10 Best Doctor Who Characters In One Scene Only

2. Old Billy Shipton (Blink)

Doctor Who The Woman Who Fell To Earth Salad Man
BBC Studios

Since we're bending the rules with older/younger versions of characters, it would be an absolute crime to exclude the senior Billy Shipton from Blink.

Blink has been praised to death ever since it aired (and rightfully so), but a moment that isn't talked about enough is the scene in which old Billy enjoys a final, heartfelt conversation with Sally Sparrow, before peacefully passing away.

Having watched Billy's charming younger self flirt with Sally literally two minutes before, we immediately feel sympathetic towards this older version, who has lived a long, complicated life after being zapped back in time by the Weeping Angels.

The stark contrast between the fast-talking, energetic, twenty-something Billy, and this weary, ill, and pensive one is utterly devastating, and it's a real kick in the stomach when he rests his wrinkled hand against Sally's, tearfully wondering aloud where all the time has gone, and how he came to be this way.

Doctor Who Blink Billy Shipton Sally Sparrow hands
BBC

In a single moment, writer Steven Moffat and director Hettie MacDonald capture the true horror of the Weeping Angels, with actor Louis Mahoney only elevating their work with his incredibly moving performance.

A few moments later, and Billy is gone - leaving behind a scene that has more emotional texture than most entire episodes do. To everyone involved: bravo.

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Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.