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16 years later, Doctor Whostill hasn't managed to top its best historical episode. Since Doctor Who's "NuWho" era launched in 2005, the Doctor and his companions have witnessed incredible historical events and met some of the world's most influential people. From shaking hands with William Shakespeare, Rosa Parks, Nikola Tesla, and Charles Dickens to solving a murder mystery alongside the great Agatha Christie and surviving the destruction of Pompeii, there are few corners of Earth's history that the Doctor and their TARDIS haven't visited.
Still, not all of Doctor Who's historical episodes are equally memorable and emotionally resonant. Some feel overly gimmicky or, even worse, like dreaded "filler," a fluffy way to pass the time between the Doctor's previous major sci-fi battle and the next. One episode, however, perfectly captures the magic of Doctor Who, introducing one of history's most beloved figures in a story that not only acknowledges humanity's connection to and need for art but actively celebrates it.
Doctor Who season 5, episode 10, "Vincent and the Doctor," sees Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor and Karen Gillan's Amy Pond meet the one and only Vincent van Gogh. While the overall sci-fi premise of the episode is somewhat flimsy — the Doctor notices a monstrous presence in one of van Gogh's famous paintings and decides to pay the artist a visit — the relationship that develops between Vincent, the Doctor, and Amy, and the effect it has on Vincent's life is one of the most emotionally thoughtful, rewarding, and realistic developments in all of Doctor Who.
"Vincent And The Doctor" Is One Of Doctor Who's All-Time Best Episodes
"Vincent and the Doctor" isn't just one of Doctor Who's best historical episodes; it's one of the show's most surprising and best episodes, period, a true emotionally cathartic experience not just for the characters but for the audience watching, as well. Tony Curran delivers a moving, layered performance as the titular Vincent (with a Scottish accent cleverly introduced as Dutch), conveying van Gogh's depression, mood swings, and loneliness with real tenderness while simultaneously imbuing the character with incredible energy, portraying him as someone caring and playfully flirtatious.
Even the episode's "monster of the week" plays a role in creating this version of Vincent van Gogh, as the painter's enhanced eye for beauty and detail and his innate sense of empathy allow him to see a monster that others, including the Doctor, cannot. When the trio accidentally kills the monster (with a whopping 12 minutes left in the episode), they share a quiet moment beneath the stars to reflect, watching as the nightscape beautifully transforms into what is perhaps van Gogh's most popular painting, Starry Night.
Artistic details like that are woven throughout the episode. The sets recreate world-famous images, such as van Gogh's Bedroom in Arles and Café Terrace at Night, with painstaking detail. One shot of Amy sitting between what can only be described as a sunflower explosion makes the episode feel dreamy and visually unique. It's obvious that writer Richard Curtis and director Jonny Campbell didn't want this episode to be an easily forgotten fluke. It honors van Gogh's talent while telling a timey-wimey story like only Doctor Who can. All in all, "Vincent and the Doctor" is a triumph.
Doctor Who's Vincent van Gogh Episode Features One Of The Show's Greatest Quotes
Perhaps most importantly, the episode doesn't treat van Gogh's mental illness as something that can be cured by waving a sonic screwdriver or time-hopping in a TARDIS. Depression is a complex issue, one that affects every person's life differently. In the end, Amy and the Doctor don't manage to change Vincent's tragic fate, despite their defeat of the monster and their short-lived friendship with Vincent. They do, however, manage to give him a few moments of genuine happiness, both in 19th-century Provence and when they bring him to the Musée d'Orsay in the far-flung year of 2010 to witness his artistic legacy firsthand.
As the Doctor tells Amy, "Every life is a pile of good things and bad things. The good things don't always soften the bad things, but vice versa, the bad things don't always spoil the good things or make them unimportant. And we definitely added to his pile of good things." It's such a simple quote, but undeniably effective, as it's not only true but also proves the Doctor's deep emotional intelligence.
As Vincent watches dozens of people milling about the gallery, enjoying and studying his work, Curran's performance reaches its peak. There's relief in his eyes and his posture, true joy in his smile and in his tears. It's a real tearjerker of a scene, made all the more so by guest star Bill Nighy's incredible scholarly speech summarizing van Gogh's importance to the art world and human history as a whole:
"To me, van Gogh is the finest painter of them all. Certainly the most popular great painter of all time, the most beloved. His command of color the most magnificent. He transformed the pain of his tormented life into ecstatic beauty. Pain is easy to portray, but to use your passion and pain to portray the ecstasy and joy and magnificence of our world... no one had ever done it before. Perhaps no one ever will again. To my mind, that strange, wild man who roamed the fields of Provence was not only the world's greatest artist, but also one of the greatest men who ever lived."
Doctor Who's best episodes, historical or not, are fun, moving, and even educational, blending strong character work with high-stakes sci-fi and that unique Whoniverse charm. Even now, well over a decade and dozens of stories later, "Vincent and the Doctor" remains one of the most memorable episodes of Doctor Who ever produced.
