10 Most Terrifying NuWho Doctor Who Episodes
7. The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances
One of the very first NuWho horror episodes, The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances, centres around London 1940, following the Doctor and Rose as they get separated and chased around the city by a child wearing a gas mask constantly asking the question, "are you my mummy?".
The two-parter episode is often cited as one of the creepiest stories in the show's history and one of the best Ninth Doctor stories in general. After getting separated in London during World War II, Rose meets Captain Jack Harkness while the Ninth Doctor investigates a mysterious young boy wearing a gas mask and looking for his 'mommy' chasing a young Nancy around London. After reuniting, the three reluctantly join forces against an alien infection terrorising London during the Blitz.
Witnessing Dr Constantine morph into one of the gas mask children and the Doctor watching on in horror makes for one of the most horrific scenes in the two-parter episode. The other gas-masked children, all laying motionless until disturbed by Dr Constantine, created a deeply unsettling feeling (if not already) as they were all waiting for the little boy to look for his mummy.
Despite the horror elements and scare factor, The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances ends happily with the Doctor saving all the gas-masked children stating, "everybody lives Rose, just this once. Everybody lives!"