Twice Upon a Time

Context

Twice Upon a Time aired on Christmas Day 2017 and works as the goodbye episode for the Twelfth Doctor, played by Peter Capaldi, and also for showrunner Steven Moffat. As a Christmas special, it is less focused on action and more on reflection and emotion. It acts almost like an epilogue to the Twelfth Doctor’s era rather than a traditional finale.

Behind the scenes, the episode clearly wants to celebrate the long history of Doctor Who. David Bradley being cast as the First Doctor directly continues his role from An Adventure in Space and Time, the BBC drama about the creation of the show. This casting choice feels very intentional and proves how similar and brilliant Bradley is as the First Doctor. He captures the voice, presence, and attitude of William Hartnell extremely well, reminding us that the Doctor has always been the same character at heart.

The episode is also very important in the show’s history, as it ends with the first on-screen regeneration of the Doctor into a woman, opening the door to a brand new era with Jodie Whittaker and a new creative team.

Synopsis

The Twelfth Doctor finds himself stuck outside of time, where he meets his very first incarnation, the First Doctor. Both Doctors are refusing to regenerate, scared or tired of change. Alongside a mysterious World War One captain taken from the battlefield, they must understand why the Doctor always moves forward and why regeneration matters.

Review

The introduction is honestly one of the best I have seen in my life and perfectly shows the uniqueness of Doctor Who. Only this show could pull off a recap of events from over 600 episodes and still make it emotional and meaningful. Instead of feeling overwhelming, it feels like a tribute to the character and the journey of the Doctor.

David Bradley’s performance as the First Doctor is a real highlight. His casting feels like a natural continuation of An Adventure in Space and Time, and he looks and sounds incredibly close to Hartnell. He proves once again how strong of a choice he was for the role and how well he represents the Doctor at the very beginning.

However, the episode struggles with how it portrays the First Doctor’s personality. He is shown as far more sexist than he ever truly was in the 1960s. While this does add some comedic moments and helps show how much times have changed, it also feels like a misrepresentation of one of the original Doctors and can be a bit uncomfortable.

The music throughout the episode is absolutely stellar and clearly pays homage to the Twelfth Doctor era. Murray Gold’s score adds emotion to nearly every scene and helps carry the quieter moments, making the farewell feel bigger and more heartfelt.

The idea of having both Doctors face regeneration together and learn to accept it is very moving. It is enough to warm my heart and gives the episode a strong Christmassy feeling, helped a lot by the snow and overall atmosphere. On top of that, the Christmas Armistice at the end is a real historical event that is totally worth visiting in this story and is placed perfectly within the episode’s themes of hope and humanity.

That being said, the pacing suffers badly in the second act. Genuinely, not much happens for a long time. We visit Villengard and Rusty, and that is mostly it. While this sense of “nothing” is not completely bad and fits the reflective tone, it is what often stops me from rewatching this episode when I think about it.

The appearances of Nardole, Bill, and Clara turn the episode into a full celebration of the Doctor and his relationships. The regeneration scene itself is another fantastic speech from the Twelfth Doctor, full of wisdom and kindness. Seeing the Doctor regenerate into a woman for the first time left me with my jaw open when I first watched it, desperately wanting to see the episodes that followed.

19 dec. 2025

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