Doctor Who: The Husbands of River Song

Doctor: 'I think I'm going to need a bigger flowchart.'

This year's Christmas special was the dream team-up I've been fantasising about for years, yet never really believed would happen. There's always been something compelling about the prospect of seeing Capaldi and Kingston onscreen together. Seeing two old pros trading chops on your favourite show is as good as it gets in my book, and not only did Moffat make it happen, he managed to create one of the show's most emotionally complete episodes to date.

Doctor Who: Hell Bent (2)

Clara: 'My time is up, Doctor. Between one heartbeat and the last is all the time I have.'

Virtually everything about tonight's episode ran counter to expectation. I anticipated a reclamation of Clara's soul from the Quantum Shade, all-out war on Gallifrey, and an ultimately devastating denouement. In the end, Gallifrey turned out to be something of a red herring—the real focus of the story was the Doctor and Clara's relationship, and it was told and acted to perfection. I always wanted something better for Clara than death, and although she's still just a heartbeat away from facing the raven, this felt like the perfect send-off.