10 Greatest Cold Opens In Doctor Who

And they say Infinity War is the biggest crossover event of all time...

The Stolen Earth is the culmination of four series worth of tightly-knit world building that no other era has been able to match. Russell T. Davies opens the Series 4 finale by firing on all cylinders, bringing back all three main companions that had featured in the series up to that point and even incorporating both of the running spin-offs at the time: Captain Jack's Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures, plus their supporting casts. If that's not enough, UNIT are there too, and most importantly of all, everyone's dream Grandad, Wilfred Mott.

And all of these characters are shown before the opening credits (which boast a record-breaking six floating names).

This episode has a sense of scale and stakes that are near impossible to top, as Earth is transported halfway across the universe. This revelation is teased throughout the opening sequence, with the big reveal being saved for the closing moments, as Rose Tyler finally makes her long-awaited return to the show, toting a chonker of a gun and frightening a milkman who is already having a really rough day.

In terms of hype - this is the best it gets, and the fact that The Stolen Earth is told from the perspective of its hefty supporting cast instead of The Doctor and Donna keeps the hype-train running for the full 45 minutes. It's event television at its finest.