Which classic Doctor Who monsters are most likely to return next?

Though we were promised a series of Doctor Who with all-new monsters, showrunner Chris Chibnall couldn't resist bringing back the Time Lord's most famous foe, the Daleks, in the New Year's Day special 'Resolution'. "It's the first encounter for Jodie [Whittaker] with that iconic monster and we knew we wanted to do that as the climax of the first series," he explained. Of course, now the question on all fans' lips is now... who's next? Here at Digital Spy, we've compiled a list of the Doctor's most persistent enemies (so any menace that's appeared in at least three stories) and ranked them from 'extreme long shot' to 'practically a dead cert to appear in series 12'.

A distillation of the Doctor's dark side given physical form, the Valeyard (Michael Jayston) appeared in three stories as part of the epic 'Trial of a Time Lord' season in 1986. He's presumably still out there, but we really can't imagine Chibnall picking up a thread from a Colin Baker story three decades old.

Kovarian (Frances Barber) featured, to a greater or lesser extent, in six stories from Doctor Who's sixth series (2011) and while Steven Moffat confirmed in 2014 that she was still alive and might "return to menace the Doctor again", he never picked up that thread, so it's a long shot to imagine that Chibnall will.

Evolving from amoral Time Lord to outright villain, Borusa appeared in four Doctor Who stories (each time played by a different actor) between 1976 and 1983. Given that he's not been seen for 36 years – and was hardly the most memorable villain to begin with – we're not banking on a comeback.

They made three appearances (in 2005's 'The Christmas Invasion', 2006's 'The Runaway Bride' and a cameo in 2010's 'The Pandorica Opens') so the robot Santas make our list. But we can't see them reappearing unless Doctor Who's spot in the Christmas Day schedules is restored.

They've got a great gimmick – look away from a Silence, even for an instant, and you forgot you've ever seen it! But the whole "Silence will fall" arc feels very Moffat and very 2011-2013. We can't see the series revisiting it.

A living personification of chaos, the Black Guardian battled the fourth and fifth Doctors and was a memorable villain, but much of his appeal came from the performance of actor Valentine Dyall, who passed away back in 1985. Maybe it's only right the character's not revived?

"No one knows who the Rani is. They all know who the Master is, they know Daleks, they probably know who Davros is, but they don't know who the Rani is, so there's no point in bringing her back." So said Steven Moffat of Kate O'Mara's villainess in 2012... and we sort of agree with him.

SCO BO TRO NO FLO JO! Rhino-faced foes The Judoon were a favourite of Russell T Davies, but feel very much tied to his era of the show, making only cameo appearances in a few subsequent Steven Moffat stories. Maybe Chibnall will bring them back in force, but we're not counting on it.

Controlled by the Great Intelligence, the robotic Yeti loomed large in '60s Doctor Who. Later stories saw their masters employ different goons instead – snow creatures, the Whisper Men – but a comeback for these memorable monsters doesn't seem out of the realms of possibility.

Arguably Russell T Davies' greatest original monster, The Ood feel like a 'classic' menace despite having only been part of the canon for a little over 12 years. Given that they're not outright villains, they offer up plenty of different story possibilities too. We feel confident they'll resurface, given time.

The Weeping Angels have felt as much a part of the Doctor Who furniture as the Daleks since their debut in 2007's 'Blink' – so an eventual reappearance feels inevitable. (That said, might Chibnall be reluctant to revisit a monster that feels so 'owned' by their creator Moffat?)

Considered as separate from the Yeti, the Great Intelligence last featured in Doctor Who five years ago. As one of the most ancient and powerful entities the Doctor has ever encountered, it'd feel flat-out odd if ol' G.I. didn't return eventually (with or without its furry foot-soldiers).

Last we saw The Master / Missy, two different incarnations (Michelle Gomez and John Simm) had offed each other in a final showdown. This isn't the first time the character's 'died', of course – the only real question is whether it'll be Michelle Gomez returning, or if we'll be introduced to a new Master or Missy.

The two most recent outings for this classsssssic monster have been penned by Mark Gatiss, who's said that Chibnall would "love [him] to continue" to contribute to the series... maybe with a third adventure featuring the (mostly) malevolent Martians?

With the exception of a series of appearances from comedy sidekick Strax (Dan Starkey), the Sontarans haven't had a significant Doctor Who outing since their last big comeback in 2008. They're crying out for a proper revival. Sontar-ha!

A brilliantly simple and scary idea, the Autons are an iconic Doctor Who monster. Non-fans might not know them by name, but they'll likely remember "the one with the shop window dummies" – which makes them perfect fodder for Chibnall's revamped series, aimed squarely at the mainstream.

Chibnall has previous with the Silurians, having previously reintroduced them in 2010's two-parter 'The Hungry Earth / Cold Blood' – could he revisit them in the near future? Or even bring back their aquatic cousins, the Sea Devils?

Now that the Daleks have returned, surely their creator can't be far behind? We suspect it won't be long before Davros is orchestrating another sinister scheme – and hopefully Chibnall will retain the services of Julian Bleach, who's excelled in the role since taking it over in 2008.

It's gotta be, right? Jodie Whittaker's debut was the most significant relaunch for Doctor Who since 2005 and, just as both launch series reintroduced the Daleks, we wouldn't be at all surprised to see Chibnall taking a leaf out of RTD's books and bringing back the Cybermen next.