The Doctor will be needed more than ever next week when Daleks invade Buckingham Palace in a special reception to celebrate the upcoming 50th anniversary edition of the legendary sci-fi drama. Doctors past and present, who will join the Countess of Wessex at the Queen’s pad for the special celebration, will attend the festivities.

BBC Dr. Who DalekRun! The Dalek's are coming!

It’ll be every Dr. Who fan’s dream, as the Time Lord’s TARDIS will make an appearance, as well as numerous props and costumes worn in the seminal BBC show. The special 50th anniversary show will see old and new Doctors star, while a host of new faces are set to feature.

A TV drama about the early days of the show called An Adventure In Space And Time will come before the anniversary special, on November 23rd. The special will also herald the beginning of Peter Capaldi’s time as The Doctor, while signalling the end of Matt Smith’s excellent run as the adored character.

He was a left-field choice – he’s best known for his role as the spin-doctor Malcolm Tucker in the BBC series The Thick of It.

Another special will see Capaldi’s first full episode as the Doctor: the Christmas Special. Showrunner Steven Moffat has been moved to defend the casting choice as Capaldi’s age gets thrown into question.

DaleksThe destructive race are back!

"There's a lot of talk about 'kids will not understand an older Doctor. Let's just get a couple of nonsenses out of the way. One: how many young Santa Clauses have you seen?” said Moffat. "And two: do you think to an eight-year-old that Matt Smith looks young? I was a school teacher at the age of 24, which is even younger than the lovely Mr Smith, and they all thought I was ancient."