Last week’s Doctor Who episode, ’73 Yards,’ achieved something rare: it genuinely unsettled viewers, adults and children alike, in a way the show hasn’t managed in years. This episode has resonated strongly with both critics and fans, evidenced by overwhelmingly positive reviews and high ratings on platforms like Gallifrey Base. This enthusiastic reception is notable within Doctor Who’s often highly critical fanbase.
However, ’73 Yards’ has also proven divisive. Its deliberate ambiguity and refusal to offer easy answers have frustrated some viewers, even provoking anger. Some are bothered by the lack of explanation regarding the mysterious woman stalking Ruby Sunday, while others find the opaque ending unsatisfying. This mixed reaction is understandable; episodes like ’73 Yards,’ which prioritize atmosphere and unanswered questions, are inherently more polarizing than straightforward adventures.
Ruby Sunday looking distressed in Doctor Who '73 Yards', highlighting the episode's unsettling atmosphere.
The core of the issue, perhaps, lies in a fundamental misunderstanding of the episode’s intent. Many viewers approach Doctor Who, and indeed many TV shows, expecting a certain type of mystery. We are accustomed to puzzle-box narratives where clues are laid out for the audience to decipher, or shows with intricate mythologies that gradually reveal answers, often while posing new questions. Think of classic whodunnits or even shows like Lost. However, ’73 Yards’ operates on a different level entirely.
’73 Yards’ departs from these familiar mystery structures and instead taps into a much older tradition: the ghost story. Consider the ‘British Library Tales of the Weird’ series, which revives obscure and unsettling stories from writers like Algernon Blackwood and Arthur Machen. These tales are characterized by their baffling narratives, uncanny imagery, and a dreamlike logic that defies rational explanation. This is the realm of storytelling that ’73 Yards’ inhabits, sharing kinship with the BBC’s ‘A Ghost Story for Christmas’ adaptations, films like Mark Jenkins’ Enys Men, and the enigmatic masterpiece that is David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: The Return.
In ’73 Yards,’ a semblance of cause and effect exists, originating from the moment the Doctor inadvertently disturbs the faerie ring. Briefly, the Doctor’s action leads to his disappearance and Ruby’s subsequent haunting by a spectral figure. This haunting persists throughout her life, seemingly culminating in a merging with the apparition in her old age. Then, in a twist, an entity, possibly Mad Jack, appears to grant her a chance to rewrite events by preventing the Doctor’s initial misstep, thus breaking the cycle. Crucially, the episode deliberately withholds any clear explanation of the mechanics at play or the precise relationship between Ruby and the apparition.
Aneurin Barnard as Roger ap Gwilliam in Doctor Who '73 Yards', a key figure in Ruby's investigation.
The ending has sparked debate, with some interpreting the stalker as Ruby herself across time. While intriguing, this interpretation feels somewhat tenuous, given the casting of different actresses (Amanda Walker and Hilary Hobson) as elderly Ruby and the apparition, respectively, and their lack of visual resemblance. Yet, the episode thrives on such ambiguity, resisting definitive answers.
We are conditioned to expect established rules within long-running series, but ’73 Yards’ actively subverts these expectations from its opening moments. Even the iconic title sequence and theme music are absent, seemingly spirited away, much like the Doctor, by the fae. The episode presents familiar scenarios, like the archetypal creepy village pub, only to then disrupt our assumptions; the locals are not strange, but rather weary of prejudiced outsiders. Ruby believes she is solving the mystery when she confronts Roger ap Gwilliam, and briefly, the narrative flirts with a conventional parallel world trope. However, the devastating “40 years later” title card abruptly shatters this illusion, highlighting the futility of Ruby’s efforts. Perhaps Ruby’s actions against Gwilliam were significant, or perhaps they were utterly inconsequential – the episode leaves us in the dark. Instead, ’73 Yards’ underscores the point made by Kate Lethbridge-Stewart earlier: “That’s what we do, all of us. We see something inexplicable and invent the rules to make it work.” The apparition itself remains perpetually out of focus, both literally and figuratively.
Therefore, the persistent mystery surrounding the woman’s words and the villagers’ reactions is not a flaw, but a deliberate choice and a strength of ’73 Yards.’ The episode’s central aim is to immerse the viewer in Ruby’s experience, to evoke her feelings of confusion, frustration, fear, and profound isolation. Elderly Ruby’s poignant statement, “Everyone has abandoned me my whole life,” resonates deeply precisely because her life’s circumstances have been so inexplicably and cruelly shaped by the unseen.
Close-up of Millie Gibson as Ruby in Doctor Who '73 Yards', emphasizing her confusion and isolation in the face of the unexplained.
’73 Yards’ stands out as a Doctor Who episode that fully embraces the show’s renewed commitment to supernatural storytelling. It grapples authentically with the truly unsettling nature of the unexplained, moving beyond simplistic monster-of-the-week narratives. It presents viewers with a genuinely unsolvable mystery, a far more profound and lasting kind of fear, and leaves the blanks to be filled in by our own imaginations, making it a uniquely impactful and memorable episode.
Doctor Who is available for streaming on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Disney Plus in the US. For further information, consult the Doctor Who release schedule.
