I watched an episode of Doctor Who last night, with no real reasoning, except it was on the iPlayer and I needed a Doctor fix. I don’t know about anyone else, but I feel cheated of a proper series this year, and even if these specials are the best thing ever, can they really replace a 13 episode run?

Either way, I am one of those annoying people who has only become a fan since the rebirth of the series, and I have yet to get through an entire episode of the early Doctors. Mr Tennant is my favourite, and although I posted previously about being reluctant to let him go for Matt Smith, I’m actually looking forward to seeing how the new dynamic will work. Plus, I hate goodbyes, and I wish it was next year already.

Anyway, here are five of my favourite epsiodes, in no particular order (actually, in transmission order, I think) and for no particular reason:

1. Father’s Day. I do love the time travel element of the show, and the issues surrounding Rose and her father, his death, and how she learnt that changing things is not always the way to go make for fascinating viewing. I’m not entirely sure about the alien things in this episode, but it doesn’t really matter as they are overshadowed by the awesome 70s hairstyles.
2. The Girl in the Fireplace. The woman in this really fascinates me. She is so smart and she spent her whole life waiting for the Doctor to show up again. The way she talks is so eloquent. The only issue I have is the crazy dresses she has to wear.
3. The Shakespeare Code. The idea of the Doctor feeding Shakespeare his best lines is a great one, and its very cleverly done. I like the image of witches in the audience at the Globe, and the idea that they are beyond words is a good one.
4. Partners in Crime. The miming scene alone is one of the best of the entire series, but the rest of this episode makes for a good start to the new series, and reintroduces Donna perfectly. She is still a bit shouty in this one, but her rapport with the Doctor is one of the best partnerships.
5. Turn Left. Again, this is part of my obsession with time-travel, and the process of watching what would happen if the Doctor wasn’t around peaks my interest. The beetle thing is clearly not a great idea, but how brave Donna was to try and resolve the situation meant she really became a decent companion.

Narrowly missing out: The Doctor’s Daughter. I was so ready to hate this episode - the doctor can’t have a daughter no matter how they engineer that to happen. Then she was infinitely likeable, and then of course, [minor spoiler alert - although you really should have seen it by now] it all ends in tragedy. Except it doesn’t, and that’s why it bugs me. It takes a lot to get me emotionally invested and you are not allowed to play around with that.

Also narrowly missing out: Journey’s End. [second spoiler alert] Just because I am gutted that Donna will never remember.

I hadn’t realised until I compiled this list that most of my favourites do not include Daleks or Cybermen, which is no reflection on them, except they are criminally overused. I also realised that I am not a massive fan of the Blink episode that everyone raves about. Still, it is not unusual for me to disagree with mainstream media outlets.

So, what do you reckon? Are my choices decent enough or do you have other favourites? What would your top five be?