73 Yards
308 – "73 Yards" | |||
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Doctor Who episode | |||
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Cast | |||
Guest
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Production | |||
Directed by | Dylan Holmes Williams | ||
Written by | Russell T Davies | ||
Script editor | Scott Handcock | ||
Produced by | Vicki Delow | ||
Executive producer(s) |
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Music by | Murray Gold | ||
Series | Series 14 | ||
Running time | 47 minutes | ||
First broadcast | 25 May 2024 | ||
Chronology | |||
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"73 Yards" is the fourth episode of the fourteenth series of the science fiction television series Doctor Who. The episode was first broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 25 May 2024, and was released by Disney+ in the United States on 24 May. It was written by Russell T Davies and directed by Dylan Holmes Williams.
In the episode, the
"73 Yards" was watched by 4.058 million viewers and received positive reviews from critics, with Gibson's performance being widely praised.
Plot
The Doctor and Ruby arrive at a cliffside in Wales. The Doctor accidentally steps on a "fairy circle" and Ruby reads aloud a message written on a scroll placed within it, saying, "Rest in Peace, Mad Jack." Shortly thereafter, the Doctor vanishes. Ruby sees that a mysterious woman has appeared 73 yards (67 m) away from her, who remains at exactly that distance no matter where Ruby goes. Every person who talks to the woman flees in terror and becomes hostile to Ruby.
Ruby returns home and asks her mother, Carla, for help. Carla talks to the woman, but also flees in terror, and then disowns Ruby, leaving her homeless. Ruby eventually meets up with
While on a date, Ruby sees an advertisement for Roger ap Gwilliam, a political candidate who the Doctor said would bring Britain to the brink of
The woman does not leave, and Ruby spends another forty years alone. An elderly Ruby lies in a hospital bed, watching the woman slowly approach her bed's foot as Ruby's heart monitor stops. Elder Ruby appears in the past, on the day she and the Doctor interacted with the circle. She views them from the woman's position, whom the younger Ruby now notices earlier, and warns her before she vanishes. Ruby duly prevents the Doctor from stepping across the fairy circle before the pair leave.
Production
Development
"73 Yards" was written by Russell T Davies, who described the episode as being "Welsh folk horror" and the antagonist to be the "strangest villain you'll ever see."[1] He further explained that the episode showed Ruby living "a life of penitence", required to do "something good" to earn forgiveness for the Doctor's unintentional "lack of respect" in breaking the fairy circle.[2] Gatwa stated that "73 Yards" was important to Ruby's overall development throughout the series.[3]
The episode omitted Doctor Who's opening theme song and title sequence. It is one of the few episodes in the programme's history to do so, the others being "Sleep No More" (2015), "The Woman Who Fell to Earth" (2018) and "Resolution" (2019).[4][5]
Filming
![A television news studio overlooking a window between broadcasts.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/BBC_general_studio_of_3_Central_Square%2C_8_July_2022_%282%29.jpg/220px-BBC_general_studio_of_3_Central_Square%2C_8_July_2022_%282%29.jpg)
"73 Yards" was filmed in December 2022 and January 2023 and directed by
Filming for pub scenes took place at White Cross Inn in
Casting
"73 Yards" stars Gibson as Ruby Sunday and is deemed as a "Doctor-lite" episode[10][11][12] which refers to an episode that features limited screen time for the Doctor. Gatwa was still filming Sex Education (2019–2023) at the time the episode was filmed, limiting his availability.[3] He was only on set for one day of filming to shoot his scenes.[2][13]
Casting for the episode was announced on 9 January 2023.[14][15] Aneurin Barnard appears in the episode as the antagonistic Prime Minister Roger ap Gwilliam.[16] Hilary Hobson portrays the Woman, while Siân Phillips portrays Enid Meadows.[17] Amanda Walker portrayed an older version of Ruby.[18]
"73 Yards" features several returning characters including
Broadcast and reception
Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Vulture | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Broadcast
In the United Kingdom, "73 Yards" was first released on BBC iPlayer and aired on BBC One on 25 May 2024.[32] It was released simultaneously on Disney+ in the United States on 24 May.[33] Disney also handled international distribution of the episode outside of the United Kingdom and Ireland.[34]
Ratings
Overnight figures estimated that the episode was seen by 2.62 million viewers upon its first broadcast, the largest overnight figures of the series up to that point.[35][11] It beat the previous highest "Space Babies" by around 20 thousand viewers, and was up 580 thousand viewers from the previous episode.[36]
Critical reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 16 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.6/10. The website's consensus reads: "A discombobulating and eerie installment that puts Millie Gibson's Ruby front and center, '73 Yards' is maybe the best entry in this season yet."[23]
![Millie Gibson on the set of Doctor Who.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/Millie_Gibson.png/150px-Millie_Gibson.png)
In his review for VG247, Alex Donaldson referred to "73 Yards" as "more than just an all-time great Doctor Who episode, it's one of the best bits of TV in years".[37] Similarly, Evening Standard's Martin Robinson hailed it as "a sci-fi horror classic that even the show's haters will love" and saw it as a rival to "Blink" (2007), citing its "formal excellence and truly affecting horror".[25] Daniel Cooper of Engadget praised the episode for its exploration of Ruby's character and how it utilised her.[38]
Bradley Russell of
In print
Author | ISBN 9781785948862 | |
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A
Notes
References
- ^ Hibbs, James (21 May 2024). "Doctor Who boss teases "strangest villain you'll ever see" in 73 Yards". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f Behind the Scenes – 73 Yards – Doctor Who (Behind the scenes featurette). BBC. 25 May 2024. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b c Prescott, Amanda-Rae (24 May 2024). "Doctor Who's Millie Gibson on Why Ruby "Has to Be Her Own Hero" in "73 Yards"". Den of Geek. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ McEwan, Cameron K (24 May 2024). "'Doctor Who' Mid-Season Theory Roundup — and What Happened in "73 Yards"". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Fullerton, Huw (22 January 2019). "11 burning questions we have after watching the Doctor Who New Year's special". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ComicBook.com. Archivedfrom the original on 24 April 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ a b Laford, Andrea (16 January 2023). "Doctor Who filming with Aneurin Barnard at Cardiff City Stadium". Cultbox. Archived from the original on 16 January 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Hicks, Tom (24 May 2024). ""I've been sworn to secrecy": Doctor Who filmed in Caerphilly pub". Caerphilly Observer. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Belam, Martin (25 May 2024). "Doctor Who: 73 Yards – season one episode four recap". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b c d "Doctor Who's Doctor-lite episode 4 is so nearly flawless". Digital Spy. 20 May 2024. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ a b "'Doctor Who's Latest Episode, "73 Yards," Just Broke a New Record". Collider. 26 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ Britt, Ryan (24 May 2024). "16 Years Later, The Oldest Sci-Fi Show Put A Mind-Bending Spin on a Familiar Genre". Inverse. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ Graham-Lowery, Nathan (25 May 2024). "Why Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor Was Missing In Doctor Who Season 14, Episode 4 Explained By Showrunner RTD". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Lewis, Isobel (9 January 2023). "Doctor Who: 1899 star Aneurin Barnard joins Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor in new series". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Ramachandran, Naman (9 January 2023). "'Doctor Who': Jemma Redgrave Returns, 'Peaky Blinders' Actor Aneurin Barnard Joins Cast of New Season". Variety. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Hibbs, James (25 May 2024). "Who is Roger ap Gwilliam in Doctor Who? Character explained". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Meet the cast of Doctor Who - 73 Yards". Radio Times. 24 May 2024. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Bibby, Daniel (24 May 2024). "Doctor Who Season 14 Debunks A Great Mrs. Flood Theory In Episode 4". Screen Rant. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ Coley, Samantha (24 May 2024). "'Doctor Who' Season 1 Episode 4 Recap: The New Girl Who Waited". Collider. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b Tantimedh, Adi (24 May 2024). "Doctor Who: "73 Yards" Review: Horror Tale of Abandonment & Surviving". Bleeding Cool. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ "16 Years Later, The Oldest Sci-Fi Show Put A Mind-Bending Spin on a Familiar Genre". Inverse. 25 May 2024. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Hibbs, James (16 May 2024). "Doctor Who confirms next Susan Twist role and new cast for 73 Yards". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 23 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b c "Doctor Who: Season 1, Episode 4". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
- ^ "Doctor Who: '73 Yards' Review". Empire. 29 May 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ a b Robinson, Martin (25 May 2024). "Doctor Who review: wow, 73 Yards is a sci-fi horror classic". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b Kelly, Stephen (24 May 2024). "Millie Gibson's Ruby Sunday is tremendous – even without the Doctor". i. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b c Anderson, Robert (24 May 2024). "Doctor Who: Season 1, Episode 5 "73 Yards" Review". IGN. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b c "Doctor Who - 73 Yards review: Millie Gibson has time to shine in haunting mystery". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 21 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ a b Power, Ed (25 May 2024). "Doctor Who: 73 Yards review – A five-star knockout all day long". The Independent. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b c Russell, Bradley (20 May 2024). "Doctor Who season 1, episode 4 review: "A horror tour de force that will stay with you for years to come"". Total Film. GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on 21 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ Zhan, Jennifer (25 May 2024). "Doctor Who Recap: She, Myself, and I". Vulture. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ Hibbs, James (18 May 2024). "Doctor Who season 14 release schedule: When is episode 4, 73 Yards, out?". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 14 May 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ Fuentes, Tamara (17 May 2024). "Here's When Every Episode of 'Doctor Who' Season 14 Drops". Cosmopolitan. Archived from the original on 19 May 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ Knight, Lewis; Griffin, Louise (11 May 2024). "Doctor Who season 14: Release date, trailers, episodes and latest news". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ Hibbs, James (26 May 2024). "Doctor Who overnight ratings confirmed for mysterious episode 73 Yards". Radio Times. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Doctor Who ratings revealed for season 14 launch after early iPlayer debut". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 20 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ Donaldson, Alex (23 May 2024). "73 Yards is more than just an all-time great Doctor Who episode, it's one of the best bits of TV in years - Review". VG247. Archived from the original on 23 May 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
- ^ "Doctor Who: 73 Yards review: Don't stand so close to me". Engadget. 25 May 2024. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ a b DWN 3 (Doctor Who Target Collection 2024, 3). ASIN 1785948865.
- ^ "Doctor Who 73 Yards". Archived from the original on 10 May 2024. Retrieved 14 May 2024 – via www.rarewaves.com.
- ^ "DWN 2". Penguin Books. Retrieved 12 June 2024.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Wikiquote-logo.svg/34px-Wikiquote-logo.svg.png)
- "73 Yards" at BBC Online
- "73 Yards" at the Doctor Who Stories Website
- "73 Yards" on Tardis Wiki, the Doctor Who Wiki
- "73 Yards" at IMDb