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» » Doctor Who Sleep No More (2005– )

Short summary

Vision recovered from the wreckage of Le Verrier Space Station shows how the Doctor and Clara became entangled in a rescue mission. As the footage plays out, a horrifying secret is uncovered.

Due to the episode's uniqueness and originality, plot and production details were kept very secret. Despite releasing paragraph length plot summaries for each episode in advance of its airing, all the BBC released for this episode was: "This is footage collected from a space rescue mission. If you value your life, your sanity, and the future of your species, DO NOT WATCH IT".

Mark Gatiss has spoken about the episode saying "Well, I've had this story in my mind for a long time. It's set in the future. It's all from different points of view, which has not been done before on Доктор Кто (2005). It's been quite a challenge to make because you have to break a lot of the usual rules in terms of what you can actually show. Anything you can do to shake the format up is very exciting and that's what we've done."

In order to get the character point of view, the camera operator dressed up as character, held props, and would recite lines of the character he was portraying.

The Great Catastrophe is the near-collision with the Sun that was first mentioned in Доктор Кто: Frontios: Part One (1984). In both episodes, the Doctor mentions the catastrophe and then tells his companion that they have all that to look forward to.

At one point in the episode, The Doctor says, "When I say run, run!", a commonly used phrase of the second Doctor as played by Patrick Troughton. Reece Shearsmith, who plays Rassmussen in the episode, played Troughton in Приключение в пространстве и времени (2013).

This was supposed to be a two-parter, like most of the others in series 9, but Mark Gatiss felt it couldn't be sustained over two installments and making it a one-off gave it a sense of immediacy.

Producer Nikki Wilson also played the voice of the annoying computer that wouldn't allow Deep-Ando through a door unless he sang the Sandman song.

This is the first episode to have no opening titles.

The space station is named after Urbain Le Verrier, the French mathematician who predicted the presence of Neptune (the planet the space station orbits) from oddities in the orbit of Uranus.

Steven Moffat commissioned a follow-up story from Mark Gatiss before this one even aired, but it was ultimately replaced by Доктор Кто: Empress of Mars (2017) when Series 10 was actually produced.

This is the first episode to have its title in the end credits, although the "Doctor Who" logo can be seen vertically in the text-burst near the start. This was Mark Gatiss's idea, inspired by Ведьма из Блэр: Курсовая с того света (1999).

Reece Shearsmith has previously played Patrick Troughton/the Second Doctor in Приключение в пространстве и времени (2013).

The Shakespeare quote the Doctor recites is from the play Macbeth, Act 2, Scene 2.

Mark Gatiss had visited the countries Japan and India prior to writing this episode, which in turn inspired the use of them in this episode.

This is the first episode to feature an openly transgender actor, Bethany Black.

The Doctor comments that letting Clara name the Sandmen was like the naming of the Silurians. However, while someone else deduced they came from the Silurian era, it was the Doctor who first called them "Silurians". After complaints from scientists that they couldn't come from that time, in Доктор Кто: The Sea Devils: Episode Two (1972), the Doctor admitted it was a misnomer.

This is the only episode in series 9, that couldn't be considered a part of two-parter or three-parter.

Clara asks if the Morpheus Machine is actually named after Morpheus, the god of sleep. The Morpheus hologram also uses the term 'in the arms of Morpheus', a phrase meaning to be in a deep sleep.

Whilst it is true this episode is the 'first of found footage,' the story itself, being told by flashback, isn't.

Previously done with Доктор Кто: Love & Monsters (2006).

This is the first Доктор Кто (2005) episode written by Mark Gatiss that is set in the future.

Reece Shearsmith is the last of the three main actors from Лига джентльменов (1999) to appear in Доктор Кто (2005). Mark Gatiss featured in Доктор Кто: The Lazarus Experiment (2007) (and three subsequent episodes) and a year later Steve Pemberton was in the two-parter Доктор Кто: Forest of the Dead (2008)/Доктор Кто: Silence in the Library (2008).

This episode takes place in the 38th Century.

The Radio Times programme listing was accompanied by a small colour head-and-shoulders shot of a helmeted Nagata, with the accompanying caption "Doctor Who / 8.15 p.m. / Found footage shows what fate befell the rescue mission led by Nagata (Elaine Tan)".

"Mr. Sandman" was previously performed in "Delta and the Bannermen".

Six feet eight inch tall Paul Davis, who played the King Sandman, has previously worked with Reece Shearsmith in horror short Him Indoors (2012), which Davis wrote and directed.

The space station in this story is named after French mathematician Urbain Le Verrier.

As of 2018, this episode holds the title of the lowest rated episode of the revival covered on IMDb (6.1 stars out of 10).

Reece Shearsmith is such a big fan of the series he is even a devoted fan of Доктор Кто: Timelash: Part One (1985), which is widely regarded as one of worst stories of the original run.

Sleep machines that compress a whole night's sleep into a few minutes is used in Judge Dredd stories to maximise the time the Judges spend enforcing The Law.

Those like Chopra who refuse to compress their sleep via the Morpheus process are referred to as 'Rips'-a reference to the short story "Rip Van Winkle" by Washington Irving.

User reviews


  • comment
    • Author: Malodor
    On occasion, when re-watching 'Doctor Who' there are episodes to skip. 'Fear Her' and 'Love and Monsters' come to mind, both episodes being universally regarded by the fandom as being two of the worst, if not the worst, episodes of 'New Who' ever made. But what sets them apart from 'Sleep No More' is the fact that despite their flaws, they have coherent plots that the viewer can actually follow.

    'Sleep No More' is a "found film" kind of an episode. It is even sans the iconic intro. I'll admit that it does start out as an interesting concept. Also intriguing is the plot device that humans in this era use a machine that provides them with a month's worth of sleep. Which is ironic, because the episode was putting me to sleep while I was watching it.

    Series 9 of 'Doctor Who' had, to this point, been the most solidly consistently good series to date. 'Sleep No More' takes a turn for the worst with this episode that prevents viewers from forming any connections to the characters, introduces a nonsensical monster that is less believable than Sharknado, and a "twist" ending that divorces it from the entirety of 'Doctor Who' lore.

    Not only can you skip this one to save your sanity and about 42 minutes of your life, but in doing so you won't miss a single plot point. This episode may as well have never happened. So do yourself a favor and pretend that it didn't.

    There is one thing I have to credit this episode for. At the very beginning it says, "Do not watch this video." I suggest that everyone take that advice.
  • comment
    • Author: Oso
    38th Century and the Doctor and Clara land on a space station, which up until 24 hours ago had been fully manned, but now appears abandoned. The Doctor and Clara walk into a team of four armed investigators, Nagata, Chopra, Deep Ando and 474, sent in to discover what had happened. Out of nowhere they're set upon by an unknown being, Deep Ando gets split from the other group who retreat into a locked room. In that room are Morpheus pods, large caskets designed to induce all necessary sleep in just 5 minutes. Out of a pod comes Rassmussen, creator and man behind Morpheus. A desperate battle for survival begins as the Doctor discovers what the creatures are and their purpose.

    The beginning felt like a hybrid of Blair Witch and Event Horizon, I liked it a lot, the crew going into the unknown, the threat of shadowy monsters. There was lots of atmosphere it was well done. The pace of the episode never let up for a single moment.

    Reece Shearsmith showed when he starred in the Widower last year that he's actually a really talented and capable actor, they didn't really make the best use of his talents I didn't think. His performance felt more like it belonged Inside no 9.

    Did I notice no opening credits? Kept waiting for them, maybe it was to do with the running time, or to add to the whole found footage angle.

    Some excellent elements to it for sure, it very much kept you on the edge of your seat, I applaud them for that. I loved the concept of sleep being abandoned in the future for corporate reasons, that was brilliantly imaginative. Issue for me was the monsters themselves I didn't love them, I wasn't sold on the the theory of them nor the execution. They could have easily been in Timeflight!

    I enjoyed it a fair bit, even though it left me a little confused. I give plaudits for the brilliant ending 7/10
  • comment
    • Author: Konetav
    Watching Sleep no more made the Dalek opener seem like Caves of Androzani Episode 4. I admire Gatiss as an actor and as a human being, but his efforts on Doctor Who are missing the mark wildly, does he perhaps have something on the powers that be? A pathetic story line, which they seemed to make up as they went along, dreadful characters, how many clichés make four? terrible monsters, I'm assuming will never see the light of day ever again. All resulting in what was arguably the lowest point since Fear her, found footage was 'in' ten years ago, and was done to death, who on Earth thought it would be a good idea to use it here? Reece Shearsmith does black humor very well, but even he felt incredibly flat and lifeless, it felt like a case of 'jobs for your mates.' His being there reminded me of Ken Dodd having a part in Delta and the Bannermen, a useless character with a 'name' to try and add interest and attract viewers. Sorry team this was a shambles.
  • comment
    • Author: Gholbimand
    This is the first and probably the only Doctor who episode that is told through found footage. It is written by Mark Gatiss who is mediocre at best when it comes to writing Doctor Who Stories though I did enjoy 'An Adventure in Space and Time' which he wrote. Sleep No More is nothing more than a Paste and Copy of Under the Lake but done with less effort. Story begins with a Scientist Dude (Reece Shearsmith) on an abandoned Space Station warning us the viewer not to watch this. However he Contradict himself by aligning footage that he possesses and then showing to us. At the beginning you see a bunch of Soldiers from Triton on the ship Le Verrier (the same ship that Scientist dude is on) who our only there to die and are given little to no backstory to their character other than Grunt who is a bio-engineered soldier with the intelligence of a Dog.

    They so meet up with the Doctor and his Companion Clara Oswald, at this point the Doctor mentions that the Triton colonists were originally from India and Japan which merged to become its own Culture along with a Communist Revolution many years later. This is the only interesting part that I found in this episode, I would of love it if they put a story surrounding Triton's Communist takeover and how the Doctor being somewhat of a Marxist himself (in this incarnation anyway) react to it, unfortunately we get this.

    After running away from the Sand monster things The Doctor along with Clara and the soldiers from Triton Stumble across some sleeping pods with the Scientist dude from earlier pops his head out of the Pod to see what's going on. It is then revealed that the Sand Monster things are in fact made from Eye Mucus form from sleep and the found footage you're seeing is nothing more than dust. Unsurprisingly nearly all of the Soldiers including Grant (or as they call him on the show 474) get killed by the eye snot monster leaving out the Leader Nagata (Elaine Tan) and the Scientist dude.

    Towards the end the plot becomes Non-existent, the Doctor and Clara survive of course but I can't remember what happened to Nagata. As for the Scientist dude it turns out that he is also made from Eye Dust, as he begins to turn to dust and fades away ended the Episode. This isn't a bad episode it's just plain forgettable. I wasn't kidding when I said it will put you to sleep, it nearly put me to sleep when I watched it. Everything about this Episode including the characters is dull and bland, nothing really add up, though it does feel like a Classic Doctor Who with the campy Monsters there is no real story to keep you engaged.

    If you are watching the Season ninth of Doctor Who on your DVD or Blu-ray box set, give this one a miss, you won't be missing much.
  • comment
    • Author: Kirizius
    How do you bring something new to the table ? In the case of DOCTOR WHO is there any need to radically change things ? For me the show that I grew up with was more often than not horror-lite with scary moments and scary monsters . By the mid Tom Baker era this type of story had faded and the show was never the same . When it returned ten years ago under the auspices of RTD we had DOCTOR WHO meets soap opera . With Moffat we get something different which often feels like a parody of the show . Will NuWho be remembered in the way the classic show was with monsters coming out the sea , the one with the Mummies or the one with the man turning in to a murderous plant ? It'll be interesting to see how long Sleep No More will be remembered for

    That's not to say the episode is flawless . Gatiss is a very divisive writer but he probably writes at his best when he knows the little ones love to be terrified . Here he comes up with the monsters creeping about dark corridors stalking humans plot . It's sheer sci-fi B movie stuff but one that I and I imagine others can't get enough off . The downside is that the production team try and go one further and present it in a lost footage format . The problem with that is if you've one of these type of stories you have literally seen them all and we've been getting literally tons of these stories in cinema since the turn of the Century . In other words it's been done to death and for the show to steal this concept seems to be clutching at gimmicks . I often found myself wishing the execution would have worked much better if it'd been done in a more traditional way . Tell the story through the Doctor's eyes rather than relying on spoken exposition and on screen graphics etc . Despite this there's a neat twist at the end , has great monsters in the Sandmen and is one of the better stories from a bitterly disappointing season . Might the fact that it's a one episode story non reliant on continuity have something to do with this ? Make up your own mind
  • comment
    • Author: Steelraven
    Worst episode EVER ! Acting atrocious. Camera work looked like a five year old holding the family videocam. Plot , what plot !! Supporting characters / actors probably would not even want to have this on their portfolios. Only decent thing was spotting "Clara Oswald" in the text at the start. Regards the start, it's not Doctor Who without the theme tune at the start, as even as a child, hearing that tune meant,it was hide behind the sofa time, and it still does that to me at 50 years of age. Think Gatiss & Moff should park the idea of doing a sequel to this episode, as people will not even tune in if they know that a second part is made. Regards, last comment, glad Gatiss decided NOT to make this a two- parter as all stories this season have been, as having to stretch this dull amateur production over two weeks, I think I would have lost the will to live and just let the Sandmen kill me. There is always on episode every year that we quickly gloss over and quietly forget it. I can be 99:999998% sure that anyone who DID watch this dross, despite being told NOT TO, will agree.
  • comment
    • Author: Yndanol
    The first thing you see when you turn on this episode is a guy telling you not to watch it. It would be in your best interest to take the advice. I've been watching Doctor Who since the 3rd doctor and I can honestly say this is one of the worst episodes ever made. I would rank it in the bottom 5 for sure, it is really challenging "Fear Her" for the worst spot ever.

    The episode started off mildly interesting. But once it is discovered that the monster that threatens the universe is actually the sleep dust left in people's eyes when the sleep, well, it just lost all credibility for me at that point.

    I realize with science fiction you have to suspend disbelief somewhat. But this just goes too far. I felt more like I was watching something made to scare 5 year olds and belonged in some sort of fairy tale book.
  • comment
    • Author: Arthunter
    So tonight Doctor Who tried its hand at the found footage genre, and all of a sudden this consistently excellent standard of series nine has come grinding to a halt. It's not as if Sleep No More is a truly bad episode, in fact there is actually quite a lot to like here. We can go into the specifics later on, but for now let us summarise this episode as follows: aesthetically sublime, but narratively sloppy. Mark Gatiss is an unusual writer for Doctor Who. He has written episodes for this show since its reboot back with series one, and he's never really given us anything special. He's had some complete disasters (namely series five's Victory of the Daleks), but the vast majority of his episodes fall into that woeful category of potentially classic ideas squandered with poor scripting. Sleep No More, regrettably, follows that trend to the letter. Its base idea - "Found footage story of the aftermath of an invention causing the human race to no longer require regular sleep" - could be something special indeed. But despite the absolute best work of new time director Justin Molotnikov, none of it really comes together.

    What this episode does having going for it, though, is its aesthetic design. The found footage format has become well worn and tiresome in film, but is rarely used on television. We see this story unfold through the perspectives of each individual character (and occasionally some wall POV shots, but we'll get to that later), and this cuts out the possibility of establishing shots or wide angles. Every frame of the episode feels tight and compact, it has the best sense of claustrophobia of any Doctor Who episode this series. Similarly, characters rapidly turning their heads creates a wonderfully jarring feel to each sequence as the frame whips round with them, and the way the Doctor and Clara are introduced to the episode is brilliantly unique. Rather than us following them, we begin with the ship's rescue team and just stumble across our protagonists. Despite the fact that, really, it's no different to any other episode, Molotnikov does a fantastic job of making this sequence eerie; we feel as if we shouldn't be watching the Doctor and Clara in that moment. As the introduction to a story, Sleep No More scarcely goes wrong in its first act. It's also benefited by the brave and satisfying idea of removing the show's famous title sequence entirely, for the first time in the show's history.

    So, whilst the episode's cinematography and sound design remain excellent throughout (the lack of a musical soundtrack feels so wrong in Doctor Who, yet so right for this episode), once Sleep No More shifts gears into act two, the brief set up begins to crumble and the story falls apart frustratingly early on. Firstly, we're introduced to the Sandmen far too soon. Whilst the fact that we see the creatures almost immediately, and at the same time the crew does, benefits the episode's narrative format, it weakens the monsters substantially. There's no mystery, no enigma to keep us hooked. While the superb Under the Lake from earlier this series (an episode that draws many similarities to tonight's but is supremely more enjoyable) also introduced its villains early on, there were questions that needed answering about them, and we learnt more as the episode progressed, before reaching a satisfying if slow conclusion in Before the Flood. On first viewing, the Sandmen are acceptable monsters up until the episode's ending, in which the story is concluded so quickly it's almost impossible to comprehend after just one watch. Sleep No More doesn't answer enough of our questions (Is Clara still infected? Did the Doctor shut down the programme? Was Rassmussen successful in his plan? What happened to Nagata?) to reach a satisfying conclusion, and the few mysteries of the Sandmen aren't addressed well enough to justify us seeing them so early on. On second viewing, this is doubly frustrating.

    Another issue that plagues this episode is its eventual sloppy approach to its own format. Whilst the found footage trope works well in the first half, once we discover the real nature of the footage it stops making any sense. If the footage we see is coming directly from the perspectives of infected characters and/or infected dust particles, why are some of the wall POV shots black and white, and some aren't? I'm never nitpicky with Doctor Who, I always let it put thematic content and character moments ahead of general logic, but when these errors force both the episode's narrative and its format to stumble, they're difficult to ignore. Once we reach the final act, there are perspective shots that I still don't understand after two viewings. Shaky over the shoulder shots of the Doctor take up a lot of screen time, yet no character is stood behind him. Are we to believe that the infected dust particles have now taken it upon themselves to gaze around their environment and look at whichever character is talking? It just seems odd, and what once was being used, albeit briefly, as a clever storytelling tactic has by now fallen into the abyss of nonsense. The supporting characters are all also ridiculously weak, normally I overlook this with Doctor Who but they were just so underwritten in this episode that there were moments where I couldn't tell who had died, let alone why or how. I can overlook not caring about a supporting character when they die, but not even knowing which one they were is an issue.

    Sleep No More, like other Gatiss offerings, has all the makings of a classic, but falls way short. Perhaps if watched in complete isolation, out of the blue, with lowered expectations, something really enjoyable could be found here. But slotted behind eight consecutive stellar episodes, and crammed before what seems to be an epic, three-part concluding story, Sleep No More will never make an impact.
  • comment
    • Author: Nilador
    Just to be clear on where we stand: I like Doctor Who and think it's never been better than under Moffat was showrunner (yes that includes the classics, even Holmes & Hinchcliffe). I think series nine is the best season of the revived era, possibly of all time.

    But...

    'Sleep No More' is not a good example of why I think that. It's one of the worst episodes of the revival.

    Mark Gatiss attempted to create nightmare fuel with this episode and while he does technically turn watching this into a living nightmare it's not the way he intended. What should have been and could have been a horror masterpiece is laughably bad at best and, ironically, sleep-inducingly boring at worst.

    To be fair there are some nice ideas at play here. I can't fault a 52-year-old show for trying something new but sadly, because Gatiss is such a poor writer, none of it clicks into place. 10/10 for ambition but the execution is awful.

    I have said all I want to say as I don't feel that this episode is worth any more of my precious time but let me close with an observation: Mark Gatiss comes back every single year. The Who Fandom let out a collective groan when he was confirmed for series ten shortly after this was broadcast and again when he said he wanted to write a sequel. I doubt that he'd be back year on year if he wasn't Moffat's bestie, but it's not what you know is it?
  • comment
    • Author: Banal
    Many people will find this episode confusing, and I don't blame them. The episode is made in the "found footage" genre, and at first appears to be falling for all of the same mistakes that films in this genre have fallen for; shots coming from places they shouldn't be able to, cameras that should be there not being there, etc. But the Doctor too begins to realize that there is something not quite right.

    It is then revealed that what appeared to be continuity errors of a sort is actually due to the fact that we have been watching through the eyes of the villains the whole time (beings made from the dust that gathers in your eyes during sleep). We've been seeing the whole thing through the bits in the character's eyes and little bits floating in the air. The doctor and the others flee.

    Finally, it is revealed that the guy who created the pods and who has been talking to us the whole time is mentally linked in to the feed from the seeing dust. He is one of the sandmen, controls them, and has used them to create a found footage type horror story by making them the monsters. He plans to send out the video in order to infect the galaxy with the dust; everyone who watches the video is infected. The idea is that this episode is that video, a trap that will lure people like us into watching by telling us not to then infecting us. The guy reveals that he is a sandman at the end because people have already watched the video; they're already infected, and knowing it won't change anything. The villains win in this episode. But worry not, the writer of the episode says that he has a sequel planned for it you'll get your convenient resolution later on.
  • comment
    • Author: Hudora
    Well, it's the polarising Sleep No More, an episode that has divided fan opinions with some calling it the best episode of the series, and other calling it the worst episode ever, me, I though it was pretty damn awesome.

    No, it's not the best episode ever, or of series 9, but while it feels a little incomplete at points, the story can be hard to follow and there's no real resolution, I can't fault this episode for it's innovation.

    The found footage genre is interesting, I personally have seen several found footage horror films and the odd sci-fi adventure done in this style, and they all had one thing in common, they all SUCKED! Sleep no More however manages to do the found-footage genre while still feeling like a Doctor Who story.

    Seeing the story through the viewpoints of the people on the space station is pretty cool, and is used to clever effect at points, but some scenes feel incomplete. The scene where Clara is dragged into the sleep pod, is completely baffling, in one shot she is standing with the Doctor, the next she is trapped in the sleep pod, only to be released 5 seconds later.

    The monsters are cool, and somewhat scary, but the fear becomes kinder nullified when the Doctor explains they are made of 'sleep dust', at which point, they suddenly seemed less scary. The acting is cool by the entire cast and I like the characters, to the point where when they died I felt kinder sad.

    The episode doesn't end on a high unlike most Doctor Who episodes, the Doctor didn't win here, and I like that, and it seems the universe may actually be in danger from the professor's video, but I'm sure Gatiss' proposed 'sequel' will sort all that out next year, but until then, Sleep no More is a fun but dark episode that I feel is already getting more hate than it deserves. I was certainly expecting a lot worse than what we got, and I'm happy with this episode.

    I'm not the biggest fan of Mark Gatiss' episodes, but something I said when I heard about a found-footage episode of Doctor Who was, 'I hope Mark Gatiss writes that episode', because Mark Gatiss may not write the best Doctor Who episodes, but he will make it work, and he sure delivered.
  • comment
    • Author: Nidora
    This week Doctor Who brings fear to a precious habit of ours, our own sleep and the dust that is produced. An interesting new camera footage episode that finds the Doctor and Clara on a quite spaceship that is inhabited by Sleep san monsters. I'm personally not a fan of camera footage films or shows, but Doctor Who makes it cool and scary.

    Even with no suspenseful music in the background, the chill is invading our bodies. Mark Gatiss brings strong fear and terror this week, and just makes this series look so much better. Reece Shearsmith provides a suspicious and insane human performance to the episode which provides scariness even without horrible looking creatures.

    Although the episode is meant to be bits of footage tied together which may not make complete sense, this is the exact first impression we get, which may weaken the episode, but wait 10 mins and then it will click. You'll find event the ending is freakier than the beginning. I was in morn of the opening sequence, but this made the episode so much darker, this was not an episode this was 45mins of fright.

    Overall this was one of the best episodes of the series, even maybe the best, this is a total 9/10, and a masterpiece in science fiction.
  • comment
    • Author: betelgeuze
    This stand-alone episode opens with a warning not to watch what follows; it as informs us that what we are about to see if we don't heed the warning is footage found on the wreckage of a space station which had been orbiting Neptune. The footage shows a rescue team arriving to investigate why they have lost communications with the station. Shortly afterwards they find The Doctor and Clara who have also just arrived. They investigate together and find two things; creatures that try to attack them and sleep pods which claim to let the users cram a whole night's sleep into five minutes… it isn't long before The Doctor suggests that the pods are actually creating the monsters out of the sleep that forms in people's eyes! One of the pods is occupied by Gagan Rassmussen, the man we saw in the introduction and who continues to serve as a possibly unreliable narrator.

    This episode is quite different to most in the series and nicely takes various horror tropes; most notably the video you shouldn't watch (Ringu), found footage (Blair Witch Project) and creatures on a spaceship (Alien) then delivers them in a family friendly, if slightly scary than usual, story… the ending might give younger viewers nightmares. The creatures are inventive and rather creepy and the found-footage shaky-cam imagery adds to the sense of danger. Unfortunately it also makes it feel a little disjointed at times… although this is explained within the episode as Rassmussen tells us the footage we are watching has been edited. The explanation of how the footage exists when there are no obvious cameras is also dealt with in a way that works well within the context of the story. Overall I think that writer Mark Gatiss delivered an interestingly atypical episode… I wouldn't want every episode to be like this but the occasional one is a nice treat.
  • comment
    • Author: Zulkigis
    As Mark Gatiss has a very spotty record when it comes to writing for Doctor Who, I gave him an extra mark (no pun intended) for surprising me with a very, very good episode. It wasn't until the very end that I decided that I liked this episode, because it is at that point that the whole story is turned on its head. For the only single-parter this series, this episode still managed to end on a cliffhanger - and a brilliant one at that. I won't go in to too much depth on what happens, as I think it is an episode better left unspoiled. While the episode didn't do anything drastic in the character development, it reinforced the characteristics of both the Doctor and Clara. I think the 'found footage' aspect of episode worked well, and once again, it didn't really feel necessary until the end. Good job, Mark, you surprised and continued Series 9's excellent run.
  • comment
    • Author: Kulasius
    I just watched the episode. I'm a fan of the found footage genre. I know how to successfully construct a piece of film from this genre and Doctor Who have actually done a good job of it. The camera's were positioned perfectly. As it goes for the story, it wasn't meant to be anything amazing. The horror genre isn't meant to be anything amazing. But doctor who have some how made this episode frightening and distinctive from all other episodes of Doctor Who. I liked the idea of morpheus and it encouraged a new alternative to sleep. I just do not understand where all this hate it coming from? I didn't see any weak points throughout the episode. The acting was good. As always, the storyline was creative and unique, the monsters were well designed, the episode was scary but not too scary do the audience could focus on what was going on. It was amazing in my opinion. I'd say it's beyond doubt one of the best doctor who episodes I've seen. This season has been the best season I've seen of all 'new who'. Its established a hope for doctor who that it can continue for many years to come. I can't wait for the final 4 episodes. Congratulations doctor who, and Steven Moffat, you have successfully rebooted this show and have managed to make a successful 9 seasons of the show.

    Mark Gatiss is a brilliant writer and I can't wait to see more Doctor Who episodes written by him in the future.
  • comment
    • Author: Tygolar
    The first time I watched this, I found it incredibly dull and boring, but after a rewatch, I found it brilliant, I like pretty much everything about it but some of the acting was stale and unbelievable.
  • comment
    • Author: Tygrafym
    I'm a big fan of Doctor Who, and although some episodes haven't been great I never thought they were terrible - until this one!!

    It's done in a "found footage" style, now I know some people don't like this genre but I have no problem with it when it's done well, this wasn't.

    The villain in this is meant to be the sleep in the corner of your eye - which is completely ridiculous, it's like this episode was written exclusively for young children.

    Honestly if you like Doctor Who, don't watch this episode - if you do, you'll regret it and like Doctor Who slightly less afterwards...
  • comment
    • Author: Moonworm
    I ticked the spoilers box, but i will try to keep the review as spoiler free as possible.

    Doctor Who has yet to fail when giving a sense of satisfaction with its episodes in Series 9. However, this episode is probably one of the weakest of the Series if they were to be ordered best to worst. First, let's begin with the positives.

    The episode, offers a found footage element, if you didn't know already and it does pay off. I am very skeptical of this sort of structure to anything, but without it, this episode would have failed miserably. The footage creates that tension and it makes you feel involved, as if you are with The Doctor and Clara in a base under siege. It is enjoyable to watch.

    Let us go to the acting side. Capaldi and Coleman are the standout cast as always, but Reece Shearsmith offers a fairly chilling, but timid performance that I adore. The other characters are strong, but are given little material to show their true potential, so you kind off forget some of them are there.

    Now, the biggest problem with this episode is the storyline, i did enjoy it, but it seemed to suffer from continuity errors from the writer. There are rushed scenes and then long scenes, which gives little time to the resolution, which makes the episode difficult to understand. Someone explained it to me, so I now understand what happened.

    I have been a little biased in this review, but I really did enjoy the episode, especially on my second watch when i understood. It does offer a unique and modern touch that Doctor Who has never done, so it is worth your time just for that. The episode is also very dark and adds to the creativity of darkness and the Gothic Conventions in Series 9. I would recommend this episode, but not straight away. Watch Blink and some two part episodes and some Series 4 episodes and Series 8 first.
  • comment
    • Author: Ynonno
    Wow.. What an episode! I am so impressed with how Mark Gatiss has evolved his writing. It appears Mark has finally found his perfect setting (the future). A lot of his previous efforts have maybe been a hit-and-miss (with the exception of 'Cold War' and 'The Crimson Horror'). However - 'Sleep No More' completely shatters that pattern, Mark has really delivered something unique and fantastic in an episode that will not be forgotten. I was not a fan of the removal of the title sequence, but I appreciate the context (being found footage). The design of the space station was bloody fantastic, the chase scenes were also brilliant. I thought that 'The Sandman' people were excellent and

    by far the best monsters of the series. I am just so impressed by this episode - it has to be my favourite of the series.. or even my favourite ever!! Thank you Mark Gatiss!!

    9.6/10
  • comment
    • Author: Benn
    Normally I am an avid fan of the individuals who make up The League of Gentlemen, Mark Gatis has written some good material. Indeed he has written one or two good Doctor Who episodes, The Idiot's Lantern springs to mind. But that was quite a while a go - when the show was good.

    I really couldn't get into this episode at all, yet it began quite well. I stopped watching after some singing ninnies appeared. Is appealing to the American market, the be all and end all?

    Peter Capaldi is undoubtedly a fine actor, but his portrayal of the Doctor grates on me. The sunglasses, and guitar playing, and jive talk are really irritating. I really don't like the direction in which this once unmissable show is heading There are echos of the Sylvester McCoy era, and we all know how that ended.
  • comment
    • Author: Mr.Death
    Utterly stupid found footage attempt It ain't that though The monsters are atrocious Characters forgettable And plot ridiculous

    Gatiss is always devisive but this has to be his worst personally

    Ah well
  • comment
    • Author: Runemane
    Overall, the 'Blair Witch' style was exciting for a few minutes, but got a bit tedious after a while...Oh, and the ending was OK. Clara delivers,as ever, a great performance as does the Doctor; and despite having little to do, the 'Grunt' had my sympathies in the same way the character of Mongo does, in Blazing Saddles, the movie. But what got the hairs on the back of my neck up, and reminds me of the pain of listening to the sound of some nerdy schoolboy as he scrapes his nails down an old- fashioned school blackboard,was the accent produced by Elaine Tan; (born and bred in London), yet produces some quasi multi-regional Geordie/Yorkshire/Lancashire accent; none of which were authentic! Spoiled it for me, sorry.
  • comment
    • Author: Skiletus
    Well, I would certainly get a great night THIS night. ;-)

    Season 9 of Doctor WHO is very "Spooky" and Mystery-Full. This episode has to be EXCELLENT, because even If it's Very different from The other episodes, there is Definitely something to discuss from this. All The darkness- That makes me Happy, on that way of, that I Actually want to watch it. (And just before going to sleep, Mu ha ha Wa ha ha HAA!) :D

    I just wanna say, that The line in The beginning: "DO NOT WATCH THIS" ... Ha! I don't believe that. Everybody, If you get The chance (Or perhaps not, I'm not a spokesman) You May want to watch it. But don't mind, I'm not even good at doing reviews.

    Good Night!

    :-)
  • comment
    • Author: Heraly
    This is brilliant, the first time I want he'd this, I really hated, but on a rewatch, it's so good. It's very interesting to watch and I'm glad we got an episode like this!
  • Episode cast overview:
    Peter Capaldi Peter Capaldi - The Doctor
    Jenna Coleman Jenna Coleman - Clara
    Reece Shearsmith Reece Shearsmith - Rassmussen
    Elaine Tan Elaine Tan - Nagata
    Neet Mohan Neet Mohan - Chopra
    Bethany Black Bethany Black - 474
    Paul Courtenay Hyu Paul Courtenay Hyu - Deep-Ando
    Paul Davis Paul Davis - King Sandman
    Tom Wilton Tom Wilton - Sandman
    Matthew Doman Matthew Doman - Sandman
    Zina Badran Zina Badran - Morpheus Presenter
    Natasha Patel Natasha Patel - Hologram Singer
    Elizabeth Chong Elizabeth Chong - Hologram Singer
    Nikkita Chadha Nikkita Chadha - Hologram Singer
    Gracie Lai Gracie Lai - Hologram Singer
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