Steven Moffat Recalls His Proudest Doctor Who Achievement

Say what you want about Steven Moffat – and there are certainly a lot of opinions out there on him – but he’s done a damn fine job with Doctor Who during his time as showrunner.

Known for storylines that were always a bit too complex but enough beautifully written monologues and truly inspired episodes that more than made up for that, Moffat’s definitely had his fare share of critics over the years. On the whole, though, he’s done some excellent work on Doctor Who and has been instrumental in bringing it the level of worldwide recognition it now has, shepherding the show through arguably its most globally popular period and ensuring that the modern series will continue on in rude health after he steps down.

But of all the things he achieved while calling the shots, which is Moffat most proud of? In a recent interview with Digital Spy, the writer/director answered that very question, saying that it was “all the shows we made around the 50th [anniversary]” that he was happiest with.

“There was some phenomenal television there – I can now say that. The Day of the Doctor, An Adventure in Space and Time, Peter Davison’s lovely film, The Night of the Doctor… all the stuff we did was brilliant. We carried off that 50th, we absolutely nailed it. No-one thought we would and we did, and it was great and I’m incredibly proud of that. It was hell [at the time], it was living hell, but it turned out great.”

We certainly agree with him. The 50th anniversary special was fantastic, as was everything surrounding it and to this day, those outings still stand as definite highlights from the series as a whole. That being said, Moffat has a lot more to be proud of as well, as he was responsible for some really special episodes that will be fondly remembered for years to come – “A Good Man Goes To War,” “The 11th Hour,” “Heaven Sent,” etc. Again, say what you want about him, but he’s delivered some of the show’s finest hours.

As such, we’re definitely sad to see him depart and are looking forward to watching his final instalment, which will be the upcoming Christmas special. Aptly titled “Twice Upon a Time,” it’ll be with us on December 25th and will surely be a bittersweet festive treat, what with Peter Capaldi also poised to bid farewell to Doctor Who and ultimately give way for the incoming Jodie Whittaker, who will then take point for the show’s eleventh series next fall.