The Vampires of Venice

207 – "The Vampires of Venice"
Doctor Who episode
Rosanna in her natural aquatic form
Cast
Doctor Matt Smith (Eleventh Doctor)
Companions Karen Gillan (Amy Pond) Arthur Darvill (Rory Williams)
Others Helen McCrory – Rosanna Lucian Msamati – Guido Alisha Bailey – Isabella Alex Price – Francesco Gabriella Wilde, Hannah Steele, Elizabeth Croft, Sonila Vieshta, Gabriella Montaraz – Vampire Girls Michael Percival – Inspector Simon Gregor – Steward
Production
Directed by	Jonny Campbell
Written by	Toby Whithouse
Script editor	Brian Minchin
Produced by	Tracie Simpson Patrick Schweitzer
Executive producer(s)	Steven Moffat Piers Wenger Beth Willis
Incidental music composer	Murray Gold
Production code	1.6
Series	Series 5
Length	50 minutes
Originally broadcast	8 May 2010
Chronology
← Preceded by Followed by → "Flesh and Stone" "Amy's Choice"

"The Vampires of Venice" is the sixth episode in the fifth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was broadcast on 8 May 2010 on BBC One. It was written by Toby Whithouse, who previously wrote "School Reunion", and was directed by first-time Doctor Who director Jonny Campbell.

Following from the end of "Flesh and Stone" where his companion Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) had kissed him, alien time traveller the Doctor (Matt Smith) picks up Amy's fiancé Rory (Arthur Darvill) and takes the two on a romantic trip to Venice in 1580. There they are intrigued by a girls' school whose students appear to be vampires and discover that they are really alien refugees in disguise, who plot to make Venice their new home.

The episode replaced a different script Whithouse had planned to write, and was designed to be a romantic episode that could also be a good introduction to the show. Whithouse chose the setting to be Venice, and vampires soon entered the plot as he felt they belonged in the setting. The episode was filmed in Trogir, Croatia in late 2009, with the old-fashioned village portraying Venice. The episode was seen by 7.68 million viewers in the UK and received an Appreciation Index of 86. The episode received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the comedy, production design, and acting of guests Helen McCrory and Alex Price, but thought that the plot elements were somewhat similar to a couple of other recent episodes.