Intelligence officers from agencies across the globe are being snatched out of the field and having their DNA rewritten. MI6 are tasked with bringing in the enemy, and there’s only one person for the job.

The opening episode of Doctor Who’s 12th 21st Century series is a bold, ambitious and confident return, and fittingly for New Year’s Day it has a bank holiday caper feel to it. And because it marks the return of the two-parter, there’s no rush to tie things up within the 45 minutes, instead the one hour run time allows the story to develop at its own pace.

And what a cliffhanger it is! If you’ve managed to avoid spoilers to date, I’m certainly not the one to ruin any surprises – this is a very different show to the one we were watching over a year ago. The guest stars are impressive – Stephen Fry as MI6 head honcho C, Sir Lenny Henry as tech CEO Daniel Barton, and Sacha Dhawan as Mulder-in-Waiting O, who has a whole cabin full of X-Files conspiracies, and a whole shelf on the Doctor!

The extended run time gives Yaz and Ryan the chance to do more than cling on to the Doctor’s coattails, something that has been remedied since last year, and Bradley Walsh continues to impress as our Everyman, Graham. Jodie Whittaker was always comfortable in her role, and if anything, some of the more annoying character tics have been dialled back.

The South African location shooting is well used – allowing us convincing scenes on the Ivory Coast, Australian Outback and California’s Silicon Valley. Has there ever been a more beautifully photographed moment than the Doctor facing off Barton in the glow of golden hour?

The action scenes are also on point, a night-time attack on the safe house, a high speed car and motorbike pursuit and drama on a plane all impressing. Composer Segun Akinola is clearly enjoying the opportunity to indulge his inner Barry, blasting the Bond sound where appropriate.

As an urban thriller, the natural comparison is Series 7’s The Bells of St John, and there are also moments that remind you of Series 8’s Death in Heaven, but the visual effects are of a quality notches above. There are quibbles – would Yaz and Ryan really be able to roam around so easily in a location that’s covered in CCTV? And can we give Ryan more to do than be a ‘lad’? Tosin Cole has so much more to offer.

Verdict: Flashy, confident, quality genre TV that already feels like it’s a different show to last year’s. Whether this is a result of listening to fan feedback, part of the Chibnall Master Plan, or a mixture of the two, I can’t wait to see what happens in the concluding hour. 8/10

Nick Joy