10 Greatest CGI Moments In Doctor Who History

The Stonehenge speech is arguably one of Matt Smith’s greatest moments as the Eleventh Doctor, and so it's only fitting that it also features some remarkable CGI to boot.

You’d be forgiven for overlooking the alien spaceships when up against the epicness of the rest of the scene but therein lies the secret – great CGI blends into the scene without detracting or distracting from it.

This moment is powerful. It highlights Eleven’s intelligence and ingenuity. It would not have achieved these things if the alien ships he's giving a verbal spanking looked fake or comical or egregiously out-of-place. Instead, the vast expanse of CGI buzzing and whirring around Stonehenge elevates the scene and emphasises the scale of the threat the Doctor faces.

It's also worth noting the variety of ships on display. The scene calls for all of the Doctor’s enemies to be assembled, and so there is great attention to detail to ensure that an array of alien vessels are seen whizzing around their greatest foe. We can see Dalek ships, Sontaran ships, Judoon ships, and even the Atraxi vessel from The Eleventh Hour!

The attention to continuity should be applauded. This is a level of realness and attentiveness that classic Who simply couldn't achieve but with CGI, modern Who has excelled at worldbuilding like this, even in scenes where most wouldn’t have even noticed.