Thanks to the BBC, we now have our first preview of the upcoming Doctor Who Christmas episode, The Husbands of River Song. The extended special, which will air on Christmas day, is traditionally a side narrative to the current season of the long-running British science fiction series; and this year it looks like we’re in for a treat.
Alex Kingston will return as the time-travelling rebel and wife of the Doctor, River Song. A fan favourite, Song was first seen during David Tennant‘s run as the enigmatic Time Lord, however the character had the strongest emotional resonance with Matt Smith‘s Doctor, where the relationship became romantic.
Kingston has yet to act alongside Peter Capaldi, the oldest starting Doctor to date; though with both holding recklessly similar attitudes towards danger and adventure, I can only imagine that we are in for a heck of a ride. The episode will also feature Greg Davies (The Inbetweeners) and Matt Lucas (Little Britain).
Here’s the official BBC synopsis for the special: “It’s Christmas Day on a remote human colony and the Doctor is hiding from Christmas Carols and Comedy Antlers. But when a crashed spaceship calls upon the Doctor for help, he finds himself recruited into River Song’s squad and hurled into a fast and frantic chase across the galaxy. King Hydroflax (Greg Davies) is furious, and his giant Robot bodyguard is out-of-control and coming for them all. Will Nardole (Matt Lucas) survive? And when will River Song work out who the Doctor is?”
Speaking to Radio Times, showrunner Steven Moffat had this to say about bringing River Song back from the dead: “I hadn’t written River for a couple of years and I’d always loved writing for her and I’d missed her. I thought, given that I’m knackered at the end of a series, what would be a treat for me would be getting Alex Kingston back onto Doctor Who.“.
And for those worried about Over-Chistmasification during the festive period: “It’s a great romp for Christmas day but – and you’ll be pleased – there’s not a lot of Christmas in it. It starts with a big bit of Christmas at the beginning and then we ignore it and go off on a chase, really, with Mr & Mrs Who. One thing worth saying about it is, if you’re a long-term fan of the show, you might be interested because there’s been a lot of talk about the Doctor and River’s glory years but we’ve never seen them. Here at last we see them as Mr & Mrs Who at the height of their powers. It’s great fun“.
Here’s the first image for the episode:
The Husbands of River Song was written by Steven Moffat and will air on BBC One on Christmas Day.
#Peace.Love.DoctorWho
