S4.E12

The Stolen Earth

Episode aired Feb 3, 2009
TV-PG
45m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Catherine Tate and David Tennant in Doctor Who (2005)

The return of an old enemy leaves Earth along with 26 other planets stolen from their places. As the Doctor and Donna look for the whereabouts of Earth, former companions of the Doctor assem... Read allThe return of an old enemy leaves Earth along with 26 other planets stolen from their places. As the Doctor and Donna look for the whereabouts of Earth, former companions of the Doctor assemble a resistance against the new Dalek Empire.The return of an old enemy leaves Earth along with 26 other planets stolen from their places. As the Doctor and Donna look for the whereabouts of Earth, former companions of the Doctor assemble a resistance against the new Dalek Empire.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

9.1/10

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

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9:57

Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
The episode is a crossover between Doctor Who and its spin-off series Torchwood (2006) and The Sarah Jane Adventures (2007). Writer Russell T. Davies described the crossover by saying "it's simply doing what kids do in their imaginations ... they would think nothing of having their Dalek toys battling Star Wars droids. Why not have all the factions of the Doctor Who universe going into battle together?".

Goofs
Harriet Jones redirects the "Subwave" network to Torchwood in Cardiff, but the map shows Swansea which is 50 miles away.

Quotes
Harriet Jones: Harriet Jones, former Prime Minister.
Dalek: Yes, we know who you are.
Harriet Jones: Oh, you know nothing of any human. And that will be your downfall.

Crazy credits
Along with the story's second half, "Journey's End" (4.13), this episode has the largest opening-title cast listing of the modern series: six names (Tennant, Tate, Agyeman, Barrowman, Sladen and Piper) appear before the title, rather than the usual two... in the same amount of time.

Connections
Featured in Doctor Who Confidential: Here Come the Girls! (2008)

Soundtracks
Doctor Who Theme
(uncredited)
Written by Ron Grainer
Arranged by Murray Gold
Performed by BBC National Orchestra of Wales

User reviews28

Featured review

Fantastic

I was wrong. Russell T. Davis IS a great Doctor Who writer. I don't even care what came before it, because "The Stolen Earth" is the most insanely entertaining and epic Doctor Who story since "Remembrance of the Daleks" and really a fine, thrilling piece of writing from Davies. I'd go as far as saying that this is his best work since his New Adventures novel "Damaged Goods".

I didn't love "Doomsday". I hated "Last of the Timelords", and I'm really hoping I won't hate "Journey's End", and chances are I won't because "The Stolen Earth" is beyond just an good setup, it really is half a story, a half so intense and jam-packed that there is literally no time to look away from the episode and, you know, BREATHE. I like the foundation of this story a heck of a lot more than any season finale in the RTD era of Doctor Who, and it would take a LOT to mess this up.

"The Stolen Earth" is absolutely crazy, it's like RTD had a checklist of everything that had appeared in his era and decided to include all of them in this episode. What's surprising is that the story doesn't feel even remotely disjointed! And the best part of this story is that we've got space-Nazi Daleks back! Oh, and Davros. Oh my oh my Davros. How brilliantly-realized was Davros here? THIS is what I've wanted from the Daleks in this new Doctor Who series. THIS is it. THIS is a classic Dalek story updated with fantastic effects and production values. THIS is how they should always be used in Doctor Who.

Absolutely wacky, insanely intense, dramatic, thrilling, and featuring one of the best Doctor Who cliffhangers in all its thirty seasons of existence. What more could a fan ask for?

10/10