The TARDIS’ iconic Cloister Bells have rung quite a few times in the greatest Doctor Who stories of all time, although they are technically only supposed to come up in high-stakes situations.
The Cloister Bells are a notable part of the TARDIS’ functions, the most recent being in the currently airing Doctor Who season 15. The TARDIS’ Cloister Bells often chime, but always with good reason. That being said, given how many times they were heard over the years, they might not sound as urgent and important as they originally were designed to.
32 The Lead-Up To The Fourth Doctor's Regeneration
Classic Era - Season 18, Serial 7: "Logopolis"
The Fourth Doctor’s regeneration in Doctor Who marks the first time the Cloister Bells ring. The sound chimes as a warning to the Doctor of the Tremas Master’s attempts to almost destroy the universe. The Cloister Bells only ring a few times in Doctor Who’s classic era. Even still, after this, there are many other instances of the iconic noise.
31 The Fifth Doctor's TARDIS Travels To Event One
Classic Era - Season 19, Serial 1: "Castrovalva"
The Cloister Bells ring once again shortly after the Fifth Doctor’s regeneration. As the Doctor wakes up in the TARDIS’ Zero Room, Nyssa and Tegan hear the bells alerting them inside the overheated TARDIS while it travels back in time to Event One. Unfortunately, the Doctor’s incapacitated state makes it hard for him to investigate the reason for the bell.
30 The TARDIS Gets Stuck In A Dalek Time Corridor
Classic Era - Season 21, Serial 4: "Resurrection Of The Daleks"
The Cloister Bells only chimes briefly in the classic Doctor Who Dalek story “Resurrection of the Daleks,” but Tegan’s reaction is enough to realize it’s bad news. The Doctor attempts to free the TARDIS from the Daleks’ time corridor, and it’s rather comical that the ship alerts him to the issue, as if he isn’t already aware.
29 The Master Opens The Eye Of Harmony
The Doctor Who 1996 TV Movie
The Cloister Bells ring during the third and last of the Doctor Who movies as the Tremas Master opens the Eye of Harmony. Grace panics and pulls at the TARDIS console wiring, but it’s too late, and the sound of the bell only makes things even more tense.
28 The Newly-Regenerated Tenth Doctor Takes Rose Back Home
Modern Era - Minisode: "Born Again"
In the Doctor Who charity special minisode “Born Again,” the Cloister Bells are heard. The first in the modern era, as the fresh-faced Tenth Doctor takes Rose Tyler back home, the alarm sounds
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This is the first time a brand-new tone of the Cloister Bells plays, and it resembles more of a classic telephone handset, but it fits the tone of the scene well, regardless.
27 The Saxon Master Cannibalizes The TARDIS
Modern Era - Season 3, Episode 12: "The Sound Of Drums"
The Cloister Bells ring repeatedly in “The Sound of Drums” due to Doctor Who’s Saxon Master fitting a paradox machine to the TARDIS. The machine essentially cannibalizes the spaceship, as the Doctor explains, and is used to allow the Toclafane to exist despite their ancestors on present-day Earth being slaughtered.
26 The Fifth & Tenth Doctor's TARDISes Crashing Together
Modern Era - Minisode: "Time Crash"
The Fifth Doctor and the Tenth Doctor meet in the Doctor Who multi-Doctor TV story “Time Crash,” after their TARDISes collide with one another. Thankfully, this is one of the few times the Cloister Bells go off that isn’t a warning of imminent danger, but rather a message that both Doctors should to put their shields back up.
25 Warning The Tenth Doctor About The End Of The Universe
Modern Era - Season 4, Episode 11: "Turn Left"
After all the alternate events in Doctor Who’s “Turn Left,” the Tenth Doctor hears Rose’s warning message via Donna and rushes to the TARDIS. In an alleyway on a faraway planet, the TARDIS’ Cloister Bells ring loudly, with the words “Bad Wolf” sprawled across every nearby surface, including the front of the ship itself.
24 Ood Sigma's Projection
Modern Era - 2009/2010 Specials: "The Waters Of Mars"
In one of Doctor Who’s scariest episodes, “The Waters of Mars,” the Tenth Doctor sees a projection of Ood Sigma standing in the snow. Shaken by the clear premonition, the Doctor retreats to the TARDIS.
The Cloister Bells chime as a sign that the Tenth Doctor’s time in Doctor Who is up.
The Cloister Bells chime as a sign that the Tenth Doctor’s time in Doctor Who is up. It’s hard to watch his conflicted facial expression, especially as he knows interfering with timelines is a dangerous game.
23 The TARDIS' Engines Starting To Phase Out Of Existence
Modern Era - Season 5, Episode 1: "The Eleventh Hour"
During Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor's first meeting with young Amelia Pond, the TARDIS’ Cloister Bells ring. The Doctor speeds back to his ship and climbs back in as the engines are phasing out of existence due to the damage the Time Lord’s regeneration caused moments before. Sadly, Amy re this moment for the rest of her life, as the Doctor fails to return in the promised five minutes.
