In the run-up to this year’s Christmas special, Russell T Davies and Steven Moffat have revealed their favourite Doctor Who festive specials.

Their answers might not come as a great surprise given that both are already much-celebrated episodes (and rightly so), but it’s nonetheless great to hear them enthuse about each other’s work.

Russell says:

“I wish I’d written all of Steven’s – and if ever I’m thanked on the street, I did. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve got, ‘I love those Weeping Angels…’ ‘I know… aren’t I brilliant?’

“I love all your specials, but I think A Christmas Carol is a majestic piece of work for that moment of Michael Gambon realising that he is seeing his future self. It’s an absolutely astonishing piece of drama, full stop – never mind Doctor Who, never mind fantasy, never mind the original Christmas Carol. What a piece of work that is, I love that.”

A Christmas Carol, starring Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor, is a masterpiece, so it’s wonderful to see it’s getting such recognition.

And Steven says:

“I think my favourite episode for a very long time was your first one, The Christmas Invasion. I was wondering what Christmas was going to be like for Doctor Who and I thought it was perfect. I was nervous about the fact that the Doctor wasn’t going to turn up for ages but I thought it was brilliant.

“It was the moment at which you realise, ‘No, it’s back for good.’ The regeneration has worked, and it was not a guarantee back then at all.”

The Christmas Invasion introduced David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor, and I remember watching it with such excitement back in 2005. Gosh, nearly two decades ago. How did that happen?

This year’s Christmas special, Joy to the World, written by Moffat, airs on BBC1 on 25th December 2024.