Gridlock (Doctor Who)

181 – "Gridlock"
Doctor Who episode
The titular gridlock. The Motorway, aside from one car set, was constructed entirely of computer-generated imagery.
Cast
Doctor David Tennant – Tenth Doctor
Companion Freema Agyeman – Martha Jones
Guest Ardal O'Hanlon – Thomas Kincade Brannigan Anna Hope – Novice Hame Travis Oliver – Milo Lenora Crichlow – Cheen Jennifer Hennessy – Valerie Bridget Turner – Alice Georgine Anderson – May Simon Pearsall – Whitey Daisy Lewis – Javit Nicholas Boulton – Businessman Erika Macleod – Sally Calypso Judy Norman – Ma Graham Padden – Pa Lucy Davenport – Pale Woman Tom Edden – Pharmacist #1 Natasha Williams – Pharmacist #2 Gayle Telfer Stevens – Pharmacist #3 Struan Rodger – The Face of Boe
Production
Directed by	Richard Clark
Written by	Russell T Davies
Script editor	Simon Winstone
Produced by	Phil Collinson
Executive producer(s)	Russell T Davies Julie Gardner
Music by	Murray Gold
Production code	3.3
Series	Series 3
Running time	45 minutes
First broadcast	14 April 2007 (2007-04-14)
Chronology
← Preceded by "The Shakespeare Code" Followed by → "Daleks in Manhattan"
List of episodes (2005–present)

"Gridlock" is the third episode of the third series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on BBC One on 14 April 2007. It was written by Russell T Davies and directed by Richard Clark.

The episode is set five billion years in the future on the planet New Earth, one of the many planets humanity had settled on. In the episode, alien time traveller The Doctor (David Tennant) and his new travelling companion Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman) discover the remainder of humanity on the planet live in perpetual gridlock within the Motorway, a highway system beneath the city state of New New York. When Martha is kidnapped, the Doctor races to find her before she enters the dangerous "fast lane".

"Gridlock" completes a loose trilogy that began with "The End of the World" and "New Earth" (2006), and contains hints at the series' story arc. The story is designed to show how the Doctor can bring hope into a world. Production of "Gridlock" took place in September and October 2006. Much of the episode was filmed in-studio and used a large amount of computer-generated imagery, so it appeared to be set in a "CGI world". Some location filming was done in Cardiff, most notably at the Temple of Peace. "Gridlock" was viewed by 8.41 million viewers in the UK and received generally positive reviews from critics.