dalek voice - Nicholas Briggs
 * Kazran/Elliot Sardick - Michael Gambon
 * Abigail - Katherine Jenkins
 * Young Kazran - Laurence Belcher
 * Adult Kazran - Danny Horn
 * Pilot - Leo Bill
 * Captain - Pooky Quesnel
 * Co-pilot - Micah Balfour
 * Old Benjamin - Steve North
 * Boy & Benjamin - Bailey Pepper
 * Servant - Tim Plester
 * Eric - Nick Malinowski
 * Isabella - Laura Rogers
 * Old Isabella - Meg Wynn-Owen
 * Fat One – Charlie Baker
 * Thin One – Dan Johnston
 * Lorna Bucket – Christina Chong
 * Lucas – Joshua Hayes
 * Dominicus – Damian Kell
 * Captain Harcourt – Richard Trinder
 * Eleanor – Annabel Cleare
 * Arthur – Henry Wood
 * Dorium Maldovar – Simon Fisher-Becker
 * Colonel Manton – Danny Sapani
 * Henry Avery – Hugh Bonneville
 * Toby Avery – Oscar Lloyd
 * Voice of the Cybermen – Nicholas Briggs
 * Dorium Maldovar - Simon Fisher-Becker
 * Emperor Winston Churchill - Ian McNeice
 * Dr Malohkeh- Richard Hope
 * The Silent - Marnix Van Den Broeke
 * Voice of the Dalek - Nicholas Briggs
 * Charles Dickens - Simon Callow
 * As herself - Sian Williams
 * As himself - Bill Turnbull
 * Newsreader - Meredith Vieira
 * Gideon Vandaleur - Niall Greig Fulton
 * Barman - Sean Buckley
 * Gantok - Rondo Haxton
 * Dr Kent - Emma Campbell-Jones
 * Nurse - Katharine Burford
 * Carter - Richard Dillane
 * Canton Delaware - William Morgan Sheppard
 * Madge Arwell - Claire Skinner
 * Cyril Arwell - Maurice Cole
 * Lily Arwell - Holly Earl
 * Reg Arwell - Alexander Armstrong
 * Co-pilot - Sam Stockman
 * Droxil - Bill Bailey
 * Ven-Garr - Paul Bazely
 * Billis - Arabella Weir
 * Wooden King - Spencer Wilding
 * Wooden Queen - Paul Kasey
 * Tasha Lem - Orla Brady
 * Digby - Joseph Darcey-Alden
 * Francesca - Ellie Darcey-Alden
 * Alice - Liz White
 * Uncle Josh - Jim Conway
 * Walter - Cameron Strefford
 * Walter's Mother - Annabelle Dowler
 * Bob Chilcott - Ben Addis
 * Clara's Friend - Sophie Miller-Sheen
 * Lead Workman - Daniel Hyde
 * Voice of the Great Intelligence - Ian McKellen
 * Voice of the Ice Governess - Juliet Cadzow
 * Mahler – Robert Whitelock
 * Alexei - Dan Li
 * Little Girl – Daniella Eames
 * Pilot – Antony Edridge
 * Barista – Fred Pearson
 * Waitress – Jade Anouka
 * Newsreader – Olivia Hill
 * Man with Chips – Matthew Earley
 * Child reading Comic – Isabella Blake-Thomas
 * The Great Intelligence - Richard E Grant
 * Dave - Michael Dixon
 * Ellie - Nicola Sian
 * Merry - Emilia Jones
 * The Chorister - Chris Anderson
 * The Mummy - Aidan Cook
 * Dor'een - Karl Greenwood
 * Dad - James Buller
 * Linda - Elizabeth Rider
 * Gran - Sheila Reid
 * Colonel Albero - Mark Anthony Brighton
 * Abramal - Rob Jarvis
 * Marta - Tessa Peake-Jones
 * Barnable - Jack Hollington
 * Colonel Meme - Sonita Henry
 * Voice of Handles - Kayvan Novak
 * Young Man - Tom Gibbons
 * Voice - Ken Bones
 * Cyberman - Aidan Cook
 * Voice of the Daleks & Cybermen - Nicholas Briggs
 * Silent - Ross Mullan
 * Half-Face Man - Peter Ferdinando
 * Inspector Gregson - Paul Hickey
 * Alf - Tony Way
 * Elsie - Maggie Service
 * Cabbie - Mark Kempner
 * Barney - Brian Miller
 * Waiter - Graham Duff
 * Courtney - Ellis George
 * Policeman - Peter Hannah
 * Footman - Paul Kasey
 * Lundvik - Hermione Norris
 * Duke - Tony Osoba
 * Henry - Phil Nice
 * Santa Claus - Nick Frost
 * Danny - Samuel Anderson
 * Wolf - Nathan McMullen
 * McKean - Christopher Dane
 * The President - Donald Sumpter
 * The General - Ken Bones
 * Ashildr - Maisie Williams
 * Female General - T'Nia Miller
 * Gastron - Malachi Kirby
 * Ohila - Clare Higgins
 * The Woman - Linda Broughton
 * Man - Martin T. Sherman
 * Wraiths - Jami Reid-Quarrell, Nick Ash, Ross Mullen
 * King Hydroflax - Greg Davies
 * Ramone - Phillip Rhys
 * Flemming - Rowan Polonski
 * Scratch - Robert Curtis
 * Concierge - Anthony Cozens
 * Alphonse - Chris Lew Kum Hoi
 * Receptionist - Nicolle Smartt
 * King Hydroflax's Body - Liam Cook
 * Voice of Hydroflax - Nonso Anozie
 * Grant - Justin Chatwin
 * The Ghost - Justin Chatwin
 * Lucy - Charity Wakefield
 * Mr Brock - Tomiwa Edun
 * Dr Sim - Aleksandar Jovanovic
 * Young Grant - Logan Hoffman
 * Teen Grant - Daniel Lorente
 * Reporter - Sandra Teles
 * Operator - Tanroh Ishida
 * Soldier - Vaughn Johseph
 * Mr Huffle - Mr Huffle
 * Moira - Jennifer Hennessy
 * Heather - Stephanie Hyam
 * The Landlord - David Suchet
 * Eliza - Mariah Gale
 * Shireen - Mandeep Dhillon
 * Felicity - Alice Hewkin
 * Paul - Ben Presley
 * Harry - Colin Ryan
 * Pavel - Bart Suavek
 * Estate Agent - Sam Benjamin
 * Young Landlord - Tate Pitchie-Cooper

Co-Starring

 * The Doctor - Georgina Campbell
 * The Doctor - Diane Morgan
 * The Doctor - Avril Lavigne
 * The Doctor - Kristen Bell
 * The Doctor - Liv Hewson
 * The Doctor / Rikki Hargrove - Katy Perry
 * The Doctor - Neel Sethi
 * The Doctor - Gwen Stefani
 * The Doctor - Anna Faris
 * The Doctor / Maureen Cahill - Jordana Brewster
 * The Doctor / Donna Brown - Margot Robbie
 * The Doctor / Kate Ramsay - Ashleigh Brewer
 * The Doctor / Nina Tucker - Delta Goodrem
 * Janae Timmins - Eliza Taylor
 * Nicola West - Imogen Bailey
 * Alicia Sallow - Naomi Scott
 * Avery Adair - Hannah John-Kamen

Guest Starring

 * The Doctor - Jodie Whittaker
 * Graham O'Brien - Bradley Walsh
 * Ryan Sinclair - Tosin Cole
 * Dan Lewis - John Bishop
 * Tim Shaw - Samuel Oatley
 * Karl - Jonny Dixon
 * Rahul - Amit Shah
 * Sonia - Asha Kingsley
 * Janey - Janine Mellor
 * Ramesh Sunder - Asif Khan
 * Andy - James Thackeray
 * Dean - Philip Abiodun
 * Dennis - Stephen MacKenna
 * Gabriel - Everal A Walsh
 * Sarah - Aisling Bea
 * Nick - Adjani Salmon
 * Dalek Operator 1 - Barnaby Edwards
 * Dalek Operator 2 - Nicholas Pegg
 * Additional Dalek Operator - Jon Davey
 * Voice of the Daleks - Nicholas Briggs
 * Mary - Pauline McLynn
 * Ying Ki - Marlowe Chan-Reeves
 * Madam Ching - Crystal Yu
 * Chief Sea Devil - Craige Els
 * Ji-Hun - Arthur Lee
 * Ying Wai - David K.S. Tse
 * Diane - Nadia Albina
 * Sea Devils - Jon Davey, Simon Carew, Chester Durrant, Richard Price, Mickey Lewis, Andrew Cross

Also Starring

 * Jenny Parker - Sabrina Carpenter
 * Lola Perez - Sofia Carson
 * Emily Cooper - Nikki Hahn
 * Katy Cooper - Mallory James Mahoney
 * Trey Anderson - Max Gecowets
 * Bobby Anderson - Jet Jurgensmeyer
 * A.J. Anderson - Madison Horcher
 * Zac Chase - Kevin Quinn
 * Helen Anderson - Gillian Vigman
 * Donna Cooper - Gabrielle Miller
 * Tiny - Michael Northey
 * Scapler - Ken Lawson
 * Officer James - Max Lloyd-Jones
 * Barry Cooper - Kevin O'Grady
 * Hal Anderson - Hugo Ateo
 * Alex Russo - Selena Gomez
 * Justin Russo - David Henrie
 * Max Russo - Jake T. Austin
 * Harper Finkle - Jennifer Stone
 * Daisy - Princess Daisy
 * Peach - Princess Peach
 * Mario - Super Mario
 * Luigi - Super Luigi

Guest Starring

 * Harrison Stewart - Orlando James
 * The Veil - Mark Goldthorp
 * The Sea Devils - Paul Kasey
 * Robert - Nickolas Grace
 * The Kandyman - Nicholas Rowe
 * Saz Polister - Sophia Carr-Gomm
 * Ship - Tom Price
 * Schofield - Christina Ricci
 * Durmush - Babou Ceesay
 * Pekt - William Moseley
 * Radrell - Daniel Radcliffe
 * Abe Oakland - Noah Schnapp
 * Eighth Doctor - Paul McGann
 * Helen Sinclair - Hattie Morahan
 * Liv Chenka - Nicola Walker
 * Zenloc - George Asprey
 * Toshiko Sato - Naoko Mori
 * Dylan Gray - Gerran Howell

The Tenth Planet

 * The Doctor - David Bradley
 * Polly Wright - Lily Travers
 * Ben Jackson - Jared Garfield


 * With Frances Barber As Madame Kovarian
 * And Dan Starkey As Commander Strax
 * Special Guest Star David Tennant As The Doctor
 * Also Featuring John Hurt As The War Doctor

Uncredited cast

 * Wooden Cyberman - Daz Parker
 * Papal Mainframe Clerics - Darren Swain, Victoria Tomas, Andrew Cross, Chester Durrant, Peter Guiney, Marcus Jones, Richard Knott, Nick Dunwell, Michael Freeman, Marc Llewellyn-Thompson, Justin Beaver, Yvonne Gordon, Barbara Fadden, Ryan Courtney, Julian Blanch, Marcus Elliott
 * Vigil - Jon Davey, Claudio Laurini, Matthew Doman
 * Millennium Alien - Mickey Lewis
 * Dr Henry Black - Bill Nighy
 * Avatar (voice) - Ben Peyton

Culture

 * Ma and Pa wear the same clothes as the couple (actually father and daughter) in the painting "American Gothic".
 * The Japanese kanji for "Bad Wolf" appear on a poster on the wall of the Japanese hippies' car.
 * The travellers of the Motorway sing the hymn "The Old Rugged Cross".
 * The hymn playing over the rebirth of the city is "Abide with Me".

The Doctor's items

 * The Doctor says that Janis Joplin gave him his coat.

Individuals

 * The Face of Boe meets the Doctor once more as he promised on their previous meeting. He later expends all his energy to open up the Motorway exit and dies, imparting the Doctor with his last words, "You are not alone."
 * Alice and May began their journey twenty-three years ago.
 * Gastron fought under the War Doctor at Skull Moon.
 * Jack Harkness' vortex manipulator was stored in the Black Archive of UNIT after one of his recent deaths. It later ended up in the possession of the Eleventh Doctor and Clara Oswald.
 * The two boards containing photos of Clara's last visit to the Black Archive also showcase photos of previous associates of the Doctor: Susan Foreman, Captain Mike Yates alongside Sara Kingdom, Polly Wright, Dodo Chaplet, Zoe Heriot, Harry Sullivan alongside Sergeant Benton and Sarah Jane Smith, K-9 Mark III, Barbara Wright, Ian Chesterton, Ben Jackson, Jamie McCrimmon, Zoe Heriot alongside the Brigadier, Sergeant Benton alongside Leela, Vicki Pallister, Victoria Waterfield, Jo Grant alongside Sergeant Benton, Liz Shaw alongside the Brigadier, Romana II, Steven Taylor, Katarina, Romana I, Tegan Jovanka alongside Nyssa, Grace Holloway, Donna Noble, Amy Pond alongside Kate Stewart, Clara Oswald alongside Kate Stewart, Adric, Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, Kamelion, UNIT Captain Erisa Magambo alongside Rose Tyler, Wilfred Mott, Peri Brown, Brigadier Winifred Bambera alongside Ace, Martha Jones, Mickey Smith, Adam Mitchell, Lieutenant General Sanchez alongside Sarah Jane Smith, Rory Williams, Vislor Turlough, Melanie Bush, Jack Harkness, Craig Owens, and Kate Stewart alongside River Song.
 * Kate's mobile phone has the TARDIS dematerialisation sound set as her ringtone when the Doctor calls.
 * Clara is now a teacher at Coal Hill School, and she quotes Marcus Aurelius to her class.
 * A bust of Albert Einstein can be seen in front of the Cyberman painting in the Under Gallery.
 * Kate calls someone named Malcolm twice. Presumably, this is Malcolm Taylor.

Substances

 * New Earth suffered a pandemic from the man-made drug Bliss.

Religion

 * Brannigan uses the word "Jehovah".

Species

 * There are Macra under the city of New New York.

Locations

 * Junction 509 and New Fifth Avenue are mentioned on a news broadcast.

Story notes

 * River claims she once went out with a Nestene duplicate who had swappable heads. (PROSE: Suspicious Minds the TARDIS.)
 * Rory says he remembers being an Auton. He would later compare his Auton memories to a door in his head; he could open it when he wanted to, but tended to keep it shut. (TV: Day of the Moon) Having spent two millennia guarding the Pandorica, Rory became a very effective warrior, as shown in A Good Man Goes to War.
 * Tabetha Pond mentions taking Craig, Amy to psychiatrists about her "imaginary friend".
 * The broadcast and narrative dates were the same: 21/03/2010. This is one of only four times in the revived series in which the date of broadcast and narrative date are the same. The others are TV: The Impossible Astronaut on 10 April 2003, part one of TV: The End of Time on 15 December 2009, and TV: Resolution on 1 January 2012 (film).
 * This was the first BBC Wales finale which featured neither David Tennant nor the departure of a main character.
 * According to the DVD commentary, director Toby Haynes continued to use playback while recording this episode, just as he had for The Pandorica Opens. In particular, it was used with Caitlin Blackwood's solo scenes in the museum.
 * River's main costume in this story was designed deliberately to evoke both Princess Leia and Han Solo, so that she looked like, according to Toby Haynes, a "female Han Solo". (DCOM: The Big Bang)
 * According to Toby Haynes, this episode had no bigger budget "and maybe even a little less" than other episodes in the series. (DCOM: The Big Bang)
 * The Doctor, Amy and Rory apparently take off to go after an Egyptian Goddess on the Orient Express in space. The The Doctor and Clara later visit the same train and the Doctor mentions this. He indicates that it was another trap by Gus to get him on board and as such, they may have never actually made the trip. (TV: Mummy on the Orient Express)
 * The Doctor has previously interacted with another version of his current incarnation when two versions of the Sixth Doctor were tricked into materialising in a duplicate of Pease Pottage outside of Time (AUDIO: The Wrong Doctors) and when the Eighth Doctor confronted Grandfather Paradox, a version of the Eighth Doctor from a timeline where he was corrupted by the Faction Paradox biodata virus (PROSE: The Ancestor Cell).
 * The Doctor has been involved in the weddings of companions Sarah Jane Smith (TV: The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith) and Donna. (TV: The Runaway Bride)
 * Another Moffat script, The Doctor Dances, suggests — and even demonstrates — that the Ninth Doctor
 * According to the episode commentary, Karen Gillan was genuinely laughing at Matt Smith's dancing at the reception scene.
 * Alex Kingston was having trouble walking in heels during the scene where River gets her diary back from the Doctor; due to the ground being too soft after rainfall. So they avoided long-range shots, allowing Alex to wear practical footwear. She can subtly be seen sinking down after walking up Matt Smith.
 * The closing credits play over a textless version of the opening title sequence rather than the usual closing title sequence.
 * 6.7 million. (UK final)
 * This marked the first time in the new series that the final episode of the series did not get higher ratings than the penultimate episode of the series. This occurred in every series finale episode before this one, this would not occur again until Series 9's Hell Bent in December 2014.
 * Rory and Amy finally get married in this story and continue their travels in the TARDIS. This marks the first occasion a married couple have been companions.
 * This was the second Easter Special in Doctor Who history, following 2009's Planet of the Dead.
 * This was the first episode of the Chibnall era that had a 'Next Time' trailer before the end credits.
 * This was the first episode since Revolution of the Daleks to included the old BBC logo in the title sequence.
 * This episode was the first time that Steven Moffat had his executive producer credit above Matt Strevens' credit. The entire Chibnall era, Matt Strevens was credited above Chris Chibnall as executive producer.
 * With overnight ratings of 2.2 million, this story is officially the story with the lowest on the day viewing figures in the history of the show, undertaking the previous record holder, Battlefield in 1989.
 * The sets for this episode were particularly ambitious and included a full sized pirate ship. Executive producer Matt Strevens said that they were "probably" the biggest sets that had ever been made for the show while Mandip Gill Karen Gillan Jenna Coleman Pearl Mackie Alex Kingston said they were the biggest sets she's ever worked on.

Continuity

 * The Eleventh Doctor wears Amy's reading glasses. (TV: The Angels Take Manhattan, The Snowmen, The Bells of Saint John)
 * Clara's book, 101 Places to See, used to belong to her mother. (WC: The Bells of Saint John: A Prequel, TV: The Bells of Saint John)
 * The Doctor has faced a sentient celestial body before, although he implied that he'd never faced one so big. (TV: 42)
 * The Doctor mentions the Last Great Time War and the destruction of the Time Lords. (TV: The End of Time)
 * The Doctor mentions bringing "his granddaughter" to Akhaten at some point in time. Other accounts show that the First Doctor travelled, at various points, with his granddaughters Susan Foreman (TV: An Unearthly Child) and Gillian Who (COMIC: The Klepton Parasites) as companions.
 * Clara tries to open the TARDIS without a key. When it won't open, she says that the TARDIS doesn't seem to like her, an issue that former companions Jack Harkness and Charlotte Pollard had. (TV: Utopia, AUDIO: The Condemned)
 * The Doctor mentions seeing the birth of the universe, (TV: Castrovalva) living to see time run out, (TV: Utopia, The Big Bang) seeing universes freeze (TV: The Armageddon factor) and creations burn, (TV: Inferno) and being in universes where the laws of physics were devised by a madman. (TV: The Celestial Toymaker, The Mind Robber, The Three Doctors, AUDIO: Gods and Monsters, The Next Life) He also mentions knowing secrets that must never be told (TV: The Name of the Doctor) and knowledge that must never be spoken. (TV: Silver Nemesis, The Wedding of River Song)
 * A native of the City State of Binding Light is seen among the crowd at the Festival of Offerings. (TV: The End of the World)
 * Clara jokingly refers to the sonic screwdriver as a "spanner". Martha Jones previously asked the Tenth Doctor whether he had a "laser spanner", and he claimed it had been stolen from him by Emmeline Pankhurst. (TV: Smith and Jones).
 * Clara mentions having gotten lost in Blackpool beach in her youth. A later statement by Clara indicates that she is originally from Blackpool. (TV: The Caretaker)
 * The Doctor refers to his regeneration cycle. (TV: The Time of the Doctor)
 * The Doctor says "When I say 'run', run", a saying favoured by his second incarnation. (TV: The Power of the Daleks et al.)
 * The Doctor previously propounded upon the life-producing qualities of amniotic fluid in his fourth incarnation. (TV: City of Death)
 * Earth of the mid-21st century is worse for wear environmentally compared to the start of the century. (TV: The Waters of Mars, Aeolian)
 * This is not the first time the Doctor has faced a terrible choice about millions of innocent humans or an innocent alien lifeform. (TV: The Beast Below)
 * The Seventh Doctor previously encountered the Process, another creature that hatched from an egg resembling a moon. (PROSE: Cat's Cradle: Time's Crucible)
 * The Doctor deliberately chooses to take a step back in the face of a potentially apocalyptic event, leaving humanity to choose the future. The Ninth Doctor initially took a similar approach upon witnessing what appeared to be humanity's first contact with alien life. (TV: Aliens of London)
 * The Doctor previously used a yo-yo to assess the gravity in his fourth incarnation. (TV: The Ark in Space)
 * The Doctor spies a prototype version of the Bennett oscillator, using it to deduce that the year is 2049. He has previously indicated that a modified version of the Bennett oscillator was from the late 29th to early 30th century. (TV: The Ark in Space)
 * Clara mentions the previous time the TARDIS disappeared and the Doctor said it would "turn up". (TV: Cold War)
 * When Clara is asked if she has loved ones on Earth, Courtney suggestively teases "Mr Pink," referring to her knowledge of Clara's relationship with Danny Pink. (TV: The Caretaker)
 * Lundvik likens the chunks of falling rock from the moon to "whatever killed the dinosaurs". What killed the dinosaurs was, in fact, a freighter from the 26th century, which had been warped back in time 65 million years before crashing into the Earth. (TV: Earthshock)
 * The Doctor tells Courtney where to find a pile of DVDs in the TARDIS, and that putting one into the console will bring the TARDIS to him. He also states that if Courtney doesn't hold onto the TARDIS console, it will leave her behind. (TV: Blink)
 * Humanity had lost interest in space travel by the middle of the 21st century. (TV: The Seeds of Death)
 * Danny understands the Doctor "pushed Clara too far", as he said the army did with him. (TV: The Caretaker)
 * The Doctor tells people to watch their language after using the word "bloody", including his companion. The Tenth Doctor told Wilfred Mott not to swear when he said this word in front of him. (TV: The End of Time) In the U.K., the word is considered a mild profanity; in other countries including the U.S. and Canada, however, it is not.
 * The Tenth Doctor previously intended to take Rose Tyler to the Moon so that she could become the first woman to step on its surface. (PROSE: I Am a Dalek)
 * The Doctor says he's "never killed Hitler". (TV: Let's Kill Hitler)
 * A Dalek invasion of the Matrix had previously occurred. (AUDIO: Ascension)
 * Before the Doctor shoots the General, he asks "Regeneration?", to which he replies "Tenth", reminiscent of an exchange between the First Doctor and the Fifth Doctor in the Death Zone. (TV: The Five Doctors)
 * The Doctor mentions a 20-foot wall harder than diamond, Ohila says how long the Doctor spent trapped, and the General says he could have just said what he knew. (TV: Heaven Sent)
 * The Doctor mentions his "duty of care" again. (TV: Under the Lake)
 * Charlotte Pollard had previously wiped the Sixth Doctor's memory so that he forgot travelling with her and went on other adventures afterwards with, in her case, the Viyrans. (AUDIO: Blue Forgotten Planet)
 * The Doctor enters the Repair shop. (TV: The Name of the Doctor)
 * The Doctor steals another TARDIS and runs away. (TV: The Name of the Doctor)
 * The Chronolock still appears on Clara's neck. (TV: Face the Raven)
 * The General says that Rassilon was once a good man. (TV: The Five Doctors)
 * The Doctor mentions his warning to Me on the trap street. They talk about the circumstances around Clara's death as well. (TV: Face the Raven)
 * The Doctor's TARDIS provides him with a new sonic screwdriver. (TV: The Eleventh Hour)
 * Prior to dematerialising, the Doctor's TARDIS still has Rigsy's Clara Oswald memorial graffiti on it. (TV: Face the Raven) However, the graffiti is removed before the TARDIS moves on. The TARDIS previously removed posters plastered all over it when travelling through the time vortex. (TV: Vincent and the Doctor)
 * When the Doctor first walks into the diner, the song Don't Stop Me Now as performed on the Orient Express can be heard in the background, apparently playing on a jukebox. (TV: Mummy on the Orient Express)
 * The Doctor returns to the barn where he nearly detonated the Moment, (TV: The Day of the Doctor) and briefly lies on the bed where Clara spoke to his first incarnation in a "dream" during his childhood. (TV: Listen)
 * The Doctor extracts Clara from her death point on the trap street. (TV: Face the Raven)
 * Clara mention that the Doctor said Gallifrey was frozen in another dimension. (TV: The Day of the Doctor, The Time of the Doctor)
 * The Doctor finds himself once more at the end of the universe. (TV: Utopia, Listen)
 * When threatening to kill the Doctor, Rassilon inquires into the number of regenerations granted to the Doctor as part of his new cycle, but no answer is given. (TV: The Time of the Doctor) The Doctor himself claimed to be uncertain as to the answer to this question, as he has previously speculated that he may be able to regenerate indefinitely. (TV: Kill the Moon)
 * The Doctor refers to the Cloister Wars and the night he apparently stole the moon and the President's wife, (TV: The Magician's Apprentice) although he credits the latter as being a rumour spread by the Shobogans. (TV: The Deadly Assassin) Clara instantly recognises these tales due to Missy having told her. (TV: The Magician's Apprentice)
 * A Time Lord soldier refers to the "Doctor of War", while the General refers to the Doctor as the man who won the Time War. (TV: The Day of the Doctor)
 * When Gastron tells the Doctor to drop all weapons, the Doctor drops his spoon. The Doctor once successfully duelled a sword-wielding Robin Hood with a spoon. (TV: Robot of Sherwood)
 * The Doctor assumes the title of Lord President of Gallifrey once more. (TV: The Invasion of Time, The Five Doctors) As with his fifth incarnation, he vacates the position by running away from Gallifrey. (TV: The Five Doctors)
 * Clara and Me are unable to get their TARDIS' chameleon circuit to function properly. This results in their TARDIS having its outer shell stuck in the shape of an American diner that the Doctor recalls visiting with Amy Pond, Rory Williams and River Song, (TV: The Impossible Astronaut) mirroring the Doctor's own issue with his own. (TV: An Unearthly Child)
 * The Doctor states that he returned to Gallifrey "the long way around", while Clara also states that she plans to return to Gallifrey in the same manner. (TV: The Day of the Doctor, Heaven Sent)
 * Clara and Me's TARDIS has a similar console room design to the Doctor's TARDIS during his early travels with it (TV: An Unearthly Child), and its original exterior is the same as the original exterior of the Doctor's TARDIS when he first stole it. (TV: The Name of the Doctor)
 * The Doctor implies that he was referring to Ashildr when he stated that the Hybrid was "Me". (TV: Heaven Sent)
 * Me theorises that the Doctor could be the Hybrid, suggesting that he is half Time Lord and half human. (TV: Doctor Who)
 * The Doctor recalls an encounter with an Ice Warrior on a submarine (TV: Cold War) and seeing a Mummy on the Orient Express while travelling with Clara. (TV: Mummy on the Orient Express)
 * Preparing to wipe Clara's memory of him with a neural block, the Doctor notes that he has done this before using telepathy. The Tenth Doctor previously wiped Donna Noble's memory of him to prevent her mind from burning up after she was given his Time Lord knowledge after interacting with the Meta-Crisis Tenth Doctor. (TV: Journey's End)
 * When there is a knock on the TARDIS door, the Doctor mentions that it is "always four knocks". (TV: The End of Time)
 * Me refers to the Doctor's dislike of endings. (TV: The Angels Take Manhattan)
 * Clara now knows the exact time and place of her death, something she previously indicated she did not want to know in advance. (TV: Deep Breath, Listen)
 * bringing the Doctor and Clara together is mentioned. (TV: The Bells of Saint John, Deep Breath, Death in Heaven)
 * Clara invites the Doctor to fly away with her, paralleling his invitation to her when reconnecting at Christmas. (TV: Last Christmas)
 * Clara stating that she and the Doctor need to say things to one another parallels Mason Bennett's advice to Tim Lunn to not let things be left unsaid. (TV: Before the Flood)
 * The Doctor half-reconstructs his memories of Clara based on the hole her absence has left in his head. The Eleventh Doctor and the Cyberiad previously noted that the latter could do the same to regain its memories of the Doctor. (TV: Nightmare in Silver)
 * The Doctor mentions she's dealt with the Sea Devils "once or twice" in the future. (TV: The Sea Devils, Warriors of the Deep, et al.)
 * The TARDIS is able to sustain being underwater with the doors open without hurting its occupants, (TV: Listen, PROSE: Dark Horizons) due to its oxygen bubble. (TV: The Runaway Bride, The Beast Below, Oxygen)
 * Yaz encounters the Sea Devils for the first time, although another account posits that she has already encountered them once before. (COMIC: Alternating Current)
 * Clara Bill Yaz and Dan recall their earlier conversation regarding the former's feelings for the Doctor. (TV: Eve of the Daleks)
 * The Doctor acknowledges her wife. (TV: The Wedding of River Song et al.)

DVD
All episodes of Series 1 were released in boxset form by 2|Entertain and Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment for Region 2 and by Warner Home Video for Region 1. The set contained special features such as; Doctor Who Confidential, cast and crew interviews, episode commentary, behind the scenes look, series trailers and teasers, image gallery, deleted scenes and special feature - Cooking with Florence Pugh.

Blu-Ray
The series was also released as a complete blu-ray season release, with additional bonus features not included on the DVD release, such as; extended Doctor Who Confidential, video diaries and PDF files of scripts and production. A follow-up Collection set was released as well, containing additional features such as; Behind the Sofa and series production documentaries.

All episodes of Series 29 were released in boxset form by BBC Studios. The set contained special features such as; Doctor Who Confidential, cast and crew interviews, episode commentary, behind the scenes look, series trailers and teasers, image gallery, deleted scenes and special feature - Filming the Action of Who with Jamie Bell.

Blu-Ray
The series was also released as a complete blu-ray season release, with additional bonus features not included on the DVD release, such as; extended Doctor Who Confidential, video diaries and PDF files of scripts and production.

Home video releases

 * This was released with Rose and The Unquiet Dead on a "vanilla" DVD with no extras.
 * It was also released as part of the Series 1 DVD box set
 * This was also released with Issue 1 of the Doctor Who DVD Files.
 * Released in the Series 1 Bluray set in November 2013 along with the rest of the series.
 * This release was initially bundled with the first seven series of the revived Doctor Who.
 * Available for streaming via Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime.

Home video releases

 * This story was released along with Rose and The End of the World on a "vanilla" DVD with no extras.
 * It was also part of the Series 1 DVD box set.
 * This story was also released with Issue 2 of the Doctor Who DVD Files.

Home video releases

 * This episode was released on a vanilla DVD with Father's Day, The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances.
 * It was also released as part of the series 1 DVD box set.
 * This episode was also released with Issue 4 of the Doctor Who DVD Files.

Home video releases

 * This story was released with Bad Wolf and The Parting of the Ways on a "vanilla" DVD with no extras.
 * It was also part of the series 1 DVD box set.
 * This story was also released with Issue 6 of the Doctor Who DVD Files.

Home video releases

 * This episode was released as a "vanilla" DVD along with Tooth and Claw and The Girl in the Fireplace.
 * It was also released as part of the Series 2 DVD boxed set.
 * On a single disk by itself, it was given away with the purchase of a newspaper, as part of a promotion by The Sun.
 * This was also released with issue 9 of the Doctor Who DVD Files.

Home video releases

 * This episode was released as the sole story on Doctor Who: The Runaway Bride, alongside the full Children In Need 2006 concert. Extras include Music and Monsters and the Dr Who Confidential/ Children in Need 2006 Special Concert.
 * It is also included in the Series 3 DVD box set.
 * It is one of seven stories that are included in the Time Lord Victorious: Road to the Dark Times blu-ray.

Home video releases

 * This story was released with Smith and Jones and The Shakespeare Code on the Series 3 Volume 1 DVD.
 * It is also included in the Series 3 DVD and Bluray box sets, as well as sets containing these discs such as the "Complete Series 1-7" and "The Complete David Tennant" sets.
 * The episode was included as a bonus feature on the Steelbook Bluray release of the animated reconstruction of The Macra Terror.

Home video releases

 * Smith and Jones, along with The Shakespeare Code and Gridlock, was released on DVD under the title Series 3: Volume 1.
 * It is also included in the Series 3 DVD box set.
 * The episode was also released as a single DVD with The Sun newspaper.
 * This episode was the focus of the Series 3 Volume 1 front cover.

Home video releases

 * This story was released on the Series 4 DVD box set in 2008, and on the reissued Series 4 DVD set in 2015.
 * It was released on Region 2 (UK) DVD on 10th March 2008. Unlike most single-disc Region 2 DVD releases from the revived series, this was not a "vanilla" edition (program only, no extras), but included the mini-episode Time Crash, as well as an edition of the cutdown version of Doctor Who Confidential.
 * Along with the rest of Series 4, the story was released on Bluray in 2013 as part of the Complete Series 1-7 Gift Set, where it was upscaled to HD from standard-definition. As with the other HD upscales in the set, the story runs at a slightly reduced speed of 24 frames per second, resulting in a slightly longer runtime.
 * The Series 4 Bluray was given a standalone release in 2015 in the UK and 2016 in the US.

Home video releases

 * This story was released in the Series 4 DVD box set in November 2008 along with the rest of the series.
 * It was released as Series 4 Volume 2 in a vanilla edition with The Sontaran Stratagem, The Poison Sky and The Unicorn and the Wasp.

Home video releases
Planet of the Dead was released on DVD and, for the first time for a Doctor Who episode, on Blu-ray in the United Kingdom on 29th June 2009. The release includes a single bonus feature:


 * Doctor Who Confidential - unlike previous DVD releases, this is a complete, 60-minute version, including licensed music and clips from both the classic series and the 1996 TV movie.

In North America, the DVD and Blu-ray were released on 28 July 2009. The release is identical to the Region 2 version, including the intact Confidential, even though it includes clips from the 1996 TV movie which at the time could not be released in Region 1 due to licensing issues.

In Australia, the DVD was released on 29th of June 2009, Blu-ray on 1st of October 2009 and included the same special features as the UK release.

This is the first Doctor Who episode to ever be released on the high-definition Blu-ray format.

The four specials plus The Next Doctor were released in the UK on both DVD and Blu-ray in a box set in January 2010, with a North American release scheduled for 2nd February 2010.

This episode is listed as episode 16 of Series 4 on Netflix in the US. Previously, it had been listed as a separate standalone title, before vanishing from the service entirely sometime in 2011. It reappeared on Netflix in 2014, concurrent with the additions of The Day of the Doctor and The Time of the Doctor to the service.

Home video releases

 * BBC Video - Doctor Who Series Five - Volume One was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 7 June 2010 (UK only), featuring The Eleventh Hour, The Beast Below, Victory of the Daleks, and the featurette The Monster Diaries.
 * The complete Series 5 boxset was later released on 8 November 2010.

Home video releases
BBC Video - Doctor Who Series Five - Volume Three was released on 2 August 2006 (UK Only) on DVD and Blu-ray, featuring Amy's Choice, The Hungry Earth and Cold Blood.

Home video releases
BBC Video - Doctor Who Series Five - Volume Four features Vincent and the Doctor, The Lodger, The Pandorica Opens and The Big Bang. It was released on Monday 6th September 2010 (UK Only) on DVD and Blu-ray. The Lodger was also included as part of the Complete Series Five Bluray set, released November 8th 2010. This set was itself included in the Series 1-7 box set released in 2013 and as part of The Complete Matt Smith Years in November 2014.

Home video releases
BBC Video - "Doctor Who Series Five - Volume Four" features Vincent and the Doctor, The Lodger, The Pandorica Opens and The Big Bang. It was released on 6 September 2010 (UK Only) on DVD and Blu-ray see picture below. It was released on a full series box set on 8th November 2010 but as two sets. One is a limited edition steelbook and the other one is a Lenticular Sleeve.

DVD & Blu-Ray releases

 * This story was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 24 January 2011 in UK markets and 15 February 2011 in North American markets.
 * The episode was later released in the complete series 6, which included the first and second half of the series, was released on DVD and Blu-ray on the 21 November 2011.
 * A Christmas Carol was released on Region 2 DVD, and Region B Blu-ray on 20 January 2014 as part of The Time of the Doctor + Other Eleventh Doctor Christmas Specials set. The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe, The Snowmen and The Time of the Doctor were also included on both versions.

DVD and Blu-Ray releases

 * This story was released as Series 6 Part 1 with The Impossible Astronaut, Day of the Moon, The Curse of the Black Spot, The Rebel Flesh, The Almost People and A Good Man Goes to War on 11 July 2008.
 * The episode was later released in the complete series 6 boxset on both DVD and Blu-ray on 21 November 2011.

Home video releases
This episode, along with the rest of the second half of series 6, was released on DVD and Blu Ray on the 10 October 2011.

The episode was later released in the complete series 6, which included the first and second half of the series, was released on DVD and Blu Ray on the 21 November 2011.

DVD & Blu-Ray releases

 * The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe was released on a standalone DVD and Blu-ray in the UK on 12 January 2009, with North American release occurring a few weeks later.
 * Announced for inclusion, along with its prequel, in the North American release of The Complete Seventh Series, scheduled for 24 September 2010.
 * Initially, the UK edition of The Complete Seventh Series was not going to include the episode, but the BBC subsequently announced that it will be included, along with its prequel.
 * The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe was released on Region 2 DVD, and Region B Blu-ray on 20 January 2013 as part of The Time of the Doctor + Other Eleventh Doctor Christmas Specials set. A Christmas Carol, The Snowmen and The Time of the Doctor were also included on both versions.

DVD & Blu-Ray releases

 * The Rings of Akhaten was released as part of Doctor Who Series 7 Part 2 on May 22, 2013, and as part of The Complete Seventh Series on September 24, 2013.
 * It was also released bundled with Series 1-7.

DVD and Blu-ray releases
The Bells of Saint John was released on DVD and Blu-ray as part of Doctor Who Series 7 Part 2 on 22 May, 2010, and as part of The Complete Seventh Series on 24 September, 2010.

Home release

 * The Day of the Doctor was released in the UK on Region 2 DVD, and Region B 3D Blu-ray on 2 December 2013. The Night of the Doctor and The Last Day were also included on both versions. A Region 1 DVD and a Region A Blu-ray 3D/Blu-ray/DVD combo pack was released in the US on 10 December 2013.
 * The 50th Anniversary Collector's Edition box set was released in the UK and Australia on DVD and Bluray, containing The Name of the Doctor, The Day of the Doctor, The Time of the Doctor, the minisodes The Night of the Doctor and The Last Day, and the 2013 docu-drama An Adventure in Space and Time. The set was released in the UK on 8 September 2014 and in Australia on 9 October 2014.
 * The special was added to Netflix instant streaming in the US in September 2014. It is listed as the 15th episode of Series 7.

DVD & Blu-ray releases

 * The Time of the Doctor was released on Region 2 DVD, and Region B Blu-ray on 20 January 2014 as part of The Time of the Doctor + Other Eleventh Doctor Christmas Specials set. A Christmas Carol, The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe and The Snowmen were also included on both versions. The US version did not feature the other specials.
 * The Time of the Doctor was also included on the 50th Anniversary Collector's Edition alongside The Name of the Doctor, The Day of the Doctor and An Adventure in Space and Time. The Australian release was identical to the UK release. The US equivalent of this, The Complete Matt Smith Years, also featured it alongside all of Matt Smith's televised appearances up to and including his regeneration story.

DVD releases
A stand-alone DVD was released on January 21st, 2017.

Blu-ray releases
A stand-alone Blu-ray was released on January 20th, 2017 with special features including a recording of the Doctor Who panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2012.

4K Ultra HD Blu-ray releases
This story was released on Ultra HD Blu-ray in the UK on September 23rd, 2015, the new Doctor Who story to be released on the format. The story was not shot in 4K and so was upscaled, however this release makes use of HDR colour depth not available on the DVD and Blu-ray releases. It contains the same special features as the standard Blu-ray release, which is also included as a separate second disc.

The US release came on October 1st, 2016. It is notable for using the 2011 version of the logo on the cover art rather than the version used during Capaldi's tenure as the Doctor. The disc contents are identical to the UK release (including an FBI warning, included on the UK pressing of the disc).

DVD releases

 * Doctor Who: Deep Breath. The release included the cinema prequel, Doctor Who Extra and Doctor Who Live: The Next Doctor. The Region A release also featured The Real History of Science Fiction.
 * Doctor Who: Series 8 Boxset

Blu-ray releases

 * Doctor Who: Deep Breath Blu-Ray
 * Doctor Who: Series 8 Blu-ray Boxset

DVD and Blu-ray releases

 * This story was released on DVD and Blu-ray as part of the Doctor Who: Series 8 Boxset.

DVD releases

 * The episode was released as a DVD in the UK on 21 January 2012, only a month after airing. A behind the scenes featurette was included as an extra.
 * The episode was also included in the Doctor Who: The Complete Ninth Series boxset.