Doctor Who‘s 60th Anniversary Is Celebrating Being in the Moment

In just a few short day , Doctor Who will resolve its trio of sixtieth anniversary specials in a flurry of spectacle — a climatic battle , the death of its familiarly face current hero , and their regenerationinto a unexampled erastarting just a few weeks later . For the most part , it ’s celebrated this event without the typicaltrappings of past milestones , and replace them with what has turned out to be a jolly radical concept : what if Doctor Who celebrated sticking around for 60 years by just being the good adaptation of itself it can ?

It might be on a string of technicalities , but what we ’ve had so far in “ The Star Beast ” and “ Wild Blue Yonder , ” and can expect to see in “ The Giggle ” this weekend does kind of play with these usual expectations of a Doctor Who day of remembrance narrative . It does have a past Doctor , of a sort , in David Tennant ’s return , but he ’s explicitly a different avatar to his former one , and week by week has steadily try out just how interesting he can be in that sorting of office instead of one of simple reprisal . It does have intimate opposition , but they ’re not legends like the Daleks or Cybermen , or even old anniversary scourge like Omega : they’redeep cut pullbacksfrom across Doctor Who history like the Meep from classic cartoon strip , and the Toymaker from William Hartnell ’s era , re - conceive of and evolved for the modern long time .

It does have past fellow traveler in the return of Catherine Tate ’s Donna Noble , but it ’s crucially told a story with her that is about count with the past she ’d had and lose since last seeing the Doctor , rather than leaning on a literal return to that moment in time with her . And , if a few sneaky trailer shots are to be believed , we could get a classic associate return this weekend ahead of a more prominent retort in the form ofBonnie Langford ’s Mel Bush — although if you had your own TARDIS and went back in metre a couple years ago and asked most Doctor of the Church Who fans , “ Mel Bush is back ! ” would unfortunately not be high on their wishlist for the 60th .

Image: BBC

Suffice to say , this has all led tosome corners of fandombelieving that Doctor Who is n’t doing its 60th day of remembrance “ properly . ” That it ’s not special enough , not doing enough to warrant thewild , speculatory hopes and dreamsof its lover when presented with secrecy . That there are shipway these things should be done , and that in not doing them , Doctor Who is n’t get up to the occasion somehow . And yet , at least so far , Doctor Who is rise to the occasion in a way that in reality matters to the show : correctly now , at least , Doctor Who is better than it has been in years .

“ The Star Beast ” and “ Wild Blue Yonder , ” on some level , could just find oneself themselves slotted into a typical time of year of Doctor Who , instead of being handle as standalone particular sequence . But that does n’t short stop them from being dandy episodes of Doctor Who , one that push their stars and their fiber in interesting way , ones that capsulize the variety of tones and thought the series can undertake , and shine in , hebdomad - to - week . In any run of instalment they ’d be gamey points of a season , held up as the show at its strongest : rummy , weird , scary , aroused , fresh . Why does that change if they ’re send for an anniversary instead ? Why is that lessen because they do n’t boast the “ correct ” variety of nostalgia ? That ’s not to say past anniversary specials that have lean into that nostalgia are , by default , bad for doing so . “ The Day of the Doctor ” is a prime exercise , perhaps the best of Doctor Who ’s preceding anniversary celebrations , because it both toy with the tropes of affair like a multi - Doctor account , and authoritative villains , while also plight in explore its hoagie and fight their story in new counselling as a vision for the hereafter . But those authentication are not inbuilt to being upright Doctor Who , and right on now , what we ’re have is really good Doctor Who . Pretty bloody unbelievable , even .

And we ’re aim that quality in front of a broader spectrum of hoi polloi than have lock with Doctor Who in old age . The direction we watch boob tube has change radically in Doctor Who ’s reanimate era , so while lineal comparisons require more context than simply look at the number , it ’s of import that Doctor Who is putting such a unspoiled fundament onwards to an interview that is bigger , and more unforced to engage with it , than has been for a while now . “ The Star Beast ” drew the highest paygrade the series hashad in five years , and while figures for “ Wild Blue Yonder ” are n’t concluding yet , they’retracking in a similar direction . Beyond raw viewers , those hearing are likewise more pleased with the show than they have been in another similar span of prison term , with Audience Appreciation Indices for both instalment matching scores Doctor Who has n’t see since 2017 . That ’s just at home in the UK ; internationally with itspresence on Disney+ , Who has also find peachy achiever on a much self-aggrandising weapons platform than it ’s had around the world , arguably in this century .

Image: BBC

Image: BBC

This could all fall flat on its face this weekend , should “ The Giggle ” deliver a dampish end to the proceeding , of trend . In fact , one could argue , it would perhaps be the most Doctor Who thing imaginable to fluctuate between being really great , and a little turn shit . That ’s just storytelling , and Doctor Who has been around the cube long enough to be more than intimately familiar with make dizzying highs and striking Sir David Low . But for the first meter in a very prospicient time , it honestly feels relatively difficult to think that happening . There is an excitement in the air , a confidence , in both rooter and the show itself , that the serial is back onto something special right now , and it has n’t done than on the promise of cameos or nostalgic throwbacks . A hope that there is possible for the series to be its best self , and to be so in front of an eager , growing audience again .

That fuels Doctor Who ’s futurity , more than it does excogitate on the interiority of its past . And a future that face bright as it does aright now is a far more worthy solemnization of 60 years of Doctor Who than any thoughtfulness on where it ’s been could ever be .

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Image: BBC