Watch Order Recommended
0 / 26 watchedBroadcast order, which is also the order the story is told in. The classic era is grouped by Doctor so the list stays readable; every revival series is listed with the specials that air around it.
Classic Era (1963-1989)
Revival (2005-2025)
Newcomer Order (Start in 2005)
0 / 13 watchedFor viewers who want the modern show first. The classic era moves to the end, where its pacing, its serial format and its missing episodes matter far less.
About Doctor Who
Doctor Who has had two lives. The original run aired from November 1963 to December 1989: 26 seasons, 695 episodes, seven Doctors, and 95 episodes from the 1960s that no longer exist, some surviving only as off-air audio. A one-off BBC and Fox TV movie in 1996 gave Paul McGann a single outing as the Eighth Doctor.
The revival started in 2005 with Christopher Eccleston and ran through Series 15, which ended on 31 May 2025 when Ncuti Gatwa regenerated into Billie Piper. The show is now between eras. The BBC cancelled its planned 2026 Christmas special in June 2026, Russell T Davies and Bad Wolf left the production, and in September 2026 the BBC put Doctor Who out to tender for a new series aimed at 2028/29.
Good to know
Release order and story order are the same sequence, so there is no separate chronological list. The real decision is where to start: the classic era is long, slow and partly missing, while the 2005 revival is self-contained and explains its own lore. Most guides recommend 2005 first and classic afterward, which is the second order below. The 2023 anniversary specials were built as a re-entry point, so Series 1 then the 60th specials is also a valid opening.
