10 Most Bizarre Doctor Who Moments

8. UNIT's Toy Tank (Robot)

Doctor Who
BBC

In this day and age, it's all-too easy to poke fun at some of the hokey visual effects in the classic series, but at the same time... we'd be lying if we said we didn't find this infamous moment highly amusing.

During Robot (Tom Baker's debut serial as the dazzling Fourth Doctor) the powerful K1 robot squares off against UNIT: it disintegrates a nearby soldier without even sustaining a scratch, forcing the Brigadier to wheel out the big guns.

And by "big guns" we mean a toy tank. Literally. A toy tank. The shot has been angled to try and make it look full-scale, but it's blatantly obvious that the budget for this scene just wasn't there. It truly is baffling to watch, but in an endearing sort of way, like a primary school kid's first attempt at an art project.

What makes this moment even better is the way the Doctor shoots down the Brigadier's confidence, almost like he's in on the joke. "I've brought along something that will deal with it" says the Brig. "I very much doubt it" retorts the Doc.

Baker had already proved he was a terrific Doctor by this point, but that line sealed it.

Contributor
Contributor

Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.