Doctor Who Series 10: 10 Biggest WTF Moments
3. The Shooting Of Bill Potts
Had the BBC not officially announced John Simm’s return then
the reveal of Razor as the Master would have been the greatest WTF moment in
the entire history of the show. It was a brilliant disguise and even after the
event it’s hard to see Simm behind the prosthetics or hear the actor’s natural
voice behind the Fagin-like accent. But that moment was sadly stolen from most
of us.
Instead, the shooting of Bill was the biggest shock of World Enough and Time. There was one early trailer that teased an unhappy ending for the character and Pearl Mackie’s departure at the end of series 10 had been well documented if not officially confirmed. But the manner of her ‘death’, it’s placement at the beginning of the episode and the seeming irreversibility of it was hugely dramatic.
The ‘Blueish’ caretaker wasn’t taking any chances. Not content to kill her gently he blasts a gaping hole through her chest in a Mortal Kombat meets Death Becomes Her kind of way. We had little warning, no time to run behind the sofa, and though we don’t see it happen, we see the shock etched on the Doctor’s face before the camera pans to his still standing, mortally wounded companion. Our jaws have already dropped before Bill falls to the floor. At least it was quick in comparison with Clara’s death in Face the Raven.