Happy Christmas, Whovians! To celebrate the holiday and the debut of “Joy to the World,” we’ve re-ranked every Doctor Who Christmas special to figure out which are the best to rewatch when you want to get into the spirit.
Since the series rebooted in 2005, a yuletide special has meant big things for the Doctor and his companions, ranging from alien invasion to regeneration, tearful goodbyes, and raucous reunions. But what makes some better than others? In our research, we considered the following: How Christmas-y is this Christmas special? How satisfying is its story? What kind of emotional wallop does it pack?
Whether heartwarming or heart-wrenching, the best of the batch made us feel alive the way only a heroic Time Lord can! Here are the Doctor Who Christmas specials, ranked worst to best.
15. “The Christmas Invasion” (2005) Season 1: Episode 14
The first Christmas special of the rebooted series centered on Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) coming home for the holidays. Aside from reconnecting with her mom (Camille Coduri) and abandoned boyfriend Mickey (Noel Clarke), she’s also brought an uninvited guest — the newly regenerated Tenth Doctor (David Tennant). Beginning the episode comatose, he has to get back in the swing of things quickly, as robo-Santas (aka pilot fish Santa) and an unhinged Christmas tree rush to make a mess of the celebrations.
There’s a pleasure to be found in Ten figuring it all out, especially as he riffs in a bathrobe in front of a conquering alien invader. Irreverent, swaggering, and unapologetically excitable, Tennant presents a great introduction to his take on the Doctor. As the special that started the franchise’s tradition, this episode has earned a lot of love from fans. But Rose and the Doctor affinity aside, it’s an odd one. Not only does this Doctor end up quoting The Lion King at length, but also he pulls a sexist trick on the female prime minister to defeat her: “Don’t you think she looks tired?” That doesn’t age well. Not even the merry makeover after that can shake the bad taste from my mouth over that one.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Christmas Invasion” is now streaming on Max.
14. “The End of Time: Part 1” (2009) Season 4: Episode 17
This Tenth Doctor special is the beginning of his end as the titular Time Lord. (Well, sort of.) As you might expect, a lot of lore is folded in, ranging from the return of Donna’s granddad Wilf (Bernard Cribbins) to a prophesizing Ood and the resurrection of the Master (John Simm), who swiftly went from eating people to turning the world’s population into his clones. Plus, the Doctor casually reveals that in his off time, he got married to “Good Queen Bess,” and then cheekily implies Queen Elizabeth I can no longer be correctly called “the Virgin Queen.”
Anyhoo, as Christmas specials go, this one was pretty unsatisfying — in part because it’s just the first half of a story, ending with the confounding return of the Time Lords. (Part two aired on New Year’s Day, 2010.) Then, as Big Bads go, Simm’s cackling can’t compare to the wicked fun of Missy (Michelle Gomez). It’s also frustrating watching the Doctor come SO CLOSE to a Donna reunion only to run away. On top of all that, there’s little Christmas-y about this one (though Wilf tries with his reindeer cap), so re-watch quality is low. It’s a lot of setup with too little fun — or heartbreak even!
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The End of Time: Part 1” is now streaming on Max.
13. “The Return of Doctor Mysterio” (2016) Season 9: Episode 14
Some of the best Doctor Who episodes have been set in New York City (see “The Angels Take Manhattan”) — but this isn’t one of them. Here, writer Steven Moffat imagines what would happen if the Twelfth Doctor (Peter Capaldi) met an American kid, and the answer is knockoff Superman stuff: flying like a speeding bullet, wearing glasses to look super normal, growly hero voice, and general derring-do.
The story begins in 1992 on Christmas Eve, when an 8-year-old comic book lover mistakenly swallows a wishing gem that gives him superpowers. Cut to 2016, when journalist Lucy Fletcher (Charity Wakefield), the Doctor, his bumbling companion Nardole (Matt Lucas), and a superhero called The Ghost (Justin Chatwin) team up to fight evil. Frankly, the mash-up in styles doesn’t work. Perhaps because there’s a tinge of mockery throughout, as if Moffat is using the special as a platform to snark about America’s obsession with the superhero genre. To his credit, that’s a unique brand of bummer for a Doctor Who Christmas special.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Return of Doctor Mysterio” is now streaming on Max.
12. “Last Christmas” (2014) Season 8: Episode 13
Santa versus the Dream Crabs sounds like something out of MST3K, but it’s the daffy yet delightful concept of this holiday special. Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman) and the Twelfth Doctor (Peter Capaldi) team up with Father Christmas (a terrifically jolly Nick Frost) to save a North Pole research facility under siege by brainwashing parasites.
If you like your Christmas episodes creepy with a side of goopy, you’ll relish this one. Plus Santa goes action hero, riding in on a bucking Rudolph, sending in toys and tangerines as his infantry. And there’s a lot of glee to be had from tough-talking Santa making believers of the under-siege scientists one by one. However, the final twist (upon twist upon twist) of this special gets a bit tedious. Still, we do love that “Merry Christmas Everybody” from Slade bit, where a scared scientist gets down to save her brain. So, all around, a fun — albeit funky — rewatch.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “Last Christmas” is now streaming on Max.
11. “The Time of the Doctor” (2013) Season 7: Episode 16
Matt Smith’s run as the Eleventh Doctor ended with this Christmas special, and he goes out in plenty of style. This outrageous ep combines classic Doctor Who villains like the Cybermen, Daleks, Weeping Angels, the Sontarans, and the Silence with a classic holiday comedy ploy. Clara is hosting a Christmas dinner, and she needs a Christmas date. So, she calls on her socially awkward alien bestie to play the part. Naturally, he turns up naked (but in a cheeky, appropriate-for-family-viewing way).
However, this is not the real focus of the episode. That involves a crack in the universe, secrets of Gallifrey, and an ominous message for the Doctor. All this makes for a very exciting episode, but a rough revisit, as so much lore might have you head-scratching or googling instead of hooting and giggling. But even if you’ve grown foggy on some details, Smith’s enthusiasm and the overwhelming onslaught of memorable foes make this one a worthy rewatch. It’s also amusing to remember the time when the show feinted that this truly would be the last of the Doctor’s incarnations.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Time of the Doctor” is now streaming on Max.
10. “The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe” (2011) Season 6: Episode 14
Old Hollywood charm infuses this special, centered as it is around a kindly wife and mother who does her best with good humor even in the most trying circumstances. In 1938, when Madge Arwell (Claire Skinner) discovers a discombobulated spaceman in need of assistance, she gamely obliges. Three years later, he’ll return the favor in a most spectacular way.
With her husband KIA during World War II, Madge has her hands full with her children — and that’s before one of them wanders off into a time portal that transports him to a mysterious forest, where a terrible threat looms. Leave it to the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith), masquerading as a quirky caretaker, to help Madge save Christmas for one and all. A sweeping adventure with touches of sci-fi, C.S. Lewis-inspired fantasy, and plenty of mum power, this episode will leave you “happy crying — humany wumany.”
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe” is now streaming on Max.
Mashable Top Stories
9. “A Christmas Carol” (2010) Season 5: Episode 14
Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill) begin their yuletide special with three familiar things to Whovians: 1) A resort spaceship on the brink of disaster 2) Amy in her mini-skirted police costume, and 3) Rory in his centurion outfit. What does it all mean? This couple is finally on a romantic holiday and are into role-playing their best adventures — in bed! (Good for them!)
Saucy implications aside, the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith) arrives to save Christmas Day, coming down the chimney like Santa himself! Bonus fun: He presents a confounded child with a snapshot of him, Frank Sinatra, Albert Einstein, and “Jeff” (aka Father Christmas).
In this sci-fi spin on Charles Dickens’ most popular work, the great Michael Gambon plays Doctor Who‘s version of Ebenezer Scrooge. Kazran is a merciless moneylender hellbent on being horrible on the holidays. Instead of employing seasonal ghosts, the Doctor goes back in time to make this curmudgeon more of a Claus. With festive flare, daddy issues, and flying sharks, this episode is a terrific gift.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “A Christmas Carol” is now streaming on Max.
8. “The Next Doctor” (2008) Season 4: Episode 14
This special came after “Journey’s End,” which closed the book on several beloved chapters for better (Rose and her Doctor’s parting gift) and worse (Donna and a series-rattling memory wipe). Fans needed something fun and festive to recover, and Russell T Davies delivered with a tale of child abduction and Cybermen that turns out surprisingly happy (for this show, anyway).
The Tenth Doctor touches down in 1851 London on Christmas Eve and encounters a jaunty gentleman (David Morrissey) calling himself “The Doctor.” He’s even got an ultra-competent, comely companion to boot! (Velile Tshabalala is a treat as Rosita Farisi.)
Our Doctor is initially delighted to meet what he assumes to be one of his future regenerations. But soon he realizes something sinister is going on. A solid mystery boils at the core of this one, while the Victorian setting gives the whole thing a Dickensian/Christmas Carol vibe. And ultimately, there’s plenty of joy to be found in the Doctor finding someone who really gets him.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Next Doctor” is now streaming on Max.
7. “Joy to the World” (2024) Season 15: Episode 0
Former showrunner Steven Moffat returns as a screenwriter for this episode, which features Gatwa’s Doctor racing round a Time Hotel that initially sounds like a dream come true. “All of human history now available for mini breaks,” the Doctor marvels as he looks at doors that offer entry to everything from the Stone Age to Julius Caesar’s assassination to the Late Cretaceous period, when T-Rexes roamed the Earth. But amid the glittering tourists in fancy dress, there’s a strange man holding a briefcase, brewing a nightmare scenario.
Bridgerton‘s Nicola Coughlan stars as the eponymous Joy, who was enjoying a quiet holiday in a contemporary London hotel when the Doctor wrangled her into his latest adventure. With the help of new friends, an old enemy, and some classic Moffat callbacks, “Joy to the World” delivers plenty of laughs and thrills, along with some mind-bending bits and a tear-jerking ending. Like the best of the Doctor Who holiday specials, Moffat’s latest spin deals in love and loss, both inevitable in any worthwhile Christmas episode. Plus, its shining finale has a Christmas icon that’s far better-known than Charles Dickens’ characters or even Santa.
How to watch: Doctor Who, “Joy to the World” is now streaming on Disney+.
6. “The Snowmen” (2012) Season 7: Episode 6
Sentient snowmen! Following the Eleventh Doctor’s loss of Amy and Rory (“The Angels Take Manhattan”), this Christmas special is jam-packed with friends new and old. In Victorian England (a recurring setting for Doctor Who Christmas), reptilian detective Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh), her human wife/Watson Jenny Flint (Catrin Stewart), their grumbly Sontaran butler Strax (Dan Starkey), and impossible girl Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman) all join forces as the Doctor does battle with vicious people-eating snowmen and their icy human ally (Richard E. Grant in glower mode).
Having some fun in the holiday horror subgenre, this mid-season trifle is full of treats: fiercely fanged snowmen, Sherlock-like sleuthing, and bouncy banter. What’s not to relish?
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Snowmen” is now streaming on Max.
5. “The Runaway Bride” (2006) Season 2: Episode 14
The adventures of the DoctorDonna begin in this Christmas episode, in which the holiday wedding of Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) is interrupted by an inexplicable TARDIS abduction. And no one is more outraged than the snatched bride on her big day.
Where Rose (and then Martha) crushed hard on their Doctors, Donna gagged at the idea of getting with the skinny “spaceman” (David Tennant). Her brassy attitude is part of what made this episode – which involved an alien arachnid queen who was bent on overtaking Earth — such a salty treat. Sadly, it would be a bit before she’d swing back into the Doctor’s timeline. But with an adventure that boasted as much action and annihilation as it did Tate’s bold brand of humor, their reunion was well worth the wait.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Runaway Bride” is now streaming on Max.
4. “Twice Upon a Time” (2017) Season 10: Episode 13
Christmas is a time for change — or in Doctor Who, a time for regeneration. The last Christmas special for five years saw Peter Capaldi face his last battle as the Doctor. (He’d then hand the TARDIS over to Jodie Whittaker, who did a string of New Year’s specials during her tenure.) Fittingly, his was a battle of letting go.
In the South Pole, the Twelfth Doctor is forced to face himself literally when he runs into his first incarnation (David Bradley, filling in for the late William Hartnell). The two must work together as a curious glass entity and a soldier from World War I pop by. But more importantly, the current Doctor must face his past. In the First, he sees how much he has grown — especially when his companion Bill Potts (Pearl Mackie) is curiously resurrected and put off by the old Doctor’s sexist ways! Amid the mischief of colliding Doctors, this episode bids a fond farewell to Capaldi and his companions, including Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman) and Nardole (Matt Lucas). Sure, the Christmas-y element is relegated to some snow and a bit of battlefield carol-singing, and the mystery in this one rings a bit hollow. But when it comes to catharsis, few Doctor Who holiday specials can compare!
How to watch: Doctor Who: “Twice Upon a Time” is now streaming on Max.
3. “Voyage of the Damned” (2007) Season 3: Episode 14
Remember the time the Doctor crashed into the Titanic? No, not that Earth one. In an incredibly ominous decision by dangerously wealthy industrialist Max Capricorn (George Costigan), a nuclear-powered interstellar cruiser setting forth on a holiday cruise among the stars was also named Titanic. If that — plus the episode’s title — weren’t enough to put you on edge, perhaps the garish displays of wealth and golden robot angels might prime you for disaster.
Sure, from the start you can suppose this vessel is doomed. But writer Russell T Davies brought fresh agony by introducing a wonderful one-off companion in Astrid Peth (played by the radiant Kylie Minogue), only to snuff her out by episode’s end! A humble humanoid waitress who dreamed of seeing the stars, she is exactly the Doctor’s type. And he was quick to take notice of her! But as this boat and all its souls seem bound for disaster, this brave duo will do whatever it takes to keep history from repeating. While Whovians (and Minogue fans) were heartbroken over this ending, it offered a bittersweet and beautiful silver lining.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “Voyage of the Damned” is now streaming on Max.
2. “The Church on Ruby Road” (2023) Season 14, Episode 0
In 2023, the Christmas special returned after five years off — and what a wonder! “The Church on Ruby Road” marked the first full episode featuring the Fifteenth Doctor, Ncuti Gatwa. Properly set on the Christmas holiday, this rollicking romp introduces Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson), a 19-year-old who is a foundling and a Christmas baby. On her birthday, it’s only fitting she helps the Doctor rescue another Christmas baby from being gobbled up by a pirate ship’s worth of singing goblins!
Far from mournful or thick with plot, this special is a true delight, thanks in no small part to the awesome charisma of Gatwa, who dances, quips, and runs with gusto. Full of seasonal decor, general merriness, and the kind of adventure that’s family-friendly, this holiday episode should get your heart warming like chestnuts on an open fire. Plus, this Doctor has expanded the celeb name-dropping to include a “hot summer” with Harry Houdini. What a thrilling way to fill us with excitement for Season 14!
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Church on Ruby Road” is now streaming on Disney+.
1. “The Husbands of River Song” (2015) Season 9: Episode 13
Spoilers! This episode is beautiful, bonkers, and deeply, deeply sad.
Beginning on Christmas Day of 5343, “The Husbands of River Song” reunites the Doctor with his timey-wimey wifey (Alex Kingston). But there are a couple of snags to would-be romance. This incarnation of the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) hasn’t crossed paths with her before. She acts like she doesn’t know him, and then she introduces him to her — uh — ailing husband, King Hydroflax (Greg Davies). But it’s River Song. There’s more to this than meets her sparkling eyes.
For much of their escapades, River has been a force of nature, always fawning over the Doctor while refusing to let him get too full of himself. This dynamic hits a dramatic turn, however, when a heist goes awry. In a monologue that’s sure to make you tear up, she lays out what it means to be a Time Lord’s wife. And he will at long last show her all she means to him. Goodbye, sweetie.
How to watch: Doctor Who: “The Husbands of River Song” is now streaming on Max.
UPDATE: Dec. 4, 2024, 12:22 p.m. EST Originally published December 25, 2023, this list has been updated to include “Joy to The World.”
