10 Greatest CGI Moments In Doctor Who History

9. Giant Wasp (The Unicorn And The Wasp)

Doctor Who The Unicorn and the Wasp
BBC Studios

When we think about insect-like creatures in the classic era of Doctor Who it’s difficult not to picture the likes of the Zarbi or the Wirrn – either blatantly obvious men-in-costumes or giant puppets made from pipe cleaners and papier-mâché. The modern era, however, had the luxury of CGI at its fingertips and aimed for more realistic creations.

You might not remember it being this good in your head, but the giant wasp in Series 4’s The Unicorn and the Wasp was incredibly accurate and believable despite its impossible size. It neither looked fake, nor did it look out of place in the scene. Creating an entirely new CGI monster or alien comes with a degree of freedom and artistic license in your designs but to recreate a believable image of an existing creature requires an arguably greater level of skill. We know what a wasp looks like. We know how wasps make us feel. So, it’s important for this CGI version to accurately replicate that.

The development of CGI technology opened up entirely new avenues for Doctor Who storytelling. Episodes like The Unicorn and the Wasp simply wouldn’t have been possible with only practical effects available – the giant wasp would never have looked believable or realistic as a man in a costume or a puppet on some string... just ask The Web Planet.

In this post: 
Doctor Who
 
Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

Ellie has been part of the WhatCulture team since 2021 where she began as a freelance presenter for the WhoCulture channel. As a diehard Whovian with a BA (hons) degree in Drama and Acting, this role was the perfect opportunity for her to combine her screen presence training with her extensive Doctor Who knowledge. From there, she branched out to various other WhatCulture channels, including TrekCulture, and became a full time Content Producer/Video Presenter in 2023. Ellie is now a regular fixture on both WhoCulture and TrekCulture and has become a well respected public figure within both fandoms, building up a substantial following across her social media platforms and being given the opportunity to represent the channels and the wider communities at several industry events. Her favourite Doctor Who character is River Song and her favourite Star Trek character is Captain Janeway - which tells you everything you need to know about how she approaches her role within a generally male dominated field.