As Doctor Who star Jodie Whittaker prepares to hand over the keys of the Tardis to Ncuti Gatwa the time has come to assess the performance of all the previous Time Lords. Sex Education star Gatwa will become the 14th actor to play the iconic role, and the sixth since writer Russell T Davies brought the sci-fi series back to life in 2005.
He will join an illustrious list of actors who have all brought something new to the role, from William Hartnell, the original Doctor who first travelled through time in 1963, to the latest incumbent Whittaker, who will bring her time on the Tardis to a close with a special due to air later this year.
So who has been the best Doctor? All fans of the show have their own favourite, with most choosing the actor who played the role during their peak childhood years - and you can make your own choice using our interactive gadget below.
But an alternative assessment can be made by analysing audience ratings of individual shows on IMDb, starring each Doctor. Although that assessment can be skewed by the quality of the writing, the supporting characters, and the plot of each episode, it still provides a good indication of the actor who has enjoyed the most popular run.
So, using median audience scores for each Doctor, we can reveal that the best Who is… David Tennant.
His performance as the 10th Doctor between 2005 and 2010, is described by the BBC as “excitable, enthusiastic and victorious”. And it seems viewers agree. Episodes starring Tennant as the Time Lord scored a median rating of 7.90 from fans voting on IMDb.
That is just slightly higher than Peter Capaldi, whose run as the 12th doctor hit a median score of 7.85. Matt Smith, the 11th doctor was third with a score of 7.80.
Tom Baker - who played the Doctor for seven seasons between 1974 and 1981, the longest any actor has played the role - was the highest-ranking Doctor from the show's original series, which ran from 1963 to 1989. His median score of 7.60 puts him in fifth place, just behind Christopher Eccleston (7.70) who brought the character back to life in 2005.
But while Tom Baker’s time in the Tardis brought the show’s highest viewing figures, only a handful of viewers have logged onto IMDb to rate his episodes of the show. In fact, an average of fewer than 100 IMDb users have rated Doctor Who episodes featuring any of the “classic” Doctors.
By contrast, around 5,000 viewers logged onto IMDb to rate each episode of Jodi Whittaker’s run in the show.
Meanwhile, IMDb ratings have revealed the single highest rated episode from a total of almost 900. According to TV and movie database, the top-rated Doctor Who episode is Blink, which featured David Tennant trapped in 1969 and locked in a battle to defeat the Weeping Angels.
Blink, which first aired in 2007, scored an almost perfect score of 9.8 with fans. That episode is followed by Heaven Sent from 2015, which starred Peter Capaldi, and Forest of the Dead from 2008 (Tennant).
Why not choose your favourite Doctor using the interactive gadget below?
