10 Most Cringeworthy Doctor Who Moments From The '80s
3. "No, Not The Mind Probe!" - The Five Doctors (1983)
What exactly is it about this moment in The Five Doctors that has overshadowed all of the other cringey moments in that gloriously silly anniversary story? Is it the fact that only in science fiction can a line like "No, not the mind probe!" even exist - although most writers would think not twice but many times before using it? Is it Paul Jerricho's oddly accented delivery of the line, as seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrvh_jB6c70 Is it the bizarre notion that the Time Lords use such a thing, and that its use is both so horrifying that the Castellan is terrified of it and so mundane that his horror sounds more like...well, boredom? Who knows? Who cares? But when there's a moment like this in both the commentary tracks on the DVD that those involved have to stop whatever else they're talking about and acknowledge it, you know that something has reached an epic level of cringiness. It's not quite the Doctor Who equivalent of "Khaaaannn!" but it comes awfully close.
Tony Whitt has previously written TV, DVD, and comic reviews for CINESCAPE, NOW PLAYING, and iF MAGAZINE. His weekly COMICSCAPE columns from the early 2000s can still be found archived on Mania.com. He has also written a book of gay-themed short stories titled CRESCENT CITY CONNECTIONS, available on Amazon.com in both paperback and Kindle format. Whitt currently lives and works in Chicago, Illinois.