Best Doctor Who Cliffhangers: The Fourth Doctor

and now, back to our irregularly scheduled programming...
I recently saw a video about "Best Doctor Who Cliffhangers" and noted that there was a distressing amount of Classic Who Cliffhangers, in fact, I think it only totalled around 3 while the remaining 7 were NuWho related. I am rectifying this grave injustice with a series covering the best and worst Doctor Who Cliffhangers.
If I missed any of your favourites, feel free to let me know; the comments are just there.
Please leave any and all feedback in the comments.
Social Links:
Discord: / discord
Letterboxd: boxd.it/OYw3
Patreon: / dantheman2150ad

[@peterjoyfilms]

Hinchliffe really understood the importance of nailing the ciffhangers

[@octaviusfooks7194]

If only Hinchcliffe wasn’t transferred to another show and replaced by Graham Williams

[@spencerraney4979]

Don’t forget Robert Holmes’s role in the writing and the pacing.

[@squishmallowfan025]

in fairness him and Barry Letts...1970-77 Doctor Who was a lesson in how to do low budget television creatively........

[@Doctorwhoenjoyer]

We NEED a producer like Hinchliffe again!

[@oldoldmeme]

Davros' screaming as the sting pummels in at 2:12 is so effective, not too dissimilar to the cliffhanger in Resurrection of the Daleks where the Daleks screaming continues into the first few seconds of the credits.

[@williambryce4630]

0:04 *Yes, your eyes don't deceive you! That is green bubble wrap!*

[@squishmallowfan025]

Imagine being the actor who had to sell the scene! In fairness it was a pretty new material in 1974.......

[@Benjiesbeenbetter.]

Who's to say that the mutating of human flesh into space wasp flesh doesn't look like green bubble wrap?

[@jimi_jams]

The dry ice effects for the servant of Sutek hold up remarkably well

[@squishmallowfan025]

it took me ages to realize it but it's the same actor (Peter Mayock) who played Solis in The Deadly Assassin......they had their pick of great character actors back then. I love finding out random things like this decades on.

[@MegaZeta]

yeah that’s pretty cool

[@HudsonMedia]

Right off the bat, you show one of the most influential and nostalgic cliffhangers I remember from my childhood. Man the Tom Baker era is amazing. Especially the first 3 years.

[@squishmallowfan025]

It's like two different performances and certainly production values. 1975-1977 as a kid was just genius and the era still holds up.

[@magicaltour1]

@@squishmallowfan025Three. We have classic horror Tom (12-14), goofy Tom (15-16), and somber Tom (18). A pity he didn’t do an eighth year, I should have liked to see more of Season 18’s wearier Doctor.

[@squishmallowfan025]

@@magicaltour1 true that! It would have been an interesting further take

[@brigadier-tc8565]

What I learned from this is that The Deadly Assassin is the Master (pun intended) of Cliffhangers

[@rjjcms1]

The only story to have all of its (four) cliffhangers/episode endings included here.

[@project_boredom2940]

I liked how you used the blu-ray version of Logopolis because the new scene of The Doctor falling at 22:02 adds a bit more impact to his regeneration.

[@DanTheMan2150AD]

I’m trying to use the new effects where possible as most are a vast improvement on the originals.

[@404TVfr]

@@DanTheMan2150AD based choice there, dude!

[@raksh9]

Tom Baker's era had the most atmospheric stories. You could even call Dr Who scifi horror at that time. Even though I watched it as a child, the themes and many scenes were not really for young kids.

[@MichaelEDemuro]

I always loved 22:20 when the Pharos Project security team is right behind Adric, Nyssa, and Tegan.

[@pal-of-pals]

Genesis of the Daleks had some of the best cliffhangers imo

[@rjjcms1]

The endings to episodes 1 (first sight of Davros) and 4 are shown here. The end of the penultimate episode 5,when one of the mutant Dalek creatures wraps itself round the Doctor's neck as he tries to blow up the lab,is a famous one.

[@jessica23claire]

I'm surprised the one where Sarah falls off the tower didn't make the cut, that freeze frame gets me every time

[@seancrandall1291]

No budget, a roll of bubble wrap, and some excellent writing, and they made television far superior to most of what's come since 2005.

[@hopebgood]

Because they took it seriously.

[@indiajohnson]

👌🏾👍🏾

[@RedMakesMusic_]

god i love these videos atm lol something about them just shows how good some of these cliffhangers are

[@404TVfr]

SO TRUE! One of my favourites has to be Terror Of The Zygons 1. Cringe as it is to say, it's a borderline jumpscare moment.

[@TheWilliShow-r4v]

List of Cliffhangers The Ark in Space: Parts 2 to 3 The Sontaran Experiment: Part 1 Genesis of the Daleks: Parts 1 and 4 Terror of the Zygons: Part 1 Planet of Evil: Part 1 Pyramids of Mars: Parts 1 and 3 The Android Invasion: Part 2 The Brain of Morbius: Parts 1 to 2 The Seeds of Doom: Parts 2 to 3 The Hand of Fear: Part 1 The Deadly Assassin: Parts 1 to 4 The Face of Evil: Parts 1 and 3 The Talons of Weng-Chiang: Parts 3 and 5 Horror of Fang Rock: Part 3 Image of the Fendahl: Part 2 The Sun Makers: Part 3 The Invasion of Time: Part 4 The Ribos Operation: Part 4 The Pirate Planet: Part 3 The Stones of Blood: Part 1 The Androids of Tara: Part 2 The Armageddon Factor: Parts 5 and 6 City of Death: Parts 1 to 3 The Leisure Hive: Parts 1 to 3 Meglos: Part 1 Full Circle: Part 1 Warriors Gate: Part 2 The Keeper of Traken: Part 4 Logopolis: Part 4

[@markhayward7400]

3:00 Sutekh's 'gift of death' is a wonderful cliffhanger. Full marks too to the actor in the fez for his RADA quality death scream!

[@LicencetoWho]

10:40 & 18:39 are possibly my favourite Doctor Who cliffhangers of all time!

[@DanTheMan2150AD]

*YOU MUST ACKNOWLEDGE ME!*

[@octaviusfooks7194]

WHO AM I? WHO AM I? WHO AM I!!?!

[@TheArchieTheory]

I showed the first one to my friend that's never seen doctor who out of context

[@octaviusfooks7194]

I must admit, the early Baker story cliffhangers are the best.

[@danmcdaid]

I am the servant of Sutekh. He needs no other.

[@hopebgood]

2:48 Pyramids of Mars. One of the all-time classic Who stories.

[@josephryan362]

The ack in space has got one of the best doctor who cliffhanger and every tom baker doctor who story has got a good cliffhanger in every episodes

[@Darren79]

Terror of the Zygons part one should be in there. Great direction, performance and music!💯

[@DanTheMan2150AD]

It’s in there.

[@Darren79]

@@DanTheMan2150AD That's me not paying attention😁

[@ethanstoeckel3901]

Cant wait until the fifth doctor cliffhangers

[@comicalhorrorpix]

Would have loved to see Warriors Gate Episode 3, were the doctor is fast forwarded through time. That one has really grown on me over the years. As has the story. Very underrated

[@williamhiggins9940]

One of the best cliffhangers of the entire classic era, to my mind.

[@geminin6674]

Shada Part Three also deserves to be here. “Dead men do not require oxygen.”

[@EmArgh]

9:14 - Just stay there Doctor, you'll easily derail that piece of shit train, it's got the power of a moth.

[@markandresen1]

Having grown-up finding Egyptology both fascinating and chilling in the uncovered imagery, the end of part one of 'Pyramids Of Mars' freaked me out; like a nightmare manifested.

[@cyrusq5999]

STATE OF DECAY should have at least one cliffhanger in this collection.

[@KubatheChangeling]

Which one was it?

[@cyrusq5999]

Part Two or Three. Both are great.

[@fletcherhamilton3177]

I’d forgotten how well they conveyed the Arctic in _Seeds of Doom_ and how good the model work + pyrotechnics were.

[@stinchjack]

The cliffhanger where the Doctor appears to shoot the President is probably the best in classic Who

[@mrvenom88]

10:45 We are the room that says "No!" No! No! No! No! And you are... A SHWUBBERY

[@christiansteward4327]

Episode 2 of genesis had my jaw drop so hard first time watching. The resolution in episode 3 completely cheated us, though. I haven't seen all of classic who yet but I doubt anything will beat it.

[@josephryan362]

The fourth doctor is my sixth favourite doctor who and i love a bunch of cliffhanger of the fourth doctor era

[@taker68]

Love Planet of Evil part 3's cliffhanger, Sarah looks so scared. Hampered by the easy reverse lever in the next part.

[@LuminosityUK]

The first one should have ended with “Sooty what are you doing in there!”

[@m_l_hill]

2:51 what a mummy's boy

[@Jaketherobonrd]

17:30 use scare the shit out of me when I was a kid! I couldn’t watch City of Death for a while til I turned 18.

[@davidpo5517]

To be fair the green bubble wrap looks really good, freaky and gross on taped VHS reruns from last century. Also for shame, some of these are the ends of stories, not really cliffhangers.

[@Nostalgic80s-nd3qb]

One of the best cliffhangers from Tom Baker’s era in my opinion is the cliffhanger to Part 4 of the Invasion of Time. You think that it’s all over but then NOPE!! It immediately cuts to (SPOILER ALERT) the Sontarans standing there and then Stoor grabs his weapon stick and then the sting plays. Look, I know that The Invasion of Time is not a very good story, but it does have some good moments that prevent it from being unwatchable.

[@harrynewiss4630]

the headless body in Brain of Morbius I remember terrifying me as a kid Other favourites - the hand coming to life and the Doctor being drowned by Goth

[@kingbolo4579]

The Doctor being drowned by Goth was my first-ever cliffhanger, in the first ever episode I ever saw! Mummy finally let me watch it.

[@Morphstock]

No Talons of Weng Chiang episode 2 , with Mr Sin climbing out of the laundry basket and stalking Leela?

[@squishmallowfan025]

it was the damn way he moved, the close-ups of the eyes and the pig grunting sound effects after we'd been told he had the cerebral cortex of a pig. (and a "small computer"). I don't think you'll find that sort of vaguely disturbing material in what was then a kid's TV show now.

[@TheHylianBatman]

Oh, snap, I didn't realize this was an ongoing series! Guess I'll have to keep up with it! I really like it!

[@aqacefan]

4th to 5th is my second favorite regeneration.

[@richardroberts8356]

Loved it, but nothing from Robot or Destiny, or did I blink?

[@lauriebarrett6789]

I remember fembots being on "The Bionic Woman" in the 70''s.

[@richardwyndham7666]

5:44 Doctor is talking to robospunk.

[@ethanstoeckel3901]

In season 18 the leisure hive has the best clifhangers in Tom baker doctor who hiatory

[@MegaZeta]

that dude found his bubble wrap

[@cerneuffington2656]

No Robots of Death gravel pit? 🙁

[@RileyZilla1001]

The Doctor gets killed by a Thomas the Tank Engine character. 🤣

[@octaviusfooks7194]

Favourite part of Tom Baker’s tenure? Hinchcliffe, Williams or Nathan Turner eras?

[@squishmallowfan025]

Hinchcliffe by far as that's what I grew up with but I think they had an edge to them...Williams had some great ones (Image of the Fendahl) and a season or two where it really lost its way at the time...he got really great character actors on the show though....JNT was the epitome of the accountant getting hold of the show and if he had some classics (he did) it was because everyone around him pulled their weight - it was less obvious in Season 18 than subsequent ones.

[@hopebgood]

No brainer - Hinchcliffe by far.

[@GeorgeDoctorWhoprod]

How did they do the smoke effect in pyramids of mars I saw someone say dry ice but dry ice doesn’t make that much “smoke”

[@eddherring4972]

Pumped down the costume in pipes which is why Bernard Archard is wearing the costume. If you think about it in the story where did it come from? He only wears this for his arrival and the killing of Ibrahim Namin. The costume ensured the pipes were hidden and that Archard didn’t get cold burns.

[@octaviusfooks7194]

18:43 That seems quite terrified; imagine the Doctor is engulfing you

[@octaviusfooks7194]

Om nom nom nom nom!

[@mrkitcatt2119]

Not the green painted bubble wrap

[@octaviusfooks7194]

5:55 YEETTTT!!

[@warrenburroughs3025]

Is that Boyce from Only fools and Horses at 7:50 or am I mistaken?

[@Gallifrey1991]

Best cliffhangers ever

[@josephryan362]

Sear Jane Smith is my favourite doctor who companie from new who and classic Dr who

[@nifralo2752]

15:33 so Dragonfire isnt the only cliffhanger were someone throws themselves down a hole

[@octaviusfooks7194]

In the third cliffhanger shown in this video from The Leisure Hive, was the Doctor in cahoots with the Foamasi?

[@ethanstoeckel3901]

Does anyone have a favirote Tom Baker clifhanger? I like them all

[@squishmallowfan025]

either when Android Sarah's face fell off and/or the Zygon interrupts her on the phone as I remember being 5 and watching these.

[@warblerab2955]

Why with the Forth Doctor's regeneration into the Fifth Doctor, they to add in the stupid stuff about the Watcher is beyond me.

[@danmcdaid]

I LOVE the Watcher. And it's perfectly consistent with what we saw in Planet of the Spiders

[@warblerab2955]

um, no it is not. The Watcher was not in Planet of Spiders, he was not needed to that regeneration or any other of the Doctor's regenerations, other than the 4 to 5. The Watcher makes no sense to me at all. "He was the Doctor all the time"????? @@danmcdaid

[@octaviusfooks7194]

Will you do the same with the remaining doctors?

[@DanTheMan2150AD]

Yes.

[@Christopher-le2ez]

❤😮😮😂❤