Strictly's Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton's Doctor Who Tango "performance of series"

Strictly Come Dancing viewers absolutely loved Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton's Doctor Who Tango on for Halloween week, which saw Stacey regenerate into Jodie Whittaker's thirteenth Time Lord.

Mandip Gill, who plays Doctor Who companion Yasmin Khan in the current series, was in the audience as Tess Daly introduced the couple.

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Asked whether Stacey would be able to channel the Doctor, Gill said: “Absolutely. The Doctor travels through time and space, and Stacey definitely travels through space. “

Although the cheesy joke fell a little flat, Stacey and Kevin's dance — to the Doctor Who theme tune — definitely didn't.

"Like the Doctor herself, this girl seems to regenerate and keep coming back better than ever," judge Bruno Tonioli enthused.

Even monstrously tough critic Craig Revel Horwood "loved the concept". Looking at Kevin's silvery Cyberman costume, Craig joked: "This is a great look for you."

"The Doctor is in control," Darcey Bussell said. "Oh my gooodness… the attack, the footwork!"

Shirley Ballas was also a fan of the "great" technique, praising the "fantastic" way Stacey shifted between the male and female roles during the Tango — the first time a female contestant has ever done so during the contest's history.

The pair scored three nines and total score of 35 overall.

Meanwhile Strictly viewers couldn't get enough of the performance. "Doctor Who themed tango on Strictly. My geeky heart is eating this up," one fan posted on Twitter.

"Stacey and Kevin’s #DoctorWho Tango was, for me, the performance of the series. They really nailed the characterisation and Kevin’s choreography was again superb," Stephen Patterson posted.

Susan Calman, Kevin's celebrity partner of last series, wrote: "Nothing is more wonderful than seeing people you love do brilliant things. Well done @keviclifton and @StaceyDooley. A tango befitting the Doctor. I loved every second of it. Magnificent."

"On delay but OH MY Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton that was TREMENDOUS!" author Emma Kennedy wrote on Twitter.

Even "full on Whovian[s]" couldn't fault the pair's Halloween performance.

Strictly Come Dancing airs again on Sunday 28th October on BBC1 at 7.50pm