One Of Doctor Who’s Greatest Stories Is Hard To Watch Today

One of Doctor Who’s best stories is a tough watch in 2026, even though the serial remains a standout storyline from the series. The BBC’s Doctor Who franchise has been on the air since 1963, so it is hardly surprising that some of the show’s episodes haven’t aged well. While all 15 incarnations of the title character have faced their own unique criticisms, it is the specific storylines of older episodes that tend to come under the most fire for cultural insensitivity.

This doesn’t come as a big surprise, as cultural norms have shifted massively since the mid-20th century. There are still some more recent storylines that have earned the ire of fans in the last few decades, with notable Doctor Who writer Lawrence Miles leveling criticism at 2005’s special “The Unquiet Dead” for its political subtext. While Ncuti Gatwa’s time as the Doctor was mercifully mostly free from these critiques, one of the long-running sci-fi serial’s most acclaimed outings ever sadly runs squarely into this issue.

Originally broadcast in early 1977, “The Talons of Weng-Chiang” is set in the 1800s in London and focuses on the Doctor’s attempt to track down Michael Spice’s 51st-century criminal Magnus Green, who claims to be a Chinese god so he can rediscover his missing time machine. Effectively a procedural plot, “The Talons of Weng-Chiang” begins with the Doctor arriving in London with his companion Leela, only for them to swiftly meet a group of Chinese laborers who have seemingly killed a taxi driver.

“The Talons Of Weng-Chiang” Is One Of Doctor Who’s Best Stories

The ensuing plot sees the Doctor and Leela discover that the group, the Tong of the Black Scorpion, are followers of the Chinese god Weng-Chiang, who sent them to kill the cab driver after he went looking for his missing wife. The Doctor discovers that Weng-Chiang is really Magnus, deformed by traveling through time in a broken time cabinet and now feeding off the life force of kidnapped young women to survive.

A thrilling, thoroughly unpredictable blend of murder mystery, sci-fi thrills, and paranormal plot elements, “The Talons of Weng-Chiang” has all the right ingredients to be an all-time great Doctor Who story. Indeed, the serial is often listed among the best Doctor Who stories ever and is fondly remembered by many fans of Tom Baker’s seminal depiction of the character. However, the deception of Chinese characters in “The Talons Of Weng-Chiang” is not only divisive and controversial, but so outright racist that it ruins the special for many viewers upon a re-watch.

“The Talons Of Weng-Chiang” Has Aged Very Badly

The depictions of Chinese people and Asian culture in “The Talons of Weng-Chiang” are more than merely problematic, with major villains like Li H’sen Chang portrayed by white actors in yellowface and all the show’s Chinese characters being depicted as either murderous gang members or lower-class laborers. Moreover, the racist attitudes of characters in-universe aren’t challenged by the Doctor himself, making this a rare instance where the show’s titular hero doesn’t stand up for an oppressed underclass.

As far back as 1980, the Chinese Canadian National Council for Equality complained to TVOntario that the depiction of Chinese characters in “The Talons Of Weng-Chiang” was “dangerous, offensive, racist stereotyping,” and views of the storyline have not improved in the years since. The streaming service BritBox added a cultural insensitivity warning to the special in 2020, prompting some subscribers to take to social media and question whether the outing should be available to view on the service at all.

While it might not be surprising to learn that a Doctor Who episode from almost 50 years ago was racist, what is somewhat shocking is the fact that this didn’t stop “The Talons of Weng-Chiang” from spawning a long-running spinoff. The characters Henry Gordon Jago and Professor George Litefoot, played by Christopher Benjamin and Trevor Baxter, first appeared in this series and later went on to play these roles again in the 2009 audio drama “The Mahogany Murders,” an episode of The Companion Chronicles.

“The Talons Of Weng-Chiang” Launched An Entire Spinoff Franchise

While The Companion Chronicles is popular in its own regard, the standout popularity of Jago and Litefoot soon saw them earn a spinoff of their own that is considered by fans online to be one of the franchise’s best audio dramas. Effectively a period piece spin on The X-Files premise, each season of Jago & Litefoot followed the titular pair as they took on another dastardly villain with the help of Sergeant Quick from “The Talons Of Weng-Chiang” and the bartender Ellie Higson, introduced in “The Mahogany Murders.”

Season 1 of Jago & Litefoot was released in 2010, with the four-episode outing following the duo’s pursuit and eventual defeat of Dr. Tulip, first mentioned in “The Mahogany Murders.” Season 2 was released in 2011 and introduced David Collings’ vampire villain Gabriel Sanders to the world of Jago & Litefoot, with Quick and Higson once again joining the duo. Also in 2011, season 3 of Jago & Litefoot introduced Louise Jameson’s Doctor Who companion Leela, who appeared in “The Talons of Weng-Chiang” alongside the serial’s title characters.

In season 3, the villainous Professor Payne was the subject of Jago and Litefoot’s latest investigation, while 2012’s season 4 introduced Colin Baker’s Doctor to the audio drama’s lineup. 2012 also brought the one-off spinoff stories “Voyage to Venus” and “Voyage to the New World,” both of which were released as part of The Voyages of Jago & Litefoot. Between 2013 and 2021, Jago & Litefoot released another ten seasons after season 4, as well as a 2018 special, “Jago & Litefoot Forever,” and 2015’s one-off special “Jago & Litefoot & Strax.”

While it might be cold comfort for those who understandably find “The Talons of Weng-Chiang” too re-watch due to its racism, the existence of Jago & Litefoot proves that a lot of good comes from the story. Although this acclaimed Doctor Who serial’s legacy will always be tarnished by its cultural insensitivity, the spinoff’s success shows that “The Talons of Weng-Chiang” was much more than just a mistake for the iconic sci-fi franchise.

Release Date

1963 – 1989-00-00

Network

BBC One, BBC Television

Directors

Douglas Camfield, David Maloney, Christopher Barry, Michael E. Briant, Barry Letts, Michael Ferguson, Peter Moffatt, Richard Martin, Chris Clough, Lennie Mayne, Pennant Roberts, Ron Jones, Paddy Russell, Paul Bernard, Michael Hayes, Timothy Combe, Morris Barry, Graeme Harper, Gerald Blake, Hugh David, Mervyn Pinfield, Rodney Bennett, Waris Hussein, John Gorrie

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  Barry Jackson

  Gordon Lowery

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