The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe 

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 | world war two | doctor who | eleventh doctor | time traveler | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Family | Mystery | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [UK] Official site [United States]

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 DTS (DTS HD MASTER AUDIO 5.1 Mix)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16:9 HD

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the last regular episode (as opposed to minisode or online prequel) to use the opening credits sequence introduced in "The Eleventh Hour".

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Goofs

When Madge first meets the doctor after he crashed to earth in his spacesuit, it was 1938. The passage of time revealed 3 years. When Madge received the telegram her husband was lost, it was dated 20 December 1940. Finally, when Madge was interrogated by the Androzani miners, she stated the year was 1941. Either the telegram is incorrect, or the year of the first meeting as well as the response to the Androzani interrogation was incorrect.

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Quotes

Lily Arwell: Where are we?
The Doctor: In a forest. In a box. In a sitting room. Pay attention! He's about 20 minutes ahead of us.
Lily Arwell: But we just saw him!
The Doctor: Time moves differently across the dimensional planes. What do they teach you in school these days?
Lily Arwell: But I don't understand where we are!
The Doctor: We went through a dimensional portal... thingy.
Lily Arwell: Well what's that supposed to be? Where did it come from?
The Doctor: It was a present and it wasn't supposed to be opened until Christmas Day. Honestly who opens their Christmas Presents early? OK... ...

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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

References Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

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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

dreadful, dire, abominable

The title indicates that this is CS Lewis revisited.

A childish tone is developed and maintained which today's sophisticated kids may, and should, feel insulted by.

The cast features several of the current batch of bland comedians who are doing themselves no favours appearing in this tosh.

This years season of Dr Who has twisted and turned with now predictable and formulaic Moffat shtick punctuated by the odd contemporary embarrassment such as the "Anglican gay marines". Hundreds of years into the future and gays still have to be defensive about their sexuality.

Moffat is on the slide - he can't possibly get worse than this.

But I'm sure he'll try.