The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (25 Dec. 2011)

It's Christmas Eve, 1938, when Madge Arwell comes to the aid of an injured Spaceman Angel as she cycles home. He promises to repay her kindness - all she has to do is make a wish. Three ... See full summary »

Director:

Farren Blackburn

Writer:

Steven Moffat

Stars:

Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill

Cast

Episode complete credited cast:
Matt Smith	...	The Doctor
Karen Gillan	...	Amy Pond
Arthur Darvill	...	Rory Williams
Claire Skinner	...	Madge Arwell
Maurice Cole	...	Cyril Arwell
Holly Earl	...	Lily Arwell
Alexander Armstrong	...	Reg Arwell
Sam Stockman	...	Co-Pilot
Bill Bailey	...	Droxil
Paul Bazely	...	Ven-Garr
Arabella Weir	...	Billis
Spencer Wilding	...	Wooden King
Paul Kasey	...	Wooden Queen

Storyline

It's Christmas Eve, 1938, when Madge Arwell comes to the aid of an injured Spaceman Angel as she cycles home. He promises to repay her kindness - all she has to do is make a wish. Three years later, a devastated Madge escapes war-torn London with her two children for a dilapidated house in Dorset. She is crippled with grief at the news her husband has been lost over the channel, but determined to give Lily and Cyril the best Christmas ever. The Arwells are surprised to be greeted by a madcap caretaker whose mysterious Christmas gift leads them into a magical wintry world. Here, Madge will learn how to be braver than she ever thought possible. And that wishes can come true...

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Plot Keywords:

christmas | halo | acid rain | animate tree | missing in action | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Family | Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 2011 (UK)

Filming Locations:

Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre, East Kirkby, Lincolnshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

BBC Cymru Wales

Technical Specs

Runtime:

59 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16:9 HD

Did You Know?

Trivia

The story partly takes place on Androzani Major. In the original series of Doctor Who, the fifth Doctor's final storyline takes place on Androzani Minor.

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Quotes

The Doctor: Do what I do. Hold tight and pretend it's a plan!

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Crazy Credits

In season seven's opening credits, the Doctor Who logo is textured in a way that is relevant to the current episode.

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Connections

Featured in The Graham Norton Show: Matt Smith/Gillian Anderson/Harry Judd/Dougie Poynter/Hilary Devey/Russell Kane/Gareth Malone/Military Wives Choir (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Doctor Who Theme"
(uncredited)
Written by Ron Grainer
Arranged by Murray Gold
Performed by BBC National Orchestra of Wales

User Reviews

Christmas Special 2011: Poor and with no substance to support the silliness

A year ago I watched a Doctor Who Christmas special that retold A Christmas Carol on an alien world with the Doctor racing to change an old man's mind to save his companions while a flying shark threatened; it could have been nonsense but it captured the heart of the tale really well and was moving and engaging to the point that the silliness had enough substance to support it. I mention this special because the 2011 one was billed as being similar and had enough in common to make me hope it would be good. Moffat using the CS Lewis world of Narnia as inspiration I presumed he would be able to pull it off again in a way that was satisfying. I could not have been more wrong.

The special starts with silliness that I forgave because I thought that we had that out of the way – the Doctor falling to Earth through space in a backwards spacesuit was just a plot device to get to the meat of the special. This is the case as it introduces the characters and sets up the reason for this return – the death of a husband in the war and the woman trying to find the strength to get through Christmas and then tell her two young children. Problem is that, when the script needed to find character and emotion, it instead found a messy plot filled with almost nothing. The heart of the story, of the characters is nowhere to be found and instead we get a few brief moments of peril and a corny denouncement that is so convenient and so empty that it robbed me of what little good will I had when I reached that point.

The previous year's special was so enjoyable because it focused on the people, on the heart and placed that within a sci-fi context. Here there is no such thing and unfortunately the plot isn't enough to fill this gap with anything like tension, thrills or spectacle. It doesn't help either that the effects are surprisingly clunky and that the ideas are so half-assed throughout. The cast are solid and one can only imagine what they could have done with a better script and better characters. Smith overplays the comedy because he has been directed to do so. He didn't convince me and didn't make me care and his "emotional" conclusion was nothing of the sort. I liked Skinner but there was nothing for her here. Likewise I though Earl was really good as Lily and could have done more – although Cole is only a typical cute kid. Bailey and Armstrong are just names with no time to justify a mention. I suppose at least it was a positive that Gillan is limited to the last few minutes – the next season is thankfully her last before she heads off into the lucrative world of signing photos at sci-fi conventions.

A really disappointing special – we were thinking of watching It's a Wonderful Life tonight and instead watched this special – mainly off the back of the hope that it could be as good as last year's, that was a bad decision it turns out. Such a shame to see such a poor, heartless mess being presented as a finished product – even those just looking for basic sentimental, festive heart-warming will be left disappointed. Heartless, manipulative, messy and lacking in anything to really hook the viewer. Supposedly the jewel in the crown of the BBC Christmas schedule? Not this year.