Fourteen Merit Gold

Any site which celebrates Doctor Who history must by extension also celebrate tradition.  Now with the 12th Annual Christmas Special, The Return of Doctor Mysterio looming we engage in our (nearly) annual tradition of ranking the Christmas Specials.  We used to do a countdown but with 14 on our list and a 15th soon to join, much of December, and more of it each year, would be subsumed.

With so many to choose from, it’s worth remembering just how many story styles the Christmas specials have afforded.  Stories drawing heavily on Christmas tradition?  Done.  Spectacle for it’s own sake?  Yep.  Episodes that don’t really have anything to do with Christmas.  Covered.  And then there are the regeneration (or adjacent) stories.  Three of those too.  We have the count (generously) down at 14.  Here’s our list from best to worst.  That should be enough to keep even the most ardent Doctor Who fans busy for the holiday.

  1. A Christmas Carol
  2. The Christmas Invasion
  3. The Unquiet Dead
  4. The Dæmons (omnibus edition)
  5. The Snowmen
  6. The Next Doctor
  7. The Runaway Bride
  8. The Time of the Doctor
  9. The Doctor, The Widow, and the Wardrobe
  10. The Husbands of River Song
  11. Last Christmas
  12. The End of Time Pt I
  13. The Feast of Steven
  14. Voyage of the Damned