The Cybermen are on the attack (Picture: BBC)

There are Cybermen on the streets of London and Missy has revealed herself as the Master. Can the Doctor and some old friends save Earth from its darkest hour in the Doctor Who season finale?

NOTE: This preview contains teasers only – it does NOT include plot spoilers.



Reviewers have been given a list of major spoilers to avoid that is almost as long as a roll-call of the Doctor’s companions over the years, so I’m going to avoid delving into the plot of Death in Heaven too much.

What I can say is this: it is magnificent.


That’s not just hype or hyperbole. This season’s finale is the best of the four Steven Moffat has written, and it puts a strong case to be considered as the best ever.



Yes, there’s the threat of the Cybermen, now revealed as containing the uploaded consciousnesses of the recently dead. But Missy’s plan is far more diabolical and wide-ranging, threatening the whole of humanity, so it’s just as well that Kate Stewart and UNIT are there to lend a hand.

UNIT are on the case (Picture: BBC)

However, this story isn’t really about the Cybermen. As it has been all season, it is Clara, Danny and the Doctor who reside at the heart of the narrative. Unlike Moffat’s previous finales, there’s no timey-wimey complexity. Even the action is pared down to a bare minimum.

This is a simple, character-driven piece which takes a long hard look at Clara’s relationships with the two men in her life, and the yin and yang of two Time Lords (okay, a Time Lord and a Time Lady) whose lives have been intertwined since childhood.

Graves? Cybermen? It doesn’t look good (Picture: BBC)

Honestly, if Death in Heaven doesn’t bring a tear to your eye, you really need to check whether there’s an emotional inhibitor chip in your chest.

For so many reasons, this gets a ten out of ten from me.

10 things to watch out for

1. The pre-credits teaser prompts two distinct changes to the opening titles.

2. ‘Bow-ties are cool.’

3. ‘Divorcee, mother of two, keen gardener, outstanding bridge player.’

4. ’87, OCD. 91, Queen of evil.’

5. Captain Scarlet, not Thunderbirds.

6. Fans of cheesy 1980s pop will recognise a tune that Missy sings.

7. ‘Kill some Belgians. Might as well – they’re not even French.’

8. Is Missy Mary Poppins?

9. A gift? You really shouldn’t have.

10. ‘Crack a smile. I want to see if your eyebrows drop off.’

Death in Heaven, episode twelve of Doctor Who, is on BBC One on Saturday at 8.00pm.

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