10 Greatest Doctor Who Moments Of 2023

The Fifteenth Doctor made his full debut in The Church on Ruby Road, the first Christmas special in six years. To mark the occasion, the production team decided to resurrect a tradition from Christmas past.

The first three Doctor Who Christmas specials were accompanied by specially-composed musical numbers, beginning with 2005’s Song For Ten, and continuing with Love Don’t Roam and The Stowaway.

All three songs featured in the episodes they were made for, but only as background music, or as part of the incidental score. They also weren’t released as singles prior to broadcast, unlike 2023’s contribution: The Goblin Song.

It was an audacious bit of marketing, and you’ve got to give it to them for trying to make it Christmas number one. And brilliant and weird and dark though The Goblin Song is, there was more in the finished episode – a surprise extra verse sung by the Doctor and Ruby.

Viewers might've wondered what they’d signed up for when Ncuti Gatwa suddenly broke into song. But it was absolutely a defining moment for his Doctor, perfectly capturing his playfulness and feel-good factor.

There’s only one thing left to say: release the extended version!