All 18 Doctor Who Christmas & New Year Specials Ranked (Including 2024)

Since “The Church on Ruby Road” resurrected the tradition of the Doctor Who Christmas special in 2024, “Joy to the World” has continued to add to the category of episodes. Doctor Who‘s modern era began in 2005 when Russell T. Davies revived the show. Before then, there had only ever been one Christmas special, the First Doctor (William Hartnell) episode “The Feast of Steven”, which aired on Christmas Day, 1965. 40 years later, David Tennant’s Doctor Who debut, “The Christmas Invasion” established the annual tradition of the festive special, something which has been brought back by returning showrunner Russell T. Davies.

During the Jodie Whittaker and Chris Chibnall era, the BBC took a different approach to the traditional Doctor Who Christmas special by releasing it on New Year’s Day. Chris Chibnall’s Dalek trilogy was far different in tone from both the overtly festive spectacle of Davies and the wintry melancholy of Steven Moffat. Despite their differing tones, each showrunner has ensured that the Doctor Who holiday special is a seasonal blockbuster that the whole family can enjoy. They don’t all fall into the category of the greatest Doctor Who stories of all time, but a select few are very highly revered.

18

The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe

Aired Christmas Day, 2011

The second Matt Smith Christmas special is his weakest, despite a charming festive premise. To pay back a favor, the Eleventh Doctor spreads some Christmas magic for the grieving Arwell family. The only problem is that while the emotional heart of “The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe” is in the right place, it’s severely lacking in dramatic stakes. Inspired by C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, this Steven Moffat Christmas special sadly fails to replicate a villain as terrifying as the White Witch.

17

The Return of Doctor Mysterio

Aired Christmas Day, 2016

In the era of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Steven Moffat decided to write a Doctor Who Christmas special that was inspired by Christopher Reeves’ 1978 Superman movie. It was an odd choice to capitalize on the superhero trend with references to a nearly 40-year-old movie, but that’s not the biggest crime of “The Return of Doctor Mysterio.” In a year that had no regular Doctor Who, it didn’t feel special to have Peter Capaldi and Matt Lucas running around in New York on Christmas Day in a disposable story that felt incredibly dated.

16

Revolution of the Daleks

Aired New Year’s Day, 2021

The second of Chris Chibnall’s three Dalek specials feels like a big Doctor Who blockbuster movie, but it spends too much time keeping the Thirteenth Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) away from the action. In short, “Revolution of the Daleks” is a Doctor Who special that tries to achieve too much. Chris Chibnall struggles to balance the amazing central premise of the UK government sanctioning the use of Daleks as law enforcers with the return of Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman). Not only that, but the episode also tries to fold in the departures of Graham (Bradley Walsh) and Ryan (Tosin Cole). Still, the scale is impressive.

15

Resolution

Aired New Year’s Day, 2019

Interestingly, “Resolution” isn’t Doctor Who‘s first New Year’s Day special, nor is it the first one to feature the Daleks. In 1965, a week after the first Doctor Who Christmas episode, “The Feast of Steven”, the episode “Countdown” aired on New Year’s Day, 1966. It featured the First Doctor (William Hartnell) facing off against the Daleks and then witnessing the New Year celebrations in London.

“Resolution” fails to break into the upper echelon of Doctor Who holiday specials for its forgettable nature.

“Resolution” takes place after the celebrations, and the sleepy, hungover energy adds to the threat posed by the lone Dalek. It’s a thrilling update of “Dalek” that reintroduces Doctor Who‘s greatest monsters and re-establishes a single Kaled mutant as one of the most dangerous beings in the universe. Still, “Resolution” fails to break into the upper echelon of Doctor Who holiday specials for its forgettable nature.

14

The Church on Ruby Road

Aired Christmas Day, 2023

For good or ill, “The Church on Ruby Road” has a very different feel to the Christmas specials of Russell T Davies’ first Doctor Who era. Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson make an immediately winning impression as the Fifteenth Doctor and Ruby Sunday, which fits in well with the new vibe of Doctor Who‘s Disney era. Despite Doctor Who‘s hit Goblin song and the impressive Goblin King, it’s hard to escape the fact that the scale of the episode is pretty small, with large parts of it unfolding in Ruby’s flat. While it sets up a thoroughly enticing storyline for Doctor Who season 14, “The Church on Ruby Road” loses points for turning out to be a string of red herrings.

13

The Snowmen

Aired Christmas Day, 2012

“The Snowmen” is a Doctor Who Christmas special that had a lot to achieve, and it largely succeeded where other specials failed. It provided a proper introduction for Jenna Coleman as Clara Oswald, which is as utterly charming as it is intriguing. It reintroduced the classic Doctor Who villain the Great Intelligence (Ian McKellen) and its human host, Dr. Simeon (Richard E. Grant), who would play a big part in the 50th anniversary. Better yet, it introduces Michael Pickwoad’s stunning TARDIS set, one of the best of the modern era. All of this lifts “The Snowmen” above the slightly unconvincing moroseness of the Eleventh Doctor’s post-Amy and Rory.

12

Eve of the Daleks

Aired New Year’s Day 2022

“Eve of the Daleks” is Chris Chibnall’s funniest Doctor Who script, further lifted by the talents of comedy actors John Bishop, Aisling Bea, and Adjani Salmon. Effectively Groundhog Day, but with Daleks, it’s a thrilling hour of Doctor Who. There’s romance, action, and a brilliant cold open. What’s even more remarkable is that this was a last-minute addition when Chris Chibnall’s original idea for a New Year’s special proved too expensive and complicated to achieve amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s a real triumph over adversity that gives Jodie Whittaker one of her finest hours.

11

Last Christmas

Aired Christmas Day, 2014

No other show but Doctor Who could put Santa Claus (Nick Frost) in John Carpenter’s The Thing and confidently pull off the tonal mismatch. “Last Christmas” isn’t the best Moffat-written special, but it balances its festive themes with Doctor Who tropes very well. It’s frightening, outrageously funny, and beautifully poetic. The potential ending for Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman) pulls the rug from under the audience, and before they have the time to adjust, Santa Claus rides to the rescue to give the Doctor and Clara a second chance together. The best Christmas stories are about redemption and second chances, and “Last Christmas” nails this.

10

Joy To The World

Aired Christmas Day, 2024

Doctor Who‘s 2024 Christmas special is another festive installment to feature a moping Doctor in the wake of a companion’s departure. While it’s a shame that Ruby departed at the end of Doctor Who season 14, “Joy to the World” manages to replace Gibson’s character with a handful of brilliant stand-ins. The introduction of Doctor Who‘s Time Hotel by Steven Moffat pairs brilliantly with Villlengard – the Doctor’s “old enemy.”

Watching Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor traverse Earth’s history without using his TARDIS results in a very energetic affair.

The solid sci-fi concept takes somewhat of a backseat and breezes past the fact that humans have developed time travel by the 43rd century, which is an enormous piece of Doctor Who canon to discover in the context of a Christmas special. Regardless, watching Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor traverse Earth’s history without using his TARDIS results in a very energetic affair with a lot to enjoy.

9

Voyage of the Damned

Aired Christmas Day, 2007

“Voyage of the Damned” has its flaws, but it’s a fantastic adventure that could take place at any point in the year. While the Christmas themes being optional could arguably hurt its ranking when it comes to festive specials, it’s such a thrill ride that the weaker components are easy to ignore. It also features one of Doctor Who‘s best one-off companions as it introduces Kylie Minogue’s Astrid Peth in the same installment as it kills her off. Even if just to wonder what could have been if Astrid had survived, “Voyage of the Damned” is worth a yearly rewatch.

In 2023, “Voyage of the Damned” received a direct sequel in the form of a short story in Steve Cole’s Ten Days of Christmas anthology book.

8

The Husbands of River Song

Aired Christmas Day, 2015

“The Husbands of River Song” was originally intended as Steven Moffat’s final Doctor Who script, and it would have been a fitting conclusion. It neatly ties up River Song’s Doctor Who timeline and gives Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor a happy ending. It also has everything that an audience could want from a Doctor Who Christmas special; romance, action, adventure, comedy, and big ludicrous villains. On top of that, there’s the glorious comic moment of the Doctor enacting the TARDIS entrance scene that he always wanted to see.

7

The Runaway Bride

Aired Christmas Day, 2006

“The Runaway Bride” introduces the Tenth Doctor’s best companion, Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) in a glorious screwball comedy adventure. David Tennant and Catherine Tate’s chemistry is off the charts from the beginning, as they embark on an adventure involving giant spiders, killer Christmas stars, and exploding baubles. “The Runaway Bride” is the perfect mixture of Christmas iconography and blockbuster adventure, making it one of the very best Doctor Who Christmas specials of all time. It’s funny, it’s tragic, and it shows off everything that Doctor Who is capable of.

6

The Next Doctor

Aired Christmas Day, 2008

Arguably, “The Next Doctor” should lose rewatch appeal once the central mystery of David Morrissey’s potential future incarnation is solved. And yet, it’s a beautiful Christmas story about family, loss, and what it means to be a hero. David Morrissey is excellent as the man who believes that he’s the Doctor, and the giant steampunk Cyberking stomping through Victorian London on Christmas Day is gleefully silly.

It’s one of Doctor Who‘s most underrated Christmas specials, and it also contains the first instance in the revival era where footage was shown of the classic Doctors, providing an extra present for fans. Doctor Who has never introduced a genuine next Doctor ahead of time, but “The Next Doctor” is probably the closest the show has come to doing so in its 60+ year history. The story also received a legacy sequel in Steve Cole’s Ten Days of Christmas book, where one of the short stories reunited an elderly Jackson Lake with the Tenth Doctor.

5

A Christmas Carol

Aired Christmas Day, 2010

Doctor Who has referenced Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol a few times in its history. Most notably, Christopher Eccleston’s Ninth Doctor met Simon Callow’s Charles Dickens on Christmas Eve in Doctor Who season 1. However, the show’s 2010 Christmas special, which borrowed its title from the seminal Dickens work, is the most direct wink to the iconic tale while also being the most meta. With Michael Gambon’s Kazran Sardick stepping into the role of Scrooge and Smith’s Eleven filling the part(s) of the three ghosts, “A Christmas Carol” is a perfect blend of British sci-fi and classic Christmas literature.

4

The Christmas Invasion

Aired Christmas Day, 2005

Doctor Who‘s first proper Christmas special goes all out with sinister twists on festive traditions. There’s the gun-toting band of android Santas, the deadly Christmas tree, and an incredibly important satsuma. David Tennant takes an annoyingly long time to make his big entrance as the Doctor, but it’s worth the wait. He takes command of the situation aboard the Sycorax spaceship in a way he would continue to do for years to come.

As the Doctor Who episode that began a grand tradition for the show, “The Christmas Invasion” establishes a lot of the elements that would recur throughout the many years of not just successive Christmas and New Year’s specials, but also the regular, non-festive installments. As with “Voyage of the Damned” and “The Next Doctor,” Doctor Who author Steve Cole also reunited Tennant’s Doctor with the Sycorax, but with a twist.

3

Twice Upon A Time

Aired Christmas Day, 2017

As an epilogue to the Steven Moffat era of Doctor Who, “Twice Upon a Time” is a melancholic story. While two old men discussing death may not guarantee a big, thrilling Christmas Day adventure for all the family, it works. Christmas is often a time for looking backward as well as forward, and the pairing of the First Doctor (David Bradley) and the Twelfth Doctor achieves this beautifully. Both men set each other on a hopeful path toward their own futures, as the audience at home is also staring down the new adventures of the year ahead. It’s a different type of Doctor Who Christmas special, but it’s a touching farewell to Peter Capaldi’s incarnation.

2

The Time of the Doctor

Aired Christmas Day, 2013

The odds were stacked against Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor in his final adventure, as they were against writer Steven Moffat. Not only did the Doctor Who showrunner have to give audiences a thrilling Christmas special, but he also had to wrap up the Eleventh Doctor’s story arc and end the 50th anniversary year on a high by regenerating Matt Smith into Peter Capaldi. Somehow, “The Time of the Doctor” doesn’t buckle under the dual weights of expectation and continuity. Instead, it thrives in the limited space between ambition and capturing lighting in a bottle.

1

The End of Time Parts 1 and 2

Aired Christmas Day 2009 and New Year’s Day 2010

Although it doesn’t always balance festivity with drama, it would be disingenuous to award “The End of Time” anything other than the first-place position in a list of Doctor Who Christmas specials. The two-part finale to David Tennant’s era is truly iconic and earns the indulgence of its final ten minutes. The farewell tour leading up to the Tenth Doctor’s violent regeneration is incredibly impactful, even though Doctor Who season 4 had already brought back certain companions. It was the perfect way to bid “farewell” to Tennant while also celebrating his reign as Doctor Who‘s leading man.