I have no idea where he picks that stuff up

Almost a week on from the BBC's 50th anniversary Doctor Who episode The Day of the Doctor, I find myself not being able to say very much more about it that hasn't already been said elsewhere! A few dissenters aside, everyone seems to have loved it. It wasn't the Five Doctors-style fun runaround we'd perhaps secretly hoped for at first - it was very much about the new-style show, about that defining moment of the Time War and how it has affected the Doctor and how he can now move on... It was an epic, ambitious, thrilling addition to the Doctor's adventures, complete with Tom Baker cameo, and will no doubt now pass into legend - I expect it will find its place somewhere in the Top Ten stories in future fan polls. It's quite telling that I find myself quoting random bits of it at odd moments. But who knew what 'sand shoes' were?

Peter Davison's 'extra' The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot was a very amusing addition to the celebrations, full of laugh-out-loud moments, in-jokes and quotable bits. The actors - and Steven Moffat - were all obviously having a great time and joyously and affectionately taking the mickey out of themselves, out of each other, and out of Who old and new.

I'll need to make sure I stay in good health to be around for the 100th anniversary at the age of 94. But my son, who will only be 60, is already looking forward to it - and may well be pointing out to his children or grandchildren that the sprightly, bright-eyed, white-haired 81-year-old in the jacket, bow tie and fez who pops up at the end was his Doctor when he used to watch it in the 2010s.

(However, we'd best consign the dreadfully embarrassing 'Afterparty' to history... Are One Direction still trapped in that Chronic Hysteresis? Will any companions be allowed to sit down? And will Steven Moffat remember forever that moment when he had his head in his hands?...)

My next blog is going to be all about some of the wonderful school visits I have found myself doing in 2013 - not just about Doctor Who but about Shadow Runners, Emerald Greene, reading, writing, libraries, random dragons, train timetables and spelling names properly...