10 Doctor Who Scenes Even More Impressive When You Know The Truth

6. A Very Old Friend

Doctor Who Planet of Fire Peri Turlough
BBC Studios

Towards the end of Jodie Whittaker's final outing The Power of the Doctor, Yaz joins a support group of former companions, who share stories of their adventures through time and space.

Present at the meeting are Yaz's friends Graham and Dan, alongside seasoned veterans like Ace, Tegan, Jo, Mel, Kate, and Ian.

Played by William Russell, Ian appeared in the very first episode of Doctor Who back in 1963, as one of the first humans to travel back in time in the TARDIS. He left the show in 1965, making it a whopping 57 years before he returned in The Power of the Doctor.

Now, we covered that 57-year hiatus in our video about the longest gaps between Doctor Who character appearances, but one detail we didn't mention - which somehow makes the scene even more impressive - is that Russell also broke the Guinness World Record for the longest gap between TV appearances.

His return was truly heartwarming, as most of the other cast members from that first episode are sadly no longer around. However, Ian's still here, alive and kicking. Are we sure he isn't a Time Lord?

 
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Jacob Simmons has a great many passions, including rock music, giving acclaimed films three-and-a-half stars, watching random clips from The Simpsons on YouTube at 3am, and writing about himself in the third person.