For practically 20 years now, Physician Who has had a brand new particular episode out for each vacation season. Whereas these had been within the type of Christmas Specials from 2005-2017, there was a shift after Thirteenth Physician Jodie Whittaker’s first sequence to New 12 months’s Specials as a substitute. These lasted from New 12 months’s Day 2019 proper by means of to 2022 (with a spot in 2020 for the premiere of that yr’s sequence), earlier than being changed in 2023 by Christmas Specials as soon as once more.
Nearly at all times written by the showrunner, these festive episodes are a spotlight in Whovians’ vacation calendars, and infrequently signify the extra enjoyable, upbeat — even perhaps foolish — points of Physician Who. What some viewers may not know is that the custom of Christmas Who started again in 1965. The seventh episode of “The Daleks’ Grasp Plan,” entitled “The Feast of Steven,” aired on Christmas Day, and was the one episode of the present’s unique 1963-1989 which did so.
Within the twenty first century, although, the Christmas Particular is an annual occasion — and Physician Who is all the higher for it. Most of those episodes handle to be a enjoyable journey, even when some are nothing to rave about. This yr, Ncuti Gatwa’s Physician might be taking over a resort which has its rooms dotted across the previous. For followers, it is promising that wackier storylines and ideas like this are nonetheless allowed some respiratory room in a present that’s been operating for thus lengthy. With out additional ado, here’s a rating of each Physician Who Christmas and New 12 months’s particular.
19
“Decision” (2019)
The primary of the New 12 months’s Specials, “Decision” was additionally the primary of Physician Who’s vacation specials to function Jodie Whittaker’s tackle the title function. Sadly, it didn’t fairly dwell as much as the earlier festive episodes. The plot facilities round a Dalek which is rebuilding itself out of scrap metallic. The brand new Dalek design is pretty ugly and isn’t helped by a muddled plot with no clear course. There’s a wierd subplot with Ryan confronting his father, however it all feels horribly disjointed, and was not a promising begin to Physician Who’s New 12 months’s Specials.
18
“The Physician, the Widow, and the Wardrobe” (2011)
An apparent play on the Chronicles of Narnia sequence, Matt Smith’s second Christmas Particular within the lead function was sadly fairly disappointing. It was in no way unhealthy, however the inspiration it took from Narnia wasn’t used to its full potential, and the ultimate act concerned bizarre tree folks whose motives left a whole lot of questions for the viewer. Some highlights are the way in which that the episode offers with the Physician’s engagement with and perspective to childhood creativeness, and it contains a actually robust efficiency from Claire Skinner as Madge Arwell.
17
“The Finish of Time” (2009-2010)
David Tennant’s swansong story (that’s, earlier than his subsequent returns in 2013 and 2023) was a two-part affair, with the episodes broadcast on Christmas Day 2009 and New 12 months’s Day 2010. “The Finish of Time” is a huge-scale epic which options a number of returning characters, together with Wilfred Mott, John Simm’s Grasp, and even the Time Lords of Gallifrey.
Whereas there are some standout moments on this, particularly in the direction of the tip of the second half, a whole lot of the story doesn’t fairly match collectively — even when the viewers is handled to a genuinely great efficiency from Timothy Dalton as Rassilon. David Tennant’s closing speech is divisive, however there’s little question this is among the most emotionally charged episodes in Physician Who’s historical past.
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16
“The Subsequent Physician” (2008)
Cybermen in Victorian London appears like such a good suggestion that it’s virtually unusual to suppose Physician Who hadn’t achieved it earlier than 2008. “The Subsequent Physician” focuses on David Morrisey’s character, who believes that he’s a future incarnation of the Physician. With Cybermen on the run and a narrative from this future model of the title character that doesn’t fairly maintain collectively, the Physician has a thriller on his palms. “The Subsequent Physician” is a enjoyable romp that’s greatest seen with out squinting too onerous, though the Victorian setting does make for beautiful festive viewing.
15
“Voyage of the Damned” (2007)
After a spaceship modeled after the Titanic crashes into the TARDIS, the Tenth Physician is shipped on a mad journey assisted by one-off companion Astrid Peth to save lots of the Starship Titanic. The primary attraction for this story is that Astrid is performed by none apart from Kylie Minogue. The remainder of the plot is wafer-thin, however the stunt casting is sufficient for “Voyage of the Damned” to stay firmly in followers’ minds.
14
“The Church on Ruby Street” (2023)
Ncuti Gatwa’s first full episode because the Physician barely misses its mark, with a contrived plot and a decision that comes out of nowhere. Nonetheless, it’s an important showcase for his characterization of the half, in addition to his relationship with companion Ruby Sunday, performed by Millie Gibson. With a musical quantity midway by means of that feels arbitrary however is nonetheless enjoyable, it is a whirlwind dive into the brand new period of the present, and as an try to set the tone for the brand new Physician and season, it may possibly’t actually be faulted.
13
“The Time of the Physician” (2013)
Matt Smith’s swansong Physician Who story is a celebration of all that has come earlier than, with references to moments all through his tenure because the lead character and resolutions to plot threads arrange months beforehand. Matt Smith has the chance to indicate off his vary one final time on this sequence, and setting the story in a city actually referred to as Christmas is so candy that it’s unimaginable to hate. “The Time of the Physician” is a standout regeneration story and the right farewell to a Physician so usually described as an previous man in a younger man’s physique.
12
“Final Christmas” (2014)
“Final Christmas” is principally greatest summed up as Physician Who does Alien does Inception however with the precise Santa Claus (a star flip from the pleasant Nick Frost). This episode deconstructs dream narratives and alien face-huggers in an clever and cautious approach, whereas additionally effortlessly resolving plot factors from the previous sequence. Jenna Coleman’s efficiency is extremely robust, solely matched by the magisterial Peter Capaldi, and it’s an important instance of a distinctly darker tackle the Christmas Particular.
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11
“Revolution of the Daleks” (2021)
A two-year-late sequel to “Decision,” “Revolution of the Daleks” picked up on plot threads established all through the twelfth sequence of Physician Who. The episode begins with the Physician in jail, having found the key that she is the Timeless Little one.
Whereas the jeopardy from the earlier sequence finale could be very swiftly forged apart, the tempo instantly picks up with the reintroduction of Captain Jack Harkness. After showing briefly within the earlier sequence, this appears like a correct return for the character, and with a Dalek civil struggle and lots occurring, that is precisely the form of feel-good enjoyable wanted on New 12 months’s Day.
10
“The Daleks’ Grasp Plan: The Feast of Steven” (1965)
A 12-part epic from 1965-1966, “The Daleks’ Grasp Plan” is among the most revered traditional Physician Who tales of all time, a particularly spectacular feat on condition that not a single full episode exists to look at. All that continues to be are the audio recordings and some stills from varied episodes.
“The Feast of Steven” makes a courageous selection, fully breaking away from the narrative of all of its surrounding episodes to as a substitute do a mistaken identification police farce. Sure, actually. It’s an episode the place the humor has its ups and downs, however it’s a part of such an important general story that it must be included on this record. To complete off, the Physician breaks the fourth wall to want “a cheerful Christmas to all of you at house!” Bliss.
9
“The Christmas Invasion” (2005)
David Tennant’s first full episode because the Physician was additionally the primary full Christmas Particular of the sequence, and it’s an oddity in that the Physician barely seems. As a substitute, this is a chance for Camille Coduri and Billie Piper to indicate off their performing chops as mother-and-daughter duo Jackie and Rose Tyler. When Tennant does seem on the finish, although, it’s a triumphant second, and one which cements Physician Who’s first correct Christmas Particular as a hit.
8
“Eve of the Daleks” (2022)
After the six-part miniseries Flux, writer-showrunner Chris Chibnall’s time on Physician Who was coming to an finish. His closing New 12 months’s Particular fashioned the third a part of a free Dalek trilogy with the earlier two installments, and that is by far one of the best of the bunch.
The place “Revolution of the Daleks” was a multi-planet, guest-star-heavy explosion, “Eve of the Daleks” takes a extra minimalist strategy. The plot facilities round new characters Sarah and Nick, whose New 12 months’s Eve date will get interrupted by a Dalek invasion. That is very a lot a bottle episode, with virtually all of the motion going down in a single warehouse, however it makes use of time loops to its benefit and is a good journey with good performances from its leads.
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7
“The Runaway Bride” (2006)
Catherine Tate’s Donna Noble is among the hottest Physician Who companions of the twenty first century, and it’s typically unusual to suppose that her first look was practically two years earlier than her full sequence. Initially supposed as a one-off character for the 2006 Christmas Particular, Donna was a bride who had a mysterious connection to the Physician and appeared contained in the TARDIS.
“The Runaway Bride” is a nonstop, fast-paced romp involving big spider-creatures, a marriage, and an evil groom. It is a sheer pleasure to behold, and Tate and David Tennant have such good chemistry that it’s no surprise they had been paired up once more in 2008.
6
“Pleasure to the World” (2024)
Christmas Day 2024 might be Ncuti Gatwa’s second outing as Who for the vacation interval, and it’s a very good one. After arriving on the Time Resort, a spot the place doorways result in factors in historical past slightly than rooms, the Physician is shipped on a mysterious quest involving a star seed, a lady named Pleasure (Nicola Coughlan), and an array of non-human beings.
“Pleasure to the World” is totally bonkers, and makes use of ideas which author Steven Moffat has beforehand both alluded to or straight referenced in his different Physician Who scripts. Lighthearted, enjoyable, however peppered with some extra honest scenes each every so often, this might be excellent Christmas viewing for Whovians this yr. Oh, and the ending is totally bananas.
5
“The Snowmen” (2012)
Sandwiched between the primary and second elements of Collection 7, “The Snowmen” gave viewers one other glimpse at Clara Oswin Oswald, the mysterious character first launched in 2012’s “Asylum of the Daleks”. The Clara variant launched on this Christmas Particular was a Victorian barmaid and nanny, and match proper into the nineteenth century setting of the story.
The Victorian aesthetic reeks of Christmastime and helps all the things come collectively splendidly, together with a brand new search for the eleventh Physician, with a interval outfit to match the tone of the period. Visitor starring each Richard E. Grant and Ian McKellen, this was a one-of-a-kind particular.
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4
“The Return of Physician Mysterio” (2016)
By 2016, superhero motion pictures had began to saturate film theaters and studio slates for movie releases. Steven Moffat determined that it was time for Physician Who to embrace the superhero craze with its personal superhero story — and its personal, brand-new superhero, too. Grant Gordon, performed by Justin Chatwin, is the Ghost, a type of pseudo-Superman whose life the Physician dips into each every so often.
This was the primary Physician Who episode for the reason that 2015 Christmas Particular, so it feels as a lot a celebration of the tip of a year-long wait because it does of Christmas itself. It is usually a genuinely good superhero parody, with questions developing about how sure powers work and the logic of getting them, and it even has its personal comic-book-style villains — the Shoal of the Winter Concord. All in all, “The Return of Physician Mysterio” is a neat, humorous little journey that heralded a special period of the present’s historical past.
3
“Twice Upon a Time” (2017)
After the 2017 sequence of Physician Who completed with a bleak, epic, character-driven finale, there have been combined emotions among the many fandom in the case of the worth of the Christmas Particular which adopted it. “Twice Upon a Time” options the return of the First Physician, with David Bradley having taken the reins from William Hartnell. It is a story that challenges the Physician’s legacy and has him attempting to save lots of a World Battle I soldier, performed by Mark Gatiss. There’s lots occurring, but the central focus is the connection between the First and Twelfth Docs.
The First Physician’s characterization is heightened, bringing out his extra stereotypical Sixties-old-man attitudes and behaviors, however this works to distinction him with Capaldi’s extra rounded, nuanced tackle the character. Whereas the Collection 10 finale was about how two incarnations of the Grasp will destroy one another, “Twice Upon a Time” is about how, when the Physician is confronted with himself, he’ll assist himself to succeed. With some fastidiously written poignant moments punctuating a usually lighthearted tone, “Twice Upon a Time” is a intelligent, meta-textual examination of how adapting itself and altering with the instances are keys to Physician Who’s survival.
2
“A Christmas Carol” (2010)
Steven Moffat’s early Christmas Specials every had a singular taste, usually impressed by real-life Christmas tales. His first try on the festive episode was a direct adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. This story featured the Physician touring by means of the time stream of Kazran Sardick, a miserly previous man who refuses to assist the folks trapped on a spaceship above his planet. The story explores love, the vacation season, and the results of time journey in a surprisingly deep and significant approach for what’s normally a reasonably mild fashion of Physician Who.
With distinctive performances at its coronary heart from Matt Smith because the Physician, Michael Gambon as Kazran, Danny Horn and Laurence Belcher as youthful variations of Kazran, and Katherine Jenkins as Abigail, it is a really unforgettable episode of the present and proof that Christmas tales don’t simply must be mild and fluffy. Toby Haynes is the right director to deal with Moffat’s script, and the story doesn’t shrink back from having severe discussions. “A Christmas Carol” exhibits that, at the very least in the case of Christmas, Moffat knew what he was doing from the beginning.
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1
“The Husbands of River Tune” (2015)
In 2015, Steven Moffat was strongly contemplating stepping away from Physician Who. He’d been showrunner for six years, and had been writing scripts for 10, so it is sensible that he was feeling like his time was up. Nonetheless on this mindset, he conceived “The Husbands of River Tune” — an episode which might function Alex Kingston’s time-traveling archaeologist and partner to the Physician, in a narrative that ties up the seven years of plot threads surrounding her character, River Tune. The truth that it does so whereas dispensing humor at an ideal tempo is actually spectacular.
Riddled with a visitor forged of acquainted UK comedy faces together with Greg Davies and Matt Lucas, this episode straddles a number of completely different tones, however manages to maintain itself regular. With an impeccable script, emotionally gripping performances from Kingston and Peter Capaldi, and a flawless visible identification from director Douglas Mackinnon, the particular is humorous, fast-paced, and at instances extremely heartfelt. Highlights embrace the scenes the place River deduces who the Physician is, in addition to the ultimate moments on Darillium. That is what Christmas Physician Who ought to at all times try to be.
The brand new Physician Who Christmas Particular, “Pleasure to the World,” might be out there on Disney+ worldwide from Christmas Day 2024, and BBC iPlayer and BBC One within the UK. Watch it on Disney+ beneath:
Watch Physician Who
Initially premiered in 1963, Physician Who’s a sci-fi sequence that follows a strong being often called a Time Lord, known as the Physician. Utilizing an interdimensional time-traveling ship often called the TARDIS, the Physician travels time and house with varied companions as they remedy a number of issues and assist avert disaster as a lot as they virtually trigger it. Although the Physician is at all times the identical character, they expertise regenerations, permitting them to be recast each few seasons as a singular immortal being with new persona traits.
- Launch Date
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December 25, 2023
- Principal Style
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Sci-Fi
- Community
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BBC
- Solid
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Ncuti Gatwa
, Millie Gibson
, Susan Twist
, Michelle Greenidge
, Angela Wynter
, Jemma Redgrave
, Yasmin Finney
, Anita Dobson - Franchise(s)
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Physician Who