10 Times Doctor Who Accidentally Predicted Our Future
6. The 1985 Hiatus
1985's infamously grisly serial Vengeance on Varos is a Doctor Who story that commented on the burgeoning trade in so-called "video nasties". It also gleefully depicted torture, hangings, and horrific medical experiments.
The writing was on the wall for Doctor Who during Season 22. BBC One controller Michael Grade was no fan of the series, and was considering cancelling it. The violence and horror within Vengeance on Varos is a perfect example of the brutal tone to which Grade reportedly objected - though, in later years, this reasoning has been brought into question.
Regardless, there is a sense that the violence is being amped up during Colin Baker's first season, and with this in mind, Vengeance on Varos' part one cliffhanger is oddly prophetic.
The Doctor drops to the floor, exhausted, dehydrated, and seemingly close to death. It cuts to the studio gallery where a production assistant counts down the clock before pulling the plug. A few months later, and Michael Grade would be doing the exact same thing.