10 Doctor Who Moments Deeper Than You Think
Callbacks, subtle connections, and other Doctor Who moments where there's more than meets the eye.
For a show that has existed for almost 60 years, it's got to the point where it's becoming impossible for Doctor Who not to bump into something from its past. However, this isn't a list about obvious bits of fan service - those moments where Steven Moffat or Russell T Davies or Chris Chibnall dig you in the ribs, winking incessantly, and asking if you noticed what they did.
This is instead about those subtle nods that refer back to the rich canon of Doctor Who, or that have some other type of deeper meaning you might not have realised.
In lesser hands, these kinds of things could ring out like the Cloister Bell on the eve of universal destruction. However, Doctor Who writers are generally a far more savvy bunch that trusts the intelligence of its audience. Or, failing that, they'll rely on WhoCulture writers to point out all these details years after the fact!
The following moments all have deeper meanings that reach all the way back across Doctor Who's history, from the show's genesis in 1963, to some of the most recent episodes of the show.
10. Sontarans Or Sonterrans?
It's fairly on-brand for Donna Noble to mispronounce the name of one of the Doctor's alien foes. However, the way Donna pronounces "Sontaran" is also a deep-cut reference to the making of the Jon Pertwee classic The Time Warrior.
As detailed by Elisabeth Sladen in her posthumously-published autobiography, Sontaran actor Kevin Lindsay decided that it should be pronounced with the emphasis on the "tar" - SonTARan. Director Alan Bromly disagreed, believing that it should be pronounced "Son-terran".
Lindsay responded, "Well I think it's SonTARan. I come from the 'effing place, so I should know!"
And thus, a classic Doctor Who monster was born.
The Tenth Doctor and Donna reignited this debate in The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky, albeit in a more PG fashion. When Donna's trapped inside the TARDIS onboard a Sontaran ship, the Doctor calls her to give her advice on how to fight her way to the teleporter.
"But there's Sonterrans out there!" she exclaims, in objection to the Doctor's plan.
She's understandably daunted by the prospect, so the Doctor doesn't tell her "It's SonTARan, I've fought them a bunch of times, so I should 'effing know!"