The Rings of Akhaten Trivia Quiz

Answer: an asteroid belt

The rings were an asteroid belt around the planet Akhaten. The Doctor took Clara Oswald there to show her a festival featuring a wide variety of aliens and some beautiful singing. They eventually wound up facing off against a soul-sucking mummy and an enormous god-like monster.

Answer: She saved him from a speeding car

Dave Oswald (Michael Dixon) was walking down the street when a leaf fell into his face. His future wife (Nicola Sian) rescued him - and the rest was history. The episode started with the Doctor peeking in at various moments of their lives, from their first meeting to a funeral.

Answer: Ellie

Her name was Ellie Oswald, nee Rosewood. According to the gravestone, she lived from September 11, 1960 to March 15, 2005, meaning Clara would have been about 16 when she died. She was played by actress Nicola Sian.

Answer: Merry

Merry Galel, the Queen of Years, had been raised as a living vessel of history. She knew all the songs and stories of her people. Clara got the girl over a bad case of stage fright. Merry was played by Emilia Jones, who has also been on the BBC show "Utopia" (2013).

Answer: His granddaughter

When he said granddaughter, he was probably speaking of Susan Foreman, who was introduced as the Doctor's granddaughter on the very first episode of the program back in 1963. Sarah Jane Smith was a companion of the third and fourth Doctor. Romana was a time lady who traveled with the fourth Doctor. Rose Tyler was the companion of the ninth and tenth Doctors.

Answer: Her mother's ring

Clara gave Dor'een her mother's ring, which had a great deal of sentimental value. On the planet Akhaten, the currency was items of emotional value, and merchants used psychometry to determine their worth. Clara got the ring back as a reward for saving the planet.

Answer: Unbelievably heavy

The Doctor managed to unlock the door only seconds after telling Clara that it had an unbreakable code which changed billions of times per second. He held it up with his sonic screwdriver for as long as he could.

Answer: Merry sang a secret song

Merry knew a secret song related to the passages within the pyramid. When she sang it, the doors opened. The Doctor was busy using the screwdriver against guards who were trying to grab Merry. The Doctor did try and get into the pyramid by slamming the door with his shoulder - it was not very successful.

Answer: leaf

Clara sacrificed the leaf that had been the reason for her parents meeting, a leaf her father called "the most important leaf in history" because it caused him to meet Ellie. Clara talked about the unfilled potential of her mother's life, so the leaf contained an immense amount of potential energy.

The Doctor explained that "What should have been, there's an infinity of that. And infinity is too much" for the monster.

Answer: Neil Cross

Neil Cross wrote "The Rings of Akhaten". He is the creator of "Luther", a gritty police procedural on the BBC. Steven Moffat began as Executive Producer of "Doctor Who" in 2005, and has written many episodes since. Farren Blackburn directed "The Rings of Akhaten". Aidan Cook played The Mummy.