A Christmas Carol
- Episode aired Dec 25, 2010
- TV-PG
- 1h 2m
IMDb RATING
8.5/10
8.6K
YOUR RATING
Festive edition of the time-travelling drama. The Doctor has one hour to save a crashing spaceship and a miser's soul - but what lurks in the fog?Festive edition of the time-travelling drama. The Doctor has one hour to save a crashing spaceship and a miser's soul - but what lurks in the fog?Festive edition of the time-travelling drama. The Doctor has one hour to save a crashing spaceship and a miser's soul - but what lurks in the fog?
Meg Wynn Owen
- Old Isabella
- (as Meg Wynn-Owen)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAndy Pryor, the casting director, did not believe Michael Gambon would be available, and was surprised when Gambon accepted the role. Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, and Arthur Darvill were very honoured to work with him.
- GoofsWhen The Doctor travels back in time to visit Kazran in his bedroom, the TARDIS is hidden behind two large doors, with the TARDIS windows clearly visible even when the doors are closed. When he does travel back, he appears in Kazran's recording, but you can still see the TARDIS's window between the doors.
- Quotes
The Doctor: [Pointing to frozen Abigail Pettigrew] Who's she?
Kazran Sardick: Nobody important.
The Doctor: Nobody important? Blimey, that's amazing. You know that in nine hundred years of time and space and I've never met anybody who wasn't important before.
- Alternate versionsThere are two different versions of this story. The original edit airs for 80 minutes with the second edited down to 60 minutes. The scene where the Doctor takes Abigail to see her family is one of several edited out.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Breakfast: Episode dated 6 December 2010 (2010)
- SoundtracksDoctor Who Theme
(uncredited)
Written by Ron Grainer
Arranged by Murray Gold
Performed by BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Featured review
Haunting
I can't say I've been impressed by Mopffat's version of DOCTOR WHO . Season five was easily the weakest season of the resurrected show and gave the impression that the audience were watching cast off scripts from the previous regime of RTD even down to the Tennantesque dialogue of the eleventh Doctor so I expected to see some seasonal fluff with the oxymoronic sub heading of " Christmas special "
Premonitions were confirmed in the opening hook where Amy and Rory are aboard an intergalactic cruse liner which instantly reminded me of the STAR TREK movies . Not only does Moffat rip off RTD but he also has to seek inspiration from ST . Things weren't looking good for Amy , Rory and thgis viewer
Despite this I became more and more involved as the story continued. It's a sophisticated reworking of A Christmas Carol featuring unrequited love and redemption . What works so well apart from the stunning performances of Gambon and Jenkins is the lightness of touch in Moffat's writing . It's manipulative to a certain degree but we never get the teeth gnashing and tear stained scenes that caused overkill in the RTD finales
If there's a slight flaw to the story it borders on being a fantastical fairytale rather than straightforward science fantasy that the show was famous for since its inception in 1963 . But Moffat has described that he thinks of the show as being a dark fairy tale and if he takes the show in this direction he'll certainly get no complaints from me . Especially since Matt Smith seems to improve in every episode he's in
As a footnote however I notice this special has only received an average rating of 6.8 which is on a par with Victory Of The Daleks ! I do hope fans aren't expecting to see old monsters appear adnausuem in season 6
Premonitions were confirmed in the opening hook where Amy and Rory are aboard an intergalactic cruse liner which instantly reminded me of the STAR TREK movies . Not only does Moffat rip off RTD but he also has to seek inspiration from ST . Things weren't looking good for Amy , Rory and thgis viewer
Despite this I became more and more involved as the story continued. It's a sophisticated reworking of A Christmas Carol featuring unrequited love and redemption . What works so well apart from the stunning performances of Gambon and Jenkins is the lightness of touch in Moffat's writing . It's manipulative to a certain degree but we never get the teeth gnashing and tear stained scenes that caused overkill in the RTD finales
If there's a slight flaw to the story it borders on being a fantastical fairytale rather than straightforward science fantasy that the show was famous for since its inception in 1963 . But Moffat has described that he thinks of the show as being a dark fairy tale and if he takes the show in this direction he'll certainly get no complaints from me . Especially since Matt Smith seems to improve in every episode he's in
As a footnote however I notice this special has only received an average rating of 6.8 which is on a par with Victory Of The Daleks ! I do hope fans aren't expecting to see old monsters appear adnausuem in season 6
helpful•2921
- Theo Robertson
- Dec 25, 2010
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Filming locations
- The Coal Exchange Hotel, Cardiff, South Glamorgan, Wales, UK(Kazran's bedroom)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 2 minutes
- Color
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