Here are some of the Eleventh Doctor’s most underrated stories…

‘Let’s Kill Hitler’

Come on, grouch; this one is a riot, with River Song (both River Songs) just ripping up the screen.

I can understand why this annoyed some; it’s a case of foiled expectations. After the epic ‘A Good Man Goes To War’ and its revelations about the Pond’s baby, I think the last thing most of us expected was for it to be followed up by such a bizarre, funny episode. This is Moffat all over, zigging in the second part when you expect him to zag. Or something. And it’s why it’s so often looked down upon; a fan with expectations unmet is an angry so-and-so.

‘Let’s Kill Hitler’ is Moffat just pressing the joy button again and again. And Rory punches Hitler!

‘The Rings of Akhaten’

Now this is quite the divisive one. Arriving late on in Matt Smith’s tenure is this rather oddball story from Luther writer Neil Cross, which more often than not elicits either cries of ‘Love it! Misunderstood masterpiece!’ or ‘DULL! And good LORD will someone make them stop singing?!’

I suppose I fall somewhere in the middle, but after asking on Twitter which episodes should make the list, so many people plumped for this one that I didn’t feel like I could really leave it off.

And look, there certainly are elements of this episode that I adore. The Doctor ‘stalking’ Clara throughout her life as he tries to work out what makes this girl ‘impossible’; love that. And, of course, there’s his climactic speech to the big-orange-bad, full of beautiful words and raw emotion (now recited at fan conventions by almost every other living Doctor, it seems). Awesome stuff.

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