Doctor Who: 14 Most Paused Moments Of The Last Decade

12. Regeneration Shocks The Nation (The Stolen Earth)

At least, it was until this came along! Remember that aforementioned Series 4 finale that defied the realms of time and space? Well, it really was the Doctor Who finale to end them all with the return of multiple companions, Davros' attempt to reduce the entire universe to atoms with his army of almighty Daleks and, just in case all of that wasn't enough to get our pulses racing, Russell T Davies went and threw in the Tenth Doctor's unannounced 'sort of' regeneration in the middle of it. Because why the hell not?! Yes, if you were to ever ask a Doctor Who fan to choose the most frustrating Doctor Who cliffhanger ever, they'd probably pick this one. It was just so damned unexpected, when, just five minutes prior, the nation had been hugging their pillows at the sight of David Tennant and Billie Piper running towards each other in a mist of fangasming angst. This is Doctor Who, of course, so, naturally, a Dalek had to appear out of nowhere and completely ruin the moment by shooting our beloved Time Lord dead. What followed were five of the most confusing minutes in Doctor Who history as Rose, Donna and Jack carried our hero back into the TARDIS where he proceeded to regenerate before their - and our - very eyes. Oh, throw in the fact that Gwen Cooper, Ianto Jones and Sarah Jane Smith were also about to be exterminated and it's safe to say that nobody quite knew what the hell was even going on anymore. Apart from Russell, of course, who was probably watching the drama unfold as he laughed manically and stroked a white cat like the evil genius he is. Hell, they even made the formidable 'TO. BE. CONTINUED' title screen even more dramatic to mark the momentous occasion and, as you hit your 'pause' button to try and fathom some form of sensical understanding, there was a genuine feeling that Doctor Who was never going to be the same again. As it turns out, though, nothing really changed at all, but it certainly looked very dire for a minute there, didn't it? And speaking of shock regenerations...