Doctor Who: Critics praise Jodie Whittaker's swansong

An mean assemblage of 3.7 cardinal watched Jodie Whittaker's last Doctor Who episode, overnight figures reveal.

A highest of 4 cardinal watched her regenerate, arsenic it was revealed erstwhile Doctor David Tennant would instrumentality to the bid adjacent year.

Critics were broadly affirmative astir the episode, titled The Power of the Doctor, with astir awarding 4 stars.

But immoderate suggested Whittaker "deserved better" for her send-off and said excessively overmuch was packed into the finale.

The viewing figures are importantly little than they were for Whittaker's debut successful October 2018, which saw an mean of 8.2 cardinal viewers tune in.

However, the ratings for her swansong volition summation erstwhile viewers watching connected catch-up platforms are added successful the coming weeks.

BBC One's astir watched amusement connected Sunday was Strictly Come Dancing: The Results (8 million), followed by a peculiar variation of the Antiques Roadshow (4.4 million)

In the sci-fi drama's finale, Whittaker was seen unexpectedly regenerating into Tennant, who antecedently played the Doctor, astatine the extremity of the 90-minute special.

The BBC confirmed that the fashionable actor, who antecedently played the relation betwixt 2005 and 2010, has officially returned arsenic the 14th Doctor and volition look successful 3 episodes adjacent twelvemonth before Ncuti Gatwa takes over.

Critics, who did not notation Tennant's instrumentality successful their archetypal reviews due to the fact that the closing minutes were removed from preview copies, broadly praised the finale.

"The Power of the Doctor was possibly the champion occurrence of [showrunner Chris Chibnall's] patchy five-year stint arsenic supremo," helium wrote, adding that the bid "got its consciousness of amusive back".

"The programme's past was honoured. Its aboriginal was launched. Only the 'present' portion of the equation suffered. The frenetic communicative threw successful truthful galore playful bells and fan-pleasing whistles, it became nonsensical, arsenic if Chibnall painted himself into a plotting country and didn't cognize however to escape."

The Guardian's Rebecca Nicholson besides awarded 4 stars, writing: "This occurrence is bombastic, and truthful stuffed with Easter eggs and nods to the past that I uncertainty I adjacent caught fractional of them, but it rolls done this meaty communicative with Whittaker's trademark vigor and a just-right lightness of touch."

"Considering this is simply a super-long episode, it trots on astatine a decent velocity and the gait seldom dips. Fans aged and caller should find plentifulness to delight them," she added. "It is simply a large send-off for Whittaker, focused and afloat of feeling, which makes this an apt invited for Gatwa, too."

"[The episode] reminded america that really you request 1 oregon 2 dull bits for play to beryllium dramatic," helium said. "Moments wherever what's happening, nevertheless intergalactic, nevertheless epoch-hopping, nevertheless sassy, has clip to register. Instead it was an action-packed pageant successful which astir thing could hap astatine immoderate turn.

"As a effect small of it felt arsenic if it mattered each that much, adjacent with an incarnation ending, but astatine slightest the ideas kept coming.

"So if you looked astatine your telephone - successful fact, if you blinked - you astir apt missed 1 of umpteen crippled twists, cameos, fans-only callbacks."

"The archetypal pistillate histrion to play the Time Lord brought the amusement up to velocity with modern times... but the scripts person often fto her down a little," she said.

Referring to the finale, Lewis added: "Among the nostalgia and Easter eggs, the narration betwixt the Doctor and Yaz - the happening I expected this occurrence to truly beryllium astir - is sidelined."

"It excites. It surprises. It confounds. It confuses. It brings an erratic four-year section of this perpetually evolving saga to a satisfying close."

He added: "Despite an abundance of distractions, Jodie Whittaker and Mandip Gill stay the throbbing bosom of the story, arsenic the Doctor and Yaz breeze done a rollicking escapade but indispensable hole for a sorrowful parting... the creation of the duo, perching connected apical of the constabulary container gazing astatine satellite Earth, is gorgeous."

Elsewhere, Metro's Gabriel Tate concluded: "The callbacks and reunions warmed the bosom without dominating the communicative (a spin-off bid of the companion enactment radical would beryllium a treat), the villains were genuinely diabolical and it looked terrific.

"If the solution ne'er rather lived up to the build-up, nary matter. This was frightening amusive successful the show's champion traditions."