kids encyclopedia robot

List of Doctor Who Christmas and New Year's specials facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts


Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The show has been a large influence in the media since its inception in 1963. Along with the regular series, special Christmas episodes were initially broadcast every year, beginning with "The Christmas Invasion" (2005) and ending with "Twice Upon a Time" (2017). Beginning with the Thirteenth Doctor, the traditional Christmas special episode was moved to the following New Year's Day timeslot, with episodes being produced for the holiday, beginning with "Resolution" (2019) and ending with "Eve of the Daleks" (2022). The Christmas specials returned with "The Church on Ruby Road" (2023).

Episodes

Classic era

During the first run of the programme (1963–1989), special episodes were not a frequent occurrence. During the third season, the twelve-part serial The Daleks' Master Plan was broadcast weekly over the 1965–1966 Christmas period, with its seventh and eighth episodes scheduled for Christmas and New Year's Day respectively. The former, "The Feast of Steven", was scripted as a comic interlude in the style of a pantomime, in the middle of an otherwise epic adventure. In its final scene, as the Doctor and his companions celebrate Christmas with a toast, the First Doctor (William Hartnell) turns to the camera and breaks the fourth wall by saying "Incidentally, a happy Christmas to all of you at home." The following episode, "Volcano", returns to the main narrative of The Daleks' Master Plan, although its ending briefly features a contemporary New Year's Eve.

The classic run had no subsequent holiday episodes.

Revived era

No.
story
Title Directed by Written by Original air date UK viewers
(millions)
AI
Tenth Doctor
167 "The Christmas Invasion" James Hawes Russell T Davies 25 December 2005 (2005-12-25) 9.84 84
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
178 "The Runaway Bride" Euros Lyn Russell T Davies 25 December 2006 (2006-12-25) 9.35 84
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
188 "Voyage of the Damned" James Strong Russell T Davies 25 December 2007 (2007-12-25) 13.31 86
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
199 "The Next Doctor" Andy Goddard Russell T Davies 25 December 2008 (2008-12-25) 13.10 86
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
202a "The End of Time – Part One" Euros Lyn Russell T Davies 25 December 2009 (2009-12-25) 12.04 87
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
202b "The End of Time – Part Two" Euros Lyn Russell T Davies 1 January 2010 (2010-01-01) 12.27 89
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
Eleventh Doctor
213 "A Christmas Carol" Toby Haynes Steven Moffat 25 December 2010 (2010-12-25) 12.11 83
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
225 "The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe" Farren Blackburn Steven Moffat 25 December 2011 (2011-12-25) 10.77 84
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
231 "The Snowmen" Saul Metzstein Steven Moffat 25 December 2012 (2012-12-25) 9.87 87
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
241 "The Time of the Doctor" Jamie Payne Steven Moffat 25 December 2013 (2013-12-25) 11.14 83
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
Twelfth Doctor
253 "Last Christmas" Paul Wilmshurst Steven Moffat 25 December 2014 (2014-12-25) 8.28 82
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
263 "The Husbands of River Song" Douglas Mackinnon Steven Moffat 25 December 2015 (2015-12-25) 7.69 82
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
264 "The Return of Doctor Mysterio" Ed Bazalgette Steven Moffat 25 December 2016 (2016-12-25) 7.83 82
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
276 "Twice Upon a Time" Rachel Talalay Steven Moffat 25 December 2017 (2017-12-25) 7.92 81
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
Thirteenth Doctor
287 "Resolution" Wayne Yip Chris Chibnall 1 January 2019 (2019-01-01) 7.13 80
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
288a "Spyfall, Part 1" Jamie Magnus Stone Chris Chibnall 1 January 2020 (2020-01-01) 6.89 82

Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).


This was the first episode of the twelfth series.
296 "Revolution of the Daleks" Lee Haven Jones Chris Chibnall 1 January 2021 (2021-01-01) 6.36 79
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
298 "Eve of the Daleks" Annetta Laufer Chris Chibnall 1 January 2022 (2022-01-01) 4.40 77
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
Fifteenth Doctor
304 "The Church on Ruby Road" Mark Tonderai Russell T Davies 25 December 2023 (2023-12-25) 7.49 82
Lua error: bad argument #1 to 'gsub' (string expected, got nil).
312 TBA Alex Pillai Russell T Davies Christmas 2024 (2024) TBD TBA

Home media release

Doctor Who The 10 Christmas Specials
The DVD cover art for Doctor Who – The 10 Christmas Specials

The Christmas specials between "The Christmas Invasion" (2005) and "Last Christmas" (2014), inclusive, were released as a DVD and Blu-ray boxset titled Doctor Who – The 10 Christmas Specials on 19 October 2015.

kids search engine
List of Doctor Who Christmas and New Year's specials Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.