10 Greatest Cold Opens In Doctor Who

You join us amidst the journey of a man trying his best to not keep writing about Heaven Sent and continually failing miserably. Though it has to be said, this cold open, without a doubt, belongs on this list.

This masterpiece of an episode starts with shots of the castle within the Doctor's confession dial, locations that are seen throughout the episode, and focusing in on objects that feature heavily in the closing montage of the episode, all accompanied by a standout, fresh sounding score by Murray Gold. The Doctor monologues about death:

As you come into this world, something else is also born. You begin your life, and it begins a journey towards you.

He likens death to a slowly creeping ever-present shadow, never resting, never stopping - a speech that is dripping with meaning. The passage could apply to the Veil, which chases the Doctor throughout the episode, or to his and Clara's constant flirting with danger and its consequences, or even the death-loop the Doctor finds himself in.

As the monologue comes to an end, the previous copy of the Doctor burns himself up to create the version we follow through the episode. This Doctor exits the teleport, coldly examining his surroundings before addressing his captors, and he is not a happy bunny at all. It's clear we are getting a warpath Doctor this episode, as Twelve goes all Time Lord Victorious and threatens whoever is holding him. It's tense, goosebumps-level stuff that ranks amongst the greatest cold opens the show has ever seen.