Minor Doctor Who Detail Really Drives Home How Long The Time War Lasted
By Dan Bibby
October 8th, 2025
When Doctor Who was revived in 2005, showrunner Russell T. Davies included the Time War as the violent, off-screen period that separated the story's two main eras to that point. While the exact length of the Time War has never been canonically revealed, it's generally implied to have been waged for centuries.
Such huge periods of time are almost impossible to comprehend. However, the horrific series of battles between the Daleks and the Time Lords is now a vital piece of Doctor Who canon. The Doctor's involvement in the Time War has been fleshed out sporadically since the revival, but Steven Moffat's inheriting the keys to the show allowed him to build significantly on established Time War lore.
Such huge periods of time are almost impossible to comprehend. However, the horrific series of battles between the Daleks and the Time Lords is now a vital piece of Doctor Who canon. The Doctor's involvement in the Time War has been fleshed out sporadically since the revival, but Steven Moffat's inheriting the keys to the show allowed him to build significantly on established Time War lore.
John Hurt's War Doctor Visibly Aged During The Time War
A Time Lord's ability to regenerate means they can live for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. Even for those limited to just twelve regenerations, which basically all of them, other than the Doctor, tend to hit an almost godlike lifespan. This isn't just due to their ability to regenerate, though. Each individual version of each Time Lord ages far more slowly compared to humans.
For instance, some versions of the Doctor, such as Eleven (Matt Smith) and Twelve (Peter Capaldi), last for centuries until they need to regenerate. Still, they generally don't look any different throughout their lives. While largely contained to 2013's "The Day of the Doctor," John Hurt's War Doctor also technically appeared in another corner of the franchise. When he made his canonical debut, he looked much younger.
In Doctor Who's "The Night of the Doctor" short, which was released as a companion piece to "The Day of the Doctor," Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor chooses to become the War Doctor so that he can be better suited to fighting the Daleks. The brief shot of Hurt's reflection at the end of the short shows a digitally-altered version of the actor that establishes his Doctor was once much more youthful in appearance.
By the time of "The Day of the Doctor," Hurt's version of the Time Lord looks visibly older. For this to happen, he must have been part of the Time War for an incredibly long time. As I've already mentioned, it takes Time Lords a very long time to look any older. So, Hurt's Doctor and his change in appearance between "The Night of the Doctor" and "The Day of the Doctor" must have been nightmarishly gargantuan.
Similarly, Paul McGann is understandably older in "The Night of the Doctor," as he hadn't reprised the role since 1996's Doctor Who movie. While this is largely just a matter of time passing in the real world, it also strongly implies that Eight also fought for a long time before realizing he needed to change into a far more ruthless warrior.
For instance, some versions of the Doctor, such as Eleven (Matt Smith) and Twelve (Peter Capaldi), last for centuries until they need to regenerate. Still, they generally don't look any different throughout their lives. While largely contained to 2013's "The Day of the Doctor," John Hurt's War Doctor also technically appeared in another corner of the franchise. When he made his canonical debut, he looked much younger.
In Doctor Who's "The Night of the Doctor" short, which was released as a companion piece to "The Day of the Doctor," Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor chooses to become the War Doctor so that he can be better suited to fighting the Daleks. The brief shot of Hurt's reflection at the end of the short shows a digitally-altered version of the actor that establishes his Doctor was once much more youthful in appearance.
By the time of "The Day of the Doctor," Hurt's version of the Time Lord looks visibly older. For this to happen, he must have been part of the Time War for an incredibly long time. As I've already mentioned, it takes Time Lords a very long time to look any older. So, Hurt's Doctor and his change in appearance between "The Night of the Doctor" and "The Day of the Doctor" must have been nightmarishly gargantuan.
Similarly, Paul McGann is understandably older in "The Night of the Doctor," as he hadn't reprised the role since 1996's Doctor Who movie. While this is largely just a matter of time passing in the real world, it also strongly implies that Eight also fought for a long time before realizing he needed to change into a far more ruthless warrior.
Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor Provides The Strongest Case For How Slowly Time Lords Typically Age
In Matt Smith's farewell episode, "The Time of the Doctor," Eleven defends the town of Christmas on Trenzalore for 900 years. Although it takes a very long time, he does eventually start to age in a way that becomes noticeable. The once youthful Eleven looks far more like a traditionally elderly man, which is just what happens to the War Doctor by the time of his main appearance in "The Day of the Doctor."
So, it stands to reason that the War Doctor was fighting in the Time War for roughly the same amount of time. Surprisingly, this makes him one of the longest-living versions of the Doctor in franchise history, despite how briefly he was part of the show. Most of his exploits happened off-screen, although glimpses of what he went through have been shown in other Doctor Who media, such as comics.
So, it stands to reason that the War Doctor was fighting in the Time War for roughly the same amount of time. Surprisingly, this makes him one of the longest-living versions of the Doctor in franchise history, despite how briefly he was part of the show. Most of his exploits happened off-screen, although glimpses of what he went through have been shown in other Doctor Who media, such as comics.
Hurt, McGann, & Smith Aren't The Only "Old" Versions Of The Doctor
In one of Doctor Who season 3's best storylines, John Simm's Master takes over the Earth. To prevent David Tennant's Tenth Doctor from stopping him, the Master holds his nemesis prisoner and suspends his ability to regenerate. After also forcing him through the aging process, we get a glimpse of how Ten could have looked if he'd lived for far longer than his relatively short lifespan of about five years.
On the other hand, Ten wasn't allowed to age naturally during this sequence. Therefore, this could have been a false impression of what he would have looked like after centuries of life. The version of him withered and tiny and confined to a birdcage, though, is an interesting glimpse of just how resilient a Time Lord's body can be when faced with the ravages of time and the inability to renew itself via regeneration. I know there are Doctor Who fans who hate that version of Ten, but I've always found it cool.
On the other hand, Ten wasn't allowed to age naturally during this sequence. Therefore, this could have been a false impression of what he would have looked like after centuries of life. The version of him withered and tiny and confined to a birdcage, though, is an interesting glimpse of just how resilient a Time Lord's body can be when faced with the ravages of time and the inability to renew itself via regeneration. I know there are Doctor Who fans who hate that version of Ten, but I've always found it cool.
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