10 Greatest Modern Doctor Who Episodes

It's important for any anniversary special to stand out and emphasize the success of the show, but for the 50th anniversary, it was even more vital that The Day of the Doctor exceeded all expectations... and that it did!

Not only were we treated to the return of fan-favourite David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor alongside Matt Smith's starring Eleventh, but we were also introduced to an entirely new incarnation of the character. Now, this could have failed. Fans could've easily rebelled against this or viewed it as a cop-out for such a significant milestone, but through the superb casting of John Hurt, the seamless way the character was integrated into existing Who lore, and the intriguingly strained relationship between all three incarnations, it was instead a captivating addition to the story that was very easy to invest in.

Centering on the the Time War was also a smart move. As the greatest mystery in the modern era and something that had been mentioned since Christopher Eccleston first appeared in 2005, it was deeply emotional to watch the Doctor reconcile with all that history, while viewers at home were doing the exact same thing.

And then, of course, there's the fan service. Tom Baker as the Curator. The Room of Easter Eggs – sorry, the Black Archive. Ten and Eleven's sass-off. "No sir, all thirteen!" We couldn't not list The Day of the Doctor as one of the greatest modern episodes, could we?