"The Empty Child" is the ninth episode of the first series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 21 May 2005. It was written by Steven Moffat and directed by James Hawes. "The Empty Child" is the first of a two-part story, which concluded with "The Doctor Dances", on 28 May.
In the episode, alien time traveller the Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) and his companion Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) arrive in 1941 during the London Blitz, where they find that the city has been terrorised by a strange child in a gas mask repeatedly asking for his mother.
The episode marks the first appearance of John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness, who would become a recurring companion and star in the Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood. "The Empty Child" was watched by 7.11 million viewers in the UK. The two-part story has been cited by critics amongst the best of the show, and it won the 2006 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.
Read more about The Empty Child: Plot, Production, Outside References, Broadcast and Reception
Famous quotes containing the words empty and/or child:
“The thirteenth fairy,
her fingers as long and thin as straws,
her eyes burnt by cigarettes,
her uterus an empty teacup,
arrived with an evil gift.”
—Anne Sexton (1928–1974)
“Monday’s child is fair of face,
Tuesday’s child is full of grace,
Wednesday’s child is full of woe,
Thursday’s child has far to go,
Friday’s child is loving and giving,
Saturday’s child works for its living,
And a child that’s born on the Sabbath day
Is fair and wise and good and gay.”
—Mother Goose (fl. 17th–18th century. Monday’s child is fair of face (l. 1–8)