10 Biggest Controversies In Doctor Who History

The Doctor has been journeying across our TV screens since the early '60s, and as a result, the show has a fanbase that spans from grown adults who remember the Jon Pertwee, Patrick Troughton, and William Hartnell days, to young children who've grown up watching Matt Smith, Peter Capaldi, and Jodie Whittaker.

This massive age range means that opinions about the show are about as varied as it's possible to get, and sure enough, there are few properties out there with a fanbase as passionate as Doctor Who's - and these fans have certainly had a lot to talk about.

With 57 years of TV to digest, Whovians have had many different issues to discuss, debate, and yes, complain about. From off-camera friction to major canon shake-ups, Doctor Who's history is riddled with controversial moments, and with the show unlikely to be ending any time soon, there are definitely more to come too.

But for now, let's focus on the past. Doctor Who is pure escapist entertainment, but that doesn't mean it's immune to the controversial sting of some serious real-world issues and drama, as these ten incidents proved.

Series 7B was a weird time for Doctor Who. While still entertaining, there's something that feels a little bit off about this particular run of episodes, especially when compared to showrunner Steven Moffat's first two seasons in charge.

There are no standout, show-stopper episodes like The Pandorica Opens or A Good Man Goes To War, and aside from the finale, everything feels merely serviceable. Again, it's still entertaining - it just lacks that extra pop, that "wow" factor.

Around this time, it's said that Moffat was extremely overworked and tired, pouring all of his creative energy into the show's 50th anniversary celebrations, while also focusing on the third series of Sherlock. This, along with a few other factors - such as Doctor Who being moved to a brand-new studio during the production of the series, and a script for Nightmare in Silver being left in a taxi by an actress - added to his stress levels, and is likely why 7B feels like it lacks that extra bit of Moff magic.

But perhaps the biggest issue facing the show around this time was the falling out that Moffat had with Caroline Skinner, who was Doctor Who's executive producer.

The pair reportedly had a massive bust-up at a party hosted by the BBC, with Moffat yelling "you are erased from Doctor Who". This is supposedly what led to Skinner's surprisingly early departure from the show after just one series, giving Moffat another huge problem on top of his already insane workload.

It's not known exactly why Moffat and Skinner were at odds, but the fact that its two driving creative minds didn't get along does explain why 7B feels a little bit unloved.