Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Ncuto Gatwa, Nicola Coughlan, Joel Fry, Steph de Whalley, Jonathan Aris, Julia Watson, Peter Benedict, Niamh Marie Smith, Phil Baxter, Samuel Sherpa-Moore, Ruchi Rai, Joshua Leese, Ell Potter, Liam Prince-Donnelly, Fiona Marr, Millie Gibson.

Rarely does one character outshine The Doctor, or even the companion, on screen or across the various outlets of the tales of Doctor Who, especially in the Christmas offering to which is often intended to add a little pleasure to a day wrapped up in a modern dystopia of its own making.

Arguably the most enjoyed one-off character to outshine anybody on screen would be the superb Sally Sparrow from the Stephen Moffat written episode Blink, which starred the excellent Carey Mulligan, and it is a performance and a tale that will surely never be beaten, yet if the audience and fan looks deeply into the 2024 Christmas tale of Joy To The World they will find the subtly of Steph de Whalley’s interpretation of the hard working hotel employee Anita Benn as the episode exposes the sense of loneliness faced by many during what is supposed to be the festive season.

Co-staring Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan, the second outing for Ncuti Gatwa in the titular role in the Christmas special sees an undercurrent of isolation weave its way through the narrative, and in one dramatic moment a hard-hitting truth of the last few years standing up to be counted as a death that shouldn’t have been went almost unnoticed.

History will recall how we treated people during Covid, how senseless it was to leave the dying on their own and away from the only ones who would truly mourn them, and it is to that the greatest enemy is unveiled, political lies and self-serving dogma.

The episode itself swerves neatly between its usual fun, novel touches, and one of heartbreaking realisation, and with Jonathan Aris and Joel Fry adding enjoyable relief and exposition, the storyline though beats through the heart of Steph de Whalley’s Anita, a character, like Sally Sparrow that the audience and fan alike will ask to see more of but will have to be content in remembering her kindness and attitude, her warmth in the end towards the loneliest of people, with pleasure.

Whilst the tale falls short of some of the great Christmas episodes of the past twenty years, it nevertheless fulfils its obligation to the pantheon of the series overall, and the final payoff, the moment of joy is realised amongst heartache and the sadness of loss.

A greeting card that ticks many of the boxes that await to be unwrapped, Joy To The World is a one-off treat that is just enough to live with.

Ian D. Hall