The latest Doctor Who story ‘Knock Knock’ took place in a wonderfully creaky house which concealed a rather nasty secret.
Of course, it is not the first such place the Time Lord has visited – he often finds himself in less than desirable residences with a spooky reputation.
From his lengthy career of time travelling, here’s our rundown of five particularly memorable locations…
5. Auderly House from ‘Day of the Daleks’ (1972)
A government-owned country house, Auderly was the venue for a vital world peace conference and became the target for guerrilla attacks from freedom fighters from the 22nd Century.
With UNIT providing security for the conference, the Doctor and Jo were called in to spend the night in the house and became embroiled the struggle against Earth’s Dalek masters in a dystopian future.
Memorably introducing the Daleks’ ape-like servants, the Ogrons, the story was beefed up for its special edition DVD release with extra footage and new special effects to make the battle scenes just a touch more epic (rather than a mere three Daleks and a handful of soldiers).
4. Caliburn House from ‘Hide’ (2013)
The Eleventh Doctor, while still trying to fathom the mystery of Clara the Impossible Girl, visited Caliburn House in 1974 to seek the opinion of noted empathic psychic Emma Grayling. While there, he also solved the mystery surrounding the Witch of the Well that had haunted the building over the centuries.
Of course, there is a suitably temporal solution – something to do with a pocket universe, a lovelorn monster and a psychohronograph – but before we get to it, there was plenty to enjoy with the spooks and scares of the house.
3. The Scarman’s Mansion from ‘The Pyramids of Mars’ (1975)
Occupying the site which would later be the home of UNIT, the Doctor’s alien fighting military pals, the priory was the centre for some mystical goings on in service to Sutekh – the ancient Egyptian god.
In and around the grounds of this gothic Victorian mansion, a former priory, the Doctor and Sarah Jane battled the servants of Sutekh and his robotic mummies discovering that the ancient Egyptian Gods were visitors from the planet Osiris with formidable mental powers.
2. Wester Drumlins from ‘Blink’ (2007)
If the house in ‘Knock Knock’ rang a few bells, there is a very good reason – it was also used as the location for “Wester Drumlins”, the Weeping Angel infested home from 2007’s ‘Blink’.
With its prophetic graffiti and strange callers at the front door, as well as the heart-breaking temporal implications, ‘Blink’ is one of the consistently highly rated episodes of modern Doctor Who, with an entertaining lead performance from Carey Mulligan more than making up for the minimal use of the Doctor and Martha.
1. Gabriel Chase from ‘Ghost Light’ (1989)
Famously creepy, Perivale’s Gabriel Chase was derelict during Ace’ s childhood, but retained a sense of something nasty which encouraged her to indulge in a spot of junior pyromania. When the Seventh Doctor bought her back to 1883 however, the house was fully occupied and they were able to probe its mysteries.
In one of the more complex stories of its time, Ace and the Doctor encounter a Neanderthal butler, an insane explorer and a Reverend hostile to the theory of evolution, all guests of the decidedly creepy Josiah Samuel Smith who is keeping a rather large secret in the basement – something which has profound implications for all life on Earth.
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What’s your favourite spooky house in Doctor Who? Let us know below…