| Season Start: | 25 December 2007 | | Season End: | 05 July 2008 | | Season Length: | 28 Weeks | | Actual Weeks: | 14 Weeks | | Writers: | Gareth Roberts, Helen Raynor, James Moran, Keith Temple, Russell T Davies, Stephen Greenhorn and Steven Moffat | | Directors: | Alice Troughton, Colin Teague, Douglas MacKinnon, Euros Lyn, Graeme Harper and James Strong | | Producers: | Phil Collinson and Susie Liggat | | Executive Producers: | Julie Gardner, Phil Collinson and Russell T Davies | | Script Editors: | Brian Minchin, Helen Raynor, Lindsey Alford and Nikki Smith | | Visual Effects: | The Mill | | Special Effects: | Any Effects | | Title Music: | Ron Grainer and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Arranged by Murray Gold |
|
Incarnation of the Doctor: |
The Tenth Doctor
|
| Number of
Companions: |
7 |
| The
Companions: |
Sarah Jane Smith (Rejoins and Departs), K9 Mk III (Rejoins and Departs), Rose Tyler (Rejoins and Departs), Captain Jack Harkness (Rejoins and Departs), Mickey Smith (Rejoins and Departs), Martha Jones (Rejoins and Departs) and Donna Noble (Rejoins and Departs)
|
| Number of
Acquaintances: |
4
|
| The
Acquaintances: |
Jackie Tyler (Rejoins and Departs), Astrid Peth (Joins and Dies), Wilfred Mott (Joins) and River Song (Joins and Departs)
|
| Number of
Stories: |
11
|
| Number of
Incomplete/Missing Stories: |
0
|
| Number of
Episodes: |
14
|
| Number of
Incomplete/Missing Episodes: |
0
|
| Percentages: |
| Full Stories Held | 100% | | Episodes Held | 100% |
|
| Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2009) | | | Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2014) | |
|
| Daleks |
| | Sontarans |
| | Others |
|
Cobb (The Doctor's Daughter), Davros (The Stolen Earth/Journey's End), Max Capricorn (Voyage of the Damned), Midnight Entity (Midnight), Miss Foster (Partners in Crime), Mr Halpen (Planet of the Ood), Ood (Planet of the Ood), Pyrovile (The Fires of Pompeii), The Host (Voyage of the Damned), Time Beetle (Turn Left), Vashta Nerada (Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead) and Vespiform (The Unicorn and the Wasp) |
|
 'Astrid Peth, citizen of Sto. The woman who looked at the stars and dreamed of traveling... Now you can travel forever. You're not falling Astrid... you're flying...!'
The Doctor
(Voyage of the Damned) |
|
|
|
|
| |
 |
| Astrid Perth |
|
As before the Christmas special became the most watched story. "Voyage of the Damned" though went one better than the previous two seasonal stories by topping the 10 million mark. In fact it was watched by a total of 13.3 million. Helped of course by the fantastic Kylie Minogue as one-off companion Astrid Perth.
For the season proper, starting in April, we had the comical "Partners in Crime" which introduced us to the return of Donna Noble (played by comedy actress Catherine Tate). After the well developed companion/Doctor relationship between both the Ninth Doctor and the Tenth Doctor with Rose Tyler in Season Twenty Seven (New Series 1) and Season Twenty Eight (New Series 2) and then the equally good Martha Jones in Season Twenty Nine (New Series 3) you would not think that Catherine Tate would make such an impact. But she did.
As the season continued her role got better and better and it was clear that her character had improved far beyond her introductory story "The Runaway Bride" in 2006.
This season contained many other good points as well. Not only did we get to see tantalizing references and glimpses of former companion Rose – before her eventual return in the penultimate story of the season "Turn Left" and the season’s finale "The Stolen Earth/Journey's End" – but also the return of Martha Jones in two stores as well as the season’s finale.
Monsters and enemies also abound with both first time appearances of classic monsters the Sontarans and the fantastic Davros but also the return of The Ood and of course Daleks. We even got to witness the first monster that was never seen nor identified.
This season also contained other notable firsts – namely the first story where The Doctor had no companion ("Midnight") followed by the first story where the companion was centre stage with no Doctor to aid them ("Turn Left"). We also had, in "The Fires of Pompeii" the first full ‘foreign’ story and we even got to see "The Doctor's Daughter"!
Overall this season turned out to be yet another good one. Yes it had its low points but these were overshadowed by some great story lines, some great acting (notable between Lesley Sharp and David Tennant in "Midnight") and some very high production standards.
However, everything must come to an end and so after making such an impact to the show, the forced departure of Donna at the end has to be the saddest part of the whole season and so, as it began, The Doctor is once more travelling alone. Again…
|
|
|
 |
| Rose Tyler |
|
Within this season we have the return of a number of recurring companions and enemies as well as the introduction of another ‘classic’ enemy from the past.
First was the Christmas special ("Voyage of the Damned") – the first unique Christmas story and the one that will always be referred to as ‘the one that includes Kylie Minogue’ and what a good actress she turned out to be.
Of the recurring companions the last story "The Stolen Earth/Journey's End" contained nearly all of them - including Sarah Jane Smith and K9 - as well being the first crossover with spin-off series Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures and so included characters from these shows.
Of significant interest was the return of Rose Tyler especially as throughout the season there were numerous mentions of Rose and a number of tantalizing shots until her full return in the penultimate story of the season "Turn Left".
And as for the enemies the season finale included Davros - the first time since the shows return and his first television appearance since the 1988 Seventh Doctor story "Remembrance of the Daleks".
Other returning enemies include the Sontarans (their first appearance since the 1985 Colin Baker story "The Two Doctors") and the Ood.
And watch out for "The Doctor's Daughter" where we get to see The Doctor's daughter (Jenny), played by The Doctor's daughter (Peter Davison's real-life daughter Georgia Moffett).
|
|
|
 |
| The Return of Donna |
|
With the news that Catherine Tate would be returning to the show – this time as a fully fledged companion since she played the part of Donna Noble in the Christmas 2006 special "The Runaway Bride" the press and fan base were full of comments and opinions that this would be the biggest mistake since the shows revival. Thankfully they were all proved wrong as Catherine Tate certainly made a good regular companion and the role of Donna removed a lot of the friction that existed between The Doctor and his other female companions.
Donna’s role became clear early on as a calming influence to that of The Doctor and she even ended up in a Doctorless story where her character took center stage and despite this story being Rose’s full story of the season Donna was able to hold her own.
The low point of the season is a toss between "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky" and the season’s finale "The Stolen Earth/Journey's End".
In the former the return of the Sontarans are not given the chance to become a real threat and with so much going it was far to easy to lose the plot. This was not helped by having a cloned version of Martha. Being a classic monster the war-like Sontarans could just as easily have been replaced with the Daleks.
And for the season finale this suffered by the attempt to cram so much into it. Despite being a two part story the impact of the Daleks, and especially that of Davros, became lost. Like "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky" we ended up with a double character – in this case a double of the Tenth Doctor. The TARDIS became, for the first time ever, as being rather over-crowded.
|
|
|
|
|
| |
The Firsts:
The introduction of companion Astrid Peth played by Kylie Minogue. (Voyage of the Damned)
Excluding Captain Jack Harkness's repeated deaths, Astrid Peth is the first companion to die in the revived series (and the first since Kamelion in 1984's "Planet of Fire"). (Voyage of the Damned)
The first Doctor Who story, of the revised series, to be watched by more than 13 million viewers. (Voyage of the Damned)
Catherine Tate's first full story as official companion, Donna Noble. (Partners in Crime)
The first appearance of The Sontarans in the revived television series and the first for 23 years - since the 1985 Sixth Doctor story "The Two Doctors". (The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky)
The first time, in the revived television series, that The Doctor has an adventure alone without the assistance of a companion. (Midnight)
Billie Piper's first full story in the show, as companion Rose Tyler, since she left at the end of Army of Ghosts/Doomsday. (Turn Left)
The first crossover with spin-off series Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures. (The Stolen Earth/Journey's End)
|
| |
The Lasts (Subject to Future Stories):
| |
| Doctor Who Magazine - Countdown to 50 | Issue 461 - (Released: July 2013) |
|
|
| |
The Doctor and Companions/Acquaintances| |  | | The Tenth Doctor |
|
| | | | |
 | | Sarah Jane Smith |
|  | | K9 Mk III |
|  | | Rose Tyler |
| | | | |  | | Jackie Tyler |
|  | | Captain Jack Harkness |
|  | | Mickey Smith |
| | | | |  | | Martha Jones |
|  | | Astrid Peth |
|  | | Donna Noble |
| | | | |  | | Wilfred Mott |
|  | | River Song |
|
|
On Release | | Complete Series DVD Box Set |
VIDEO |
|  | | Original Television Soundtrack Cover |
AUDIO |
|  | | Series 1-4 DVD Box Set |
VIDEO |
| | | | |  | | Complete Series 1-7 Ltd Edition Blu-Ray Box Set |
VIDEO |
|  | Complete Series DVD Box Set
(2014 Re-release) |
VIDEO |
|  | | Complete David Tennant Years DVD Box Set |
VIDEO |
| | | | |  | | Complete Series Blu-Ray Box Set |
VIDEO |
|  | | Complete Series Blu-Ray Limited Edition Steelbook Box Set |
VIDEO |
|  | | Series 1 - 4 & Specials Blu-Ray Collection Cover |
VIDEO |
| | | | |
Magazines| |  | | Doctor Who Magazine - Countdown to 50: Issue 461 |
| | | | | |
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
| |
| |
|
| Doctor Who is the copyright of the British Broadcasting
Corporation. No infringements intended. This site is not endorsed by the BBC or
any representatives thereof. |
|
(Position = 10 out of 36)
