Doctor Who: 10 Biggest Missed Opportunities Of Series 8

5. No New Writers For Episodes 3-6

Mark Gatiss has now written seven episodes, Gareth Roberts has written six, and Stephen Thompson has penned two such universally panned episodes that the only possible explanation for him being invited back is that he begged Steven Moffat for help since he was unable to even get a job cleaning the BBC's industrial dustbins with his tongue.

While Mark Gatiss' episode was enjoyable, it followed his usual formula of 'the Doctor meeting an historical figure' which fans have already seen five times before. In a similar fashion, Gareth Robert's episode followed the same 'the Doctor is out of place and acts funny because he doesn't understand modern day earth' (comfortably forgetting where the majority of his long term travelling companions are from) that we've seen twice already.

Neither of these stories needed to be made in a series which can go anywhere in time and space, especially in a series which survives on change - the best being the most drastic and ballsy change, keeping the stories earthbound in the classic show for three years. Moffat getting his friends from Sherlock to keep penning episodes keeps us from seeing more from the stock of new writers like Jamie Matheison, who was easily the best writer of the series. Which leads nicely to...