"From jolly rom-coms to chaotic family romps and religious gems, Robert Daniels celebrates sixteen Black Christmas films to add to your holiday rotation."
"An annual festive swim has been cancelled after organisers said there was not enough time to pull it together after getting the all clear on water quality."
"I’ve been with my wife, Brittany (32F) for four years. (We’re actually civil partners, I won’t marry her until she pays off her credit card debt). I work part time as a manager at Zaxby’s, and also have a podcast. Brittany is a teacher."
"It was not exactly often that the journey to and from school got more exciting than it did on those alternate Wednesdays when you had to make sure to leave the house with enough additional time to incorporate a quick trip to the newsagents’ to pick up the latest issue of Smash Hits, but if it ever actually did, then it was on the Wednesday that fell roughly – give or take – a week and a half before Christmas."
"From The Pogues to Paul McCartney, Wham! to the Spice Girls, Mariah Carey to East 17 and beyond, this documentary reveals the magic and mayhem behind the making of the nation’s favourite Christmas music videos."
"As you approach Salzburg's Max Aicher Stadium on the eve of the feast of St. Nicholas, you'd be forgiven if you thought that, from a distance, there appeared to be a Chewbacca convention underway."
AudioThis Eighth and Audacity adventure is part of anthology of stories released this past Halloween along with outings for nuUNIT, Stephen Noonan's First Doctor and Jon Culshaw's Twelfth. We open pretty generically with the TARDIS team following a strange vision to a vessel in a need of repair and a paranoid crew. But there's plenty of meat on these bones, or rather bark on the trunks (see below) through rich characterisation and some genuine mystery. It's also a rare chance to hear this TARDIS team without Charley around (she's left in the house on Baker Street) demonstrating my point from the Causeway review about how more than one companion can soften these central relationships. Noga Flaishon's script also continues the cross franchise effort to bring species evolved from trees together under the description of "arboreals" which includes the likes of the Forest of Cheem (although not enough to warrant their own TARDIS Wiki entry).
Placement: It's 1968 so it can't be set during In The Bleak Midwinter so I'm going to be bold and put it after Causeway. For now.
"For most of her adult life, Niro Feliciano's checklist for the holidays looked like this: Host the family gathering, write greeting cards, shop for gifts, decorate and peel carrots for Santa's reindeer — all while raising four kids and going to work every day."
"As Wham! top singles chart, Minogue draws level with David Bowie, Eminem, U2 and Rod Stewart in the album league table, thanks to a reissue of her 2015 Christmas LP."
"One baby Jesus lies in a manger in the snow, wrapped in a silver emergency blanket with his wrists zip-tied. Mary stands nearby outside the Lake Street Church in Evanston, Illinois, wearing a plastic gas mask and flanked by Roman soldiers in tactical vests labeled “ICE.”"
"As the festive season approaches, Christmas trees have been lit in towns and cities across Lithuania – each brighter, more striking and more inventive than the last."
"Annie Gray always rejects turkey and the trimmings at Christmas. She believes they are a construct of a bygone era and will often eat pizza on the big day instead."
Editor's Note: Nothing much new to see here other than a recommendation - I swapped to Deezer from the now ridiculously unusable Spotify a couple of weeks ago and wholly recommend it. The interface is clean, easy to navigate and feels a lot like a streaming version of the CD racks in a record shop with logical genres and a sense of wanting you to be able access all music and not just whatever is being pushed that week.
Audio Although I've been pretty open to Audacity's presence, like C'rizz before her (or after her if you like) and other multiple companion combinations, the character has the effect of splitting the dynamic between the usual duo of leads. Which means the writer either has the Time Lord with one of the companions or a guest star or the two companions off by themselves. This does make the interactions between, in this case the Eighth Doctor and Charley, all the more precious (much as it would if they were split up for narrative reasons) but it also does a disservice to the third wheel companion, who rarely feels like they have agency and often ends up being a puzzle to be solved. Often that actually resolves itself when there are three companions, although in one recent Doctor Who era that turned into two tragic blokes acting as a distraction from us seeing Thirteen and Yaz making each other happy on a weekly basis.
Lost Amongst the Stars
"Who turned out the lights?" For a good proportion of the story's run time I was convinced the monster reveal would be the Vashta Narada and the resulting beasties feel like they could be part of the same phylogenetic tree. As the review in this month's parish circular indicates, there are shades of Event Horizon and Alien in the grim inevitability of humanity paying the price for venturing where they probably shouldn't given all of the warning signs. Outside of the Doctor's perspective, there is a certain element to most stories set in deep space which mimics Star Trek but almost everyone involved is wearing an imaginary red shirt. This is a grim slice of body horror which highlights this early Doctor's pragmatism. Even when all evidence suggests everything is lost, he continues to fight, something which is less apparent in later stories.
Causeway
As those of us who've been lost in these narrative thickets for many years know, a franchise this broad and deep is inevitably going feel repetitious and Causeway locks itself firmly in those patterns like a sailboat in a magic eye creation. For much of the story's running time loads of it felt very familiar but not in three main genres of Doctor Who sense but something far more complicated than that. Turns out the Causeway is an organisation which at this point in their existence are attempting time travel thanks to some technology from party unknown, almost literally dropping in their laps. Somewhat like City of Death, the TARDIS team are drawn to their front door after their experiments have a indigestive effect on the time ship's innards. Given this is such a recent release, let's keep things spoiler free and just say "OK, kid. This is where it gets complicated."
Yes, well, alright, this story pretty much confirms there isn't some grand narrative conspiracy, this early doors (at least in Big Finish terms) Eighth Doctor and Charley and these stories are supposed to be set between the first and second OG series which makes Audacity one of those companions who appears in an earlier narrative gap and is never mentioned again. So we can comfortably say there are three key tranches of episodes in the Eighth Doctor era at Big Finish, with the first running from Shada through to The Girl Who Never Was, the second from Blood of the Daleks through to his ongoing adventures with Liv and Helen and then the Time War (with Time Lord Victorious its own thing just before). All power to Paul McGann for continuing to somehow make each version of the character so distinctive, backed by his excellent writers.
"Before its fall from grace, the Chinese-American dish chop suey was a holiday tradition for families who don't celebrate Christmas, even being immortalized in songs and film."
"In Catalonia, Christmas involves a hollowed-out log with a painted face, stick legs, and a little red hat. Children feed it nuts and dried fruit for weeks, keep it warm under a blanket, and then on Christmas Eve, they beat it with sticks while singing songs commanding it to defecate nougat."
Film For It Was Only An Accident. Originally opened as an AMC back in 2001, I know this very well from it being the end of frequent day trips to Manchester when there wasn't anything of interest at the Cornerhouse and being the wrong end of town for the Odeon Filmworks. Housed in a giant cavernous building, this Odeon takes about ten minutes of walking to reach the screens via this pretty non-descript entrance. Became an Odeon after AMC bought the chain and renamed all of their locations to the more familiar UK brand. Not much of the interior has otherwise changed, including the seating which is still the AMC orange (history link).
Editor's Note: As an alternative to the usual reporting on Christmas being ruined because a council in the Midlands forgot to put the lights on the city centre tree or which supermarket makes the best Leach of Almonds, I thought I'd aggregate the international cinema on UK terrestrial TV as featured in this year's Christmas Radio Times (£6.50? How much?).
Various research projects I've undertaken across the year have led me to look enviously through the old Christmas schedules and the rich pickings available. The results for this year are disappointing with some incredibly safe programming across the linear channels and only the following which could be described meaningfully as "world cinema".
"The Marquis d’Urfé finds refuge in the home of a strange family after becoming lost in a hostile forest while working as an emissary for the King of France."
"As a patriarchal family yearns for the birth of a son to continue their family line, their youngest son secretly joins an erotic dance theatre and falls for its transgender starlet."
"The chronicles of four years in the life of Julie, a young woman who navigates the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her career path, leading her to take a realistic look at who she really is."
"Fatima-Zahra and her teenage son Selim move from place to place, forever trying to outrun the latest scandal she’s caught up in. When Selim discovers the truth about their past, Fatima-Zahra vows to make a fresh start. In Tangier, new opportunities promise the legitimacy they each crave but not without pushing the volatile mother-son relationship to the breaking point."
Of course times have changed and streaming offers access to a near infinite amount of content from across the globe via the likes of MUBI, the BFI Player and Criterion. All of the UK channels would argue that they do show films made outside of the UK and US during the rest of the year and have some available via their own streaming services.
But it still feels very insular that during the festive period English language films should predominate with the vast majority originating from Hollywood and it poorly serves those of us who can't afford all of those services or to rent films on a rental basis and want an alternative Love Fucking Actually.
At the very least there could be presentations of festive favourites from elsewhere at a reasonable time of the day. If we were still a proper country, BBC Four would be showing My Night at Maud's (1969) at Christmas with Malmkrog (2020) seeing us into the New Year.
"The winter holiday period is meant to be joyful, yet for many of us it comes with a heavy mix of responsibilities and social pressure to go to parties and events we don't want to."
"The holiday season means holiday movies, films that can be counted upon warmth and holiday cheer, also probably some snow, a little bit of magic, and grumpy/greedy/workaholic protagonists who need be reminded of the true meaning of Christmas."
Editor's Note: Worth it for the Love Actually discourse: "It's Ed Sheeran before Ed Sheeran existed."
"Preparations for Christmas are underway across the globe with landmarks lit, markets open, shop windows decorated, a jet skiing Santa in Rio and even the T-Rex at London’s Natural History Museum wearing his Christmas jumper."
Editor's Note: Trigger Warning for shots of the current White House.
"Aside from the two old chestnuts of Hamlet criticism—Hamlet’s character and Hamlet’s delay—probably no other topic has engaged Shakespeare fans more than the thorny problem of his age: is Hamlet sixteen or thirty? Whether you’re wandering through classes discussing Hamlet, lurking the boards at rehearsal, eavesdropping in the bar after a performance, or perusing the online discussions, you find people of all stripes tangling with this key contradiction."
"Cerys' weekly round up of the blues you need to hear, from all around the world and in all shapes and sizes! This week Cerys unwraps a festive gift from the BBC Archive: BB King's Christmas Blues! Recorded in 1997 with the late Johnnie Walker, B.B. King shares some of his favourite records! Featuring tracks from Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and Bonnie Raitt."
"The festive season is a rich time for tradition, storytelling and folklore. A time when different belief systems and traditions clash and combine into symbolic acts, we take part in without a second thought. At a time of year when the days are shortest and the outdoors is a less inviting place to be, many of these Yule traditions involve our wildlife."
"The multiples and chain stores have been growing since the beginning of the century, and in the past 15 years they have grown very fast."
Editor's Note: Another brilliant upload to the BBC Archive YouTube Channel, this looks at where Tesco and WH Smith were in 1970. Smoky boardrooms filled with men shouting over women, brutalist concrete shopping centres, retail floors where hygiene is anathema and sales meetings in which the livelihoods of producers and authors are shot down on a whim. Watch out for the very TV Creamy cameo at a store opening.
"Knowsley food aid organisations have been badly hit by the demise of the Knowsley Foodbank distributer. We are raising ££ to help the Stockbridge Village pantry give people a nicer Christmas."
"Kylie is the biggest challenger for Christmas number one 2025. Her new song XMAS, was recorded for the 10th anniversary edition of her Kylie Christmas album."
"Mariah Carey has lodged a record-tying 19th week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 as “All I Want for Christmas Is You” rides the holiday wave back to the top of the charts."
"For many Swiss, the Christmas tree is part of the Christmas tradition. According to the Forest Owners Association, around 1.7 million Christmas trees are sold every year. The Nordmann fir is by far the most popular."
Editor's Note: Since it's Doctor Who night on the BBCs this evening, here is a collection of free festive tales from across the official websites and other places too.
"As he strolled through the foggy streets of London’s East End he became aware of the footsteps following him and immediately wondered if it was them. He began walking faster. The footsteps – a soft pad pad pad pad – remained close behind. Now, straining to hear them, the old man caught something else. A low, velvety snarl."
"The Doctor, Peri and Joe land on the planet Naxios, where they discover the body of Father Christmas. Who killed him? The strange individuals dressed in Shakespearian costume or the talking animals wearing waistcoats digging in the tunnels?"
"The engines roared, and time roared back, washing over the hull of the TARDIS in waves of icy blue and burning gold. Reality unfolded for the spinning wooden box, funnelling it through a storm of seconds, then folding back into place as neat as wrapping paper."
"'I haven't been ice-skating since my seven hundred and twenty-first birthday,' muttered the Doctor to himself, as he raced to the other side of the console to pump the vortex loop."
"The boy's name was Tom Wake, and he was nine years old. And perhaps because the year was 1920, or perhaps because he was the sort of boy who liked to believe in things until there was a reason not to, he believed in Father Christmas."
"'What do you think?' Beth Summers turned round and burst out laughing as her grandma brandished a bright red feather boa around her shoulders. 'This used to belong to my mother,' continued Beth's gran as she jiggled her hips, causing her 12-year-old grand-daughter to laugh even more."
"It had been nearly four hours since Mason Valentin managed to convince his mother to let him stay home from school. Every moment since then seemed to tick away with the weight of eternity. He wasn't sick exactly. His fifteen year old heart though was very sick. Love sick, that is. Staring out the bay window, his thoughts wandered to Ana Comparetto, the American girl who'd only just transferred that year."
"Something was wrong. David Kershaw looked down the station platform and was left open-mouthed by what he saw. Not just a little bit wrong, but a big fat what on earth is going on? wrong."
"‘Lost satellite reception…’ Geoff Bluth glared at the GPS device on the dashboard of his car. It was late, he had been driving for hours and all he wanted was to find his hotel, have a nice hot shower and collapse into bed. And now it was snowing. Terrific. He pulled over to the side of the road and called the hotel. "
"Deep under the sea, Nessa, Freng and Strong are trying very hard to be nice. Because if they are naughty, then Santa won’t come and give them presents. And they do want presents very much. But what does Santa really want from them? And what does being nice *really* involve..?"
"Lucky you! You're on Mr Colchester's Christmas Card list. He brings tidings of comfort and joy and a terrible warning. Whatever you do, open this card first. Season's Greetings."
