Newly regenerated, the Doctor (David Tennant) lands in London in the TARDIS, where he runs into his former companion Donna Noble (Catherine Tate). She does not remember him because he erased her memory of him the last time he saw her, to save her life. He then meets her teenage daughter Rose (Yasmin Finney) and her husband Shaun Temple (Karl Collins).
A spaceship crashes and he investigates the crash-site and meets UNIT (Unified Intelligence Taskforce) scientist Shirley Anne Bingham (Ruth Madeley). The Doctor tells her that he has regenerated again into his own tenth generation body and that he has met Donna Noble. He is certain that these events are related. Shirley sends soldiers to investigate the crashed ship, but they are taken over by an unknown entity.
A friend of Rose tells her that an escape pod from the ship landed near her home and there appears a small creature called the Meep (Cecilia Ray, voice of Miriam Margolyes). Rose hides the Meep among her stuffed toys, but Donna discovers it and it runs away. The Doctor arrives at the house and is confronted by an angry Sylvia Noble (Jacqueline King), Donna’s mother. But she and the Doctor learn about the Meep. It has two hearts, like the Doctor, and says it is hiding from the insectoid Wrarth warriors.
The soldiers of UNIT battle the Wrarth. The Doctor removes the Meep and Donna’s family to safety but notices the Wrarths are not using lethal force. He holds a trial and discovers that the Meep is a vicious creature out to rule the Universe. It drops its harmless façade, kills the Wrarths, and reveals that it is controlling the soldiers. It threatens the Doctor and Donna’s family, but the Doctor suggests that the Meep is related in some way to the Time Lords, and it takes them hostage instead.
The Meep is going to escape Earth by reigniting its ship, which will destroy London. The Doctor and the Nobles are rescued by Shirley, but the Doctor and Donna, who is beginning to remember him, head off to stop the Meep. They are trapped in the ship and running out of time, when the Doctor restores Donna’s memories and they shut down the ship. Surprisingly, Donna does not die. When her daughter Rose was born, she passed down her memories to the child. The Meep is captured by the Wrarths but warns of danger to come. Donna and Rose expel the meta-crisis from their bodies and Donna leaves with the Doctor in the TARDIS, but she spills coffee on the control console and the time-ship malfunctions.
This is the first of three hour-long special episodes of Doctor Who. When the 13th Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) was regenerated on schedule, instead of being played by a new actor, David Tennant (the 10th Doctor) re-appeared as the 14th. This was the 60th anniversary of the series and was written by returning showrunner Russell T. Davies. It was directed by Rachel Talalay. Composer Murray Gold returned to write the music. It received generally positive reviews, Tennant being a particular fan-favorite from the past. Rose Noble is a transgender character.
The Bad Wolf Production Company of former Doctor Who executive producer Julie Gardner and BBC drama-head Jane Tranter were involved in the production. Disney had international streaming rights. The story was based on the comic strip “The Star Beast” (1980) by Pat Mills, who also created Judge Dredd, and Dave Gibbons, who later co-created Watchmen. David Tennant had the comic of the Meep as a child and was thrilled to meet the creature's creators on set. Miriam Margolyse is wonderful in the voice-work. She is a sweet little old lady who was capable of creating the sweetness and charm of the creature and then switching to the gravely growl of its villainous other self.
Tennant said that he and Catherine Tate worked together just like in the old days and were very silly together. The transgender theme, of course, was controversial. Anniversary specials always contain both surprises and nostalgic turns from the long-lived series. This was that, and epic, action-packed, humorous fun. Tennant and Rose picked up the delicious comic timing and sweet bickering as if they’d never left it.