10 Biggest Events In Doctor Who That You Never Got To See
4. Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart's Death
Nicholas Courtney played the Brigadier, who was an iconic companion from the classic era of Doctor Who. He travelled with the Second and Third Doctors, while also meeting the First, Fourth, Fifth and Seventh. He was present in the Tomb of Rassilon during the events of the Five Doctors and also helped Sarah-Jane Smith in some of her adventures as well through the years.
While the Eleventh Doctor was struggling with the idea of his own mortality, he latched on to his friends as a means of escaping his fate. Having left Craig, with whom he once shared a house, the Doctor donned a stetson and called the nursing home in which the Brigadier had been living, telling one of the nurses to get him up and ready to party. The line then goes quiet as the sad news of his old friend's death comes through.
The scene was included as a tribute to Courtney, who had recently passed away. The very nature of the show meant that, for the Doctor, he could simply nip back in time and have a chat with a younger version of the man, yet this inclusion here helped the Doctor come to terms with his own mortality, while acknowledging crucial player in the Whoniverse overall.