10 Things Doctor Who Should Never Have Got Away With

When Doctor Who returned to television screens in 2005, it would have been very easy and entirely forgivable for the showrunners to play it safe. The odds were stacked against this regenerated series being a success, after all. It had died out somewhat unceremoniously following the Sylvester McCoy era, three years which saw the Doctor battling robot clowns, furry cat people and the infamous Kandy Man. As such, less adventurous head writer might have decided that a back to basics approach was best. Not Russell T Davies. He, and later Steven Moffat, produced their fair share of alien invasions and ranting Daleks to please the traditionalists, but alongside these they slipped in all sorts of unexpected delights. Episodes which went to places nobody would have considered safe... yet, somehow, they worked. This list will not concern itself with those episodes which stuck their necks out only to have them snapped by outraged fans. The decision to feature a green, absorbent Peter Kay or a bunch of sentient tree people, for example, might have pleased some but a far greater number started throwing their plastic sonic screwdrivers at the screen in disgust. These t0 episodes flew past the taste police and hit the back of the net. Let's begin!