10 Greatest Doctor Who Moments Of 2023

10. Meeting The Meep

One of the most baffling things to come out of public filming for the 60th was a photo of a furry little creature strongly resembling comic-strip character the Meep.

As we now know, that’s because special one was an adaptation of The Star Beast, the strip in which the Meep first appeared.

Some had doubts about how convincing a live-action Meep would be, and it didn’t help that the photo made it look like a giant snowball! Realised as an entirely practical or CG creation, the Meep could so easily have been a failure, but happily, the finished effect was a combination of both approaches, with a practical costume enhanced by computer-generated blinks and mouth movements (plus Miriam Margolyes’ magnificent vocal performance!).

It’s seriously impressive – nowhere more so than in the scene between the Meep and Rose in her shed. Not once do you look at the cuddly fella and think “that’s just a person in a suit”, or “that bit’s CGI”. Meep even manages to elicit sympathy with its cute puppy dog eyes – no mean feat for a ball of fluff!

As ever, the final word should go to Donna, who is astounded by how “real” the Meep looks when she stumbles upon it. Can’t argue with that!