10 Greatest Classic Doctor Who Stories
9. The Tomb Of The Cybermen
The story goes that when The Tomb of the Cybermen was recovered from Hong Kong in the early '90s, fans were bitterly disappointed that the story didn't live up to their astronomical expectations from the production stills and the Target novelization.
Over 30 years later, we can appreciate this story for the stone-cold classic that it truly is.
The Tomb of the Cybermen gives a mystique to the titular villains that Doctor Who continues to trade on. It also boasts one of Patrick Troughton's best-ever performances in the lead role, as he fails to suppress his curiosity and throws himself headlong into working out the secrets of the tomb.
It also has one of the very best scenes in Doctor Who, in which the Second Doctor and Victoria talk about their families. "Our lives are different to anybody else's" - who says Russell T Davies invented emotion in Doctor Who?
There's also some brilliantly evocative location work in a Doctor Who quarry, and a guest cast of square-jawed heroes and cackling villains.
It's an utter joy, and at the BFI screening back in 2013, Steven Moffat reflected that this is the type of story that his era tried to remake every week. You can't say fairer than that.