Every Doctor Who Title Sequence Ranked Worst To Best (2025)

If you've ever questioned whether it's worth posting your fan edits online, look no further than YouTube creator Billy Hanshaw to help you decide that it absolutely is worth it. His fan-made title sequence for the Twelfth Doctor was noticed by Steven Moffat who then hired him to design the real thing for Peter Capaldi's run as the Doctor. 

What stands out most about this particular sequence is the choice to put more focus on the time travel elements of the show, as opposed to all the previous sequences which tend to focus more on space imagery. While space and nebula imagery is certainly visually appealing – especially in terms of scope and colours – and is used in this sequence, the imagery of clockwork mechanisms, and the TARDIS literally travelling through the middle of time itself, was a breath of fresh air for this famous title sequence. Especially following the underwhelming effort from Series 7b. 

The one element from its predecessor that was carried over to great effect, was the return of the Doctor's face appearing, and Capaldi's attack eyebrows stare fits perfectly into the fold. Murray Gold's theme is tweaked slightly for this new incarnation but nothing majorly significant. Perhaps the greatest disservice to both Gold and Hanshaw is the unfortunate syncing issues that seemed to occur throughout the run – whereby the music and visuals seemed to shift out of sync from week to week – which definitely caused some frustration among viewers. 

Despite this hiccup, this sequence absolutely deserves praise for its unique approach and daring to explore a different avenue within the show's themes. Well done, Billy Hanshaw! 

Let's also take a moment to highlight the silent title card in Series 9's Sleep No More which replaced the usual title sequence to keep in fitting with the found footage style of the episode. This was a great addition to the episode and enhanced the themes without suddenly interrupting the atmosphere with the upbeat theme tune. Honestly, it's a shame things like this aren't done more often.