What better way to ring in the new year than with a Doctor Who New Year’s special? There have been four so far, and we’re going to rank their popularity based on their viewing figures. Let’s see if we can reach a ‘resolution’…
4) Eve of the Daleks
Classic Doctor Who fans will notice the subtle nod to the 1967 story ‘The Evil of the Daleks‘ in the first of our Doctor Who New Year’s specials. Actually, this was the last one ever broadcast, airing on the 1st January 2022 with an audience of 4.40 million.
And this is certainly an original story. The Doctor, Yaz and Dan find themselves in a storage facility on New Year’s Eve, and they’re trapped in a time loop, with a Dalek. Basically, they have to find a way of breaking the time loop without getting exterminated, although (spoiler alert) they do get exterminated quite a lot!
But the twist with this particular Doctor Who New Year’s special is that the time loop keeps getting shorter each time it resets, so the Doctor has exponentially less time to find a solution, adding to the tension.
This is a fun and quirky adventure for the Thirteenth Doctor from Chris Chibnall, and signalled the beginning of the end of the Jodie Whittaker era. After this, she would star in just two more stories: ‘Legend of the Sea Devils’ and ‘The Power of the Doctor.’ There are plenty of funny moments, and one of the highlights must be the guest star Aisling Bea as Sarah, who plays the long-suffering manager of the storage facility. She would have made a great companion!
3) Revolution of the Daleks
Prepare for some political satire with the next of our Doctor Who New Year’s specials. In this adventure, the British government launches a brand new force of security robots who bear an uncanny similarity to the Doctor’s greatest enemy. The Prime Minister is Jo Patterson, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Theresa May, and she’s assisted by the business tycoon Jack Roberston, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Donald Trump.
Then there’s John Barrowman, finally making a proper return as Captain Jack Harkness for this 2021 Doctor Who New Year’s special. Jack was last seen in 2020’s ‘Fugitive of the Judoon,’ although he never got to meet the Doctor in that particular adventure. Here, he finds himself locked in the same prison as the eponymous Time Lord, and the pair conspire to escape in the TARDIS.
What’s notable about this Doctor Who New Year’s special is the complete redesign of the Daleks, which is the most significant in the monsters’ history (even more so than the radical overhaul in 2010’s ‘Victory of the Daleks.) There is a caveat, though, in that these are not the actual Daleks, but you’ll have to watch the episode to find out more.
‘Revolution of the Daleks’ was broadcast on the 1st January 2021, and seen by 6.25 million viewers.
2) Resolution
‘Resolution’ is rather a mysterious Doctor Who New Year’s special – so mysterious, in fact, that you could have watched the episode without ever knowing its name, owing to the omission of the title sequence. Once again, the Doctor finds herself battling a familiar enemy in bonded polycarbide armour, but the return of this classic monster was kept firmly under wraps, and few people knew of the Daleks‘ inclusion until the episode aired.
But as with the other Doctor Who New Year’s specials on this list, there is a twist. Here, the Dalek has lost its shell, and it needs to build a new one. It resorts to raiding a local scrap yard and constructing a new Dalek casing out of a hodgepodge of random components. Interestingly, it was this redesign that went on to inspire the appearance of the new Daleks in the following year’s special.
Written by Chris Chibnall and broadcast on the 1st January 2019, ‘Resolution’ marked the first time since 2005 that the series had opted for a New Year’s Day special instead of a Christmas special, a tradition which remained through to the end of the Jodie Whittaker era. It also marked the third time in the series’ history that an episode had aired without a title sequence, the others being ‘Sleep No More’ and ‘The Woman Who Fell to Earth.’ It was seen by 7.13 million viewers.
1) The End of Time: Part Two
‘The End of Time: Part Two’ is officially the first Doctor Who New Year’s special in the series’ history. Broadcast on the 1st January 2010, this milestone adventure marked the end of the Tenth Doctor era, and also saw the departure of showrunner Russell T Davies, who would not return to the series until the 60th anniversary in 2023.
And this was certainly an epic send-off for the Tenth Doctor, who found himself fighting some six billion versions of the Master, plus a band of conspiring Time Lords led by the villainous Rassilon, portrayed by Timothy Dalton.
There are many special moments in this Doctor Who New Year’s special, not the least the first appearance of Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor, who regenerates as the TARDIS burns around him. But perhaps one of the greatest things about ‘The End of Time’ is the decision to make Bernard Cribbins (a.k.a Wilfred Mott) the companion for this story. His granddaughter Donna Noble does appear, but she’s more of a periphery character owing to the fact that she has lost all knowledge of the Time Lord and the TARDIS.
All in all, this was a successful send-off for the Tenth Doctor (and indeed Russell T Davies) and was watched by a staggering 12.27 million viewers. Were you one of them?
And if you’re in the mood for more Doctor Who New Year’s specials, you could add the TV movie to your viewing list. It’s not technically a Doctor Who New Year’s special as it first aired on the 12th May 1996, but it’s set on New Year’s Eve, and there’s Auld Lang Syne, and fireworks. What more could you ask for?
But tell us, reader: which is your favourite of the Doctor Who New Year’s specials? Let us know in the comments below.
Isnt the TV Movie set on New Years? I know it isnt loved by most fans but its still a work of Art #MBE #1996