While Morecambe & Wise, EastEnders and Doctor Who have become bywords for Christmas television, there’s something about Victoria Wood that, despite her scarce appearances, inextricably ties her to the holiday season. Perhaps it’s her warmth, her joviality, her focus on ordinary folk just muddling through and being good to their fellow man. The point is, … >
Oh, blessums, The Boy In The Dress really is an utterly sweet tale. Based on the book of the same name (and whose author, David Walliams, makes a brief appearance as a drama teacher turned football referee), BBC One’s one-off Boxing Day film tells the story of twelve-year-old Dennis (played with masses of understated, genuine … >
Call the Midwife may have begun as a show about Jenny Lee’s experiences as a midwife in Poplar, but much has changed in three seasons. Lead actor Jessica Raine has now departed from the show, and this year’s Christmas special is its first real chance to prove that it can continue without her and grow – even … >
Much like ourselves, Doctor Who is expected to overindulge and go a bit crazy on December 25th. Time Lord and Christmas time match perfectly. They’re both mad events which people love and which many take seriously, no matter how absurd they get. So our TVs are decorated with flying sharks dragging sleighs, presents containing portals … >
After a swift six episode run Atlantis is taking its mid-season break – a function of the later start caused by Doctor Who returning to the autumn schedules – and it is a chance to catch our breath. With a more dramatic and action packed tone, the show has certainly covered some ground in those … >
A crowded room. Friends with tired eyes. It could only be the press launch for the Doctor Who Christmas special where BBC top brass, Doctor Who production staff and assorted hacks and ne’er do wells join in the annual celebration of that most seasonal of figures: the Doctor. We know the drill by now – … >
Well, if there’s one thing we’ve learned tonight, it’s that the writers of Babylon certainly know how to leave us on a heck of a cliffhanger! Seriously, we have to wait how long for the next episode?! Cliffhanger aside, there’s certainly a lot of excellent plotting on offer in this week’s finale. First of all, … >
If there’s one thing The Fall has really, really done right, it’s that I find myself almost breathlessly grateful that Rose Stagg is alive. We must be thankful for such small mercies in a narrative world that provides so few. If I were to list all of the things and people in this episode that … >
The Missing’s finale of brings us to Russia, children being accosted by a hooded figure and a glimpse of that stick drawing with big ears. It’s a tantalising opener in an episode that, depending on which side of the fence you reside, either gives enough resolution to be satisfactory or delivers one twist too many … >
This Christmas special of Charlie Brooker’s techno-horror show manages to compact the show’s usual three-part run into one, feature-length, portmanteau episode. Rafe Spall’s Potter wakes up in a shelter in the middle of a featureless snowy tundra, and finds Jon Hamm’s relentlessly upbeat Matt making a Christmas meal for them. Anyone who has seen Prometheus … >