Summary
- Doctor Who's scare tactics rely on creating fear through inconceivable realities and exploring common childhood fears, making for compelling television.
- The show's episodes effectively blend horror with sci-fi elements, creating bone-chilling moments and psychological twists.
- From classic episodes to those of the revival series, Doctor Who delivers memorable and terrifying storytelling that captivates audiences.
It is no secret that the revival series of Doctor Who encompasses all aspects of fictional fear with aliens and monsters extending the possibilities of terror. Many episodes throughout the show are memorable for creating bone-chilling fear in their simple design and clever scripts.
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From creating an inconceivable reality to a created fear of the mundane, the scare tactics of the show rely on its audience to question what they understand. Despite previous debates over whether the show could still be considered family viewing, the sense of adrenaline from every horror-induced episode makes for some compelling television. These episodes recount The Doctor's scariest moments and how he, and those around him, suffered the consequences of fear.
Updated October 27, 2023 by David Heath: It's been a busy time for Doctor Who fans. The specials featuring the 14th Doctor are drawing to a close, and Ncuti Gatwa's debut as the 15th Doctor is due to arrive over the holiday season. Then all the episodes (bar the first for silly reasons) became available for streaming on the UK's BBC iPlayer and Disney+ in the US.
As such, this list has been spruced up with a few of the scariest episodes of Doctor Who's classic era. Or more accurately, serials. Most of Classic Doctor Who consisted of multipart stories, ranging from 4 to 6 episodes of 25 minutes apiece. But since they tell one, overarching story, they'll count as single entries for this list.
18 Listen
- Series: 8 (New Who).
"Listen" is fairly low on the list as it's more of a character study, though it still has some chilling moments as it's about a fear nearly everyone had growing up: about something lurking under their bed or in their closet. The Doctor postulates this is due to evolution. Just as there are creatures that are great at hunting and defending, there are some that are perfect at hiding.
He and Clara travel back in time to explore his hypothesis, coming across a children's home where strange things happen. But it goes further than having some beast burst out from the darkness. It's more psychological, as the time-twisting narrative reveals the Time Lord has the same neuroses as humanity, and they drive him more than he knows.
17 The Unquiet Dead
- Series: 1 (New Who).
"The Unquiet Dead" is more direct by combining aliens, ghosts, and zombies into one, Victorian-themed adventure. The Doctor and Rose arrive in 1869 Cardiff just in time for Christmas, and to see the dead roam the streets. It turns out a rift in space and time is pulling a gaseous alien race called the Gelth from one side of the universe to the city, where they can only survive if they possess dead bodies.
It's up to the Doctor, Rose, and Charles Dickens to help stop the Gelth killing off and possessing all of humanity. With its character trope blending, it makes for a nice, unique take on a zombie story with some strong, atmospheric visuals. However, the subtext of the episode is questionable, as the Gelth present themselves to the Doctor as hard-done-by refugees before revealing themselves to be evil once they've made it through the Rift.
16 Kinda
- Series: 19 (Classic Who).
Comparing old-school Who to the newer series can feel unfair, like comparing the original Star Trek series to all its newer series. The performances could be more theatrical, and the effects much cheaper, but at its peak, it could provide some great sci-fi storytelling and some eerie twists on horror tropes. For example, "Kinda" saw the 5th Doctor and his companions try to help a research party imprisoned by the Kinda tribe.
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However, Tegan happened to be possessed by the Mara, a snake-like spirit that feeds on emotions, and she passed it on to one of the Kinda. It made for a neat combination of sci-fi, demonic possession, and a thriller as the Doctor has to stop it from destroying both the research party and the Kinda tribe from within.
15 Hide
- Series: 7 (New Who).
Inspired by The Haunting of Hill House novel, "Hide" is about ghost hunters who seek to contact a spirit inhabiting Caliburn House in 1974. Featuring a cameo appearance from Jessica Raine portraying a psychic, she continues to reach an apparition of a trapped woman. The Doctor and Clara embark upon a ghost hunt on a stormy night and run along creepy corridors.
The episode stands out as scary with its jerky camera angles and fast-paced scenes inspiring a great feeling of horror. There are plenty of twists and turns and blind corners perfect for jump scares and the camera will not quite reveal what is hidden in the background. Keeping the cast small makes it most effective as quiet fear creeps up on the viewer.
Audiences see The Doctor at their best throwing themselves into oblivion in search of answers. This moment in the series also deepened the dynamic between The Doctor and Clara as they questioned each other, leaving fans guessing.
14 Spearhead From Space
- Series: 7 (Classic Who).
"Spearhead from Space" is famous for introducing one of the Doctor's most iconic incarnations with Jon Pertwee, and the Doctor's new role as an exile on Earth aiding UNIT against threats. In his debut, the third Doctor has to help them stop the Nestene Consciousness from using their Autons to wipe out humanity and take over the UK.
The Autons would go on to reappear in future episodes, including New Who. But they looked scarier in the Classic series. The later series made them look exactly like living plastic dummies, while the earlier ones used masks that made them look more uncanny and alien like they were something more sinister than walking fashion store props.
13 Sleep No More
- Series: 9 (New Who).
In a 38th-century laboratory, Le Verrier, "Sleep No More" consists primarily of found footage of a rescue team learning the truth. The recordings mark a twist in the usual Doctor Who format as the viewer is told to pay close attention to what happens next.
The camera is embedded in the action like a member of the rescue team. CCTV-esque shots make the characters seem as though they are being observed constantly, making for dramatic irony. It effectively builds fear and suspense of 'The Sandmen' as they wreak havoc across the lab, without giving the viewer a good look at first.
12 The Waters Of Mars
- Series: 2009 Autumn Special (New Who).
The existence of water on Mars has tantalized scientists since the Victorian days, either as signs there could be life on the planet or that it used to be a tiny Earth with its rivers and oceans before it became the dusty, red rock it is today. "The Waters of Mars" made viewers glad it doesn't, or at least not as presented here.
The Doctor ends up on Bowie Base 6, a Martian base fated to blow up, killing the entire crew, leaving only one last message: "Don't drink the water. Don't even touch it. Not one drop". For it contains the Flood, a liquid alien race that can possess its hosts. Aside from the special making a key fluid scary, it also showed a darker side to the Doctor: one whose arrogance and thirst for power made him more like his old nemesis the Master than anything else.
11 Night Terrors
- Series: 6 (New Who).
Inspired by writer Mark Gatiss' fear of dolls, "Night Terrors" is a classic horror episode situating a boy, George, who is scared to fall asleep. This episode is classic of 'The Ponds' era, as it has all the charm and wit along with classic jump scares.
It is made more terrifying from the perspective of a child being scared of the dark: a simple anxiety multiplied. Fear lies in the episode's ability to build suspense and the viewer having to solve the mystery of creepy shadows and singing and laughing dolls. A story of overcoming fears ultimately ends with a sweet resolution, but true to form nothing is ever resolved in Doctor Who.
10 The Girl In The Fireplace
- Series: 2 (New Who).
What is scarier than a masked ball? A masked ball in Eighteenth-century Paris with clockwork service androids. Focusing on The Doctor and Madame de Pompadour, "The Girl in the Fireplace," a fun and fearful historical episode, plays with the passing of time as the androids gain power.
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Taking the simple idea of masquerade costumes and masks and making it evil is experimental for a Doctor Who episode, but makes it memorable today. Despite key characters like Rose having a smaller role, its attention to detail in the characterization of famous historical figures being wrapped up in a horror story is spectacular.
9 Gridlock
- Series: 3 (New Who).
In "Gridlock," horrors come to life on the motorway (freeway) five billion years in the future in New New York, where The Doctor and Martha get separated by thousands of flying cars who fear the anonymous beast below. This fast-paced episode deals with a myriad of worries about what the future could hold for humanity, specifically a killer virus and human self-destruction.
The killer Macra feeding on the gases below presents a new challenge for The Doctor as he cannot rescue Martha easily. Confusion and suspense rule as he struggles to problem-solve. He learns that he needs to be honest with her and the episode ends with hope.