The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (TV story)

The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe was the 2011 Christmas special of Doctor Who.

Synopsis
It’s Christmas Eve, 1938, when Madge Arwell comes to the aid of an injured Spaceman Angel as she cycles home. He promises to repay her kindness – all she has to do is make a wish. Three years later, Madge escapes war-torn London with her two children for a dilapidated house in Dorset. She is crippled with grief at the news her husband has been lost over the English Channel, but determined to give Lily and Cyril the best Christmas ever. The Arwells are greeted by a madcap caretaker whose mysterious Christmas gift leads them into a magical, wintry world. Madge must learn how to be braver than she ever thought possible and that wishes can come true.

Plot
The Doctor is trying to flee an exploding alien spaceship high above Earth. As the floor crumbles beneath his feet, he manages to cling onto a spare piece of wiring, though he dangles precariously over the edge and could go flying into free space at any second. He notices a collision suit lying nearby and reaches for it; when it goes flying over the edge of the ship and begins plummeting towards Earth, the Doctor lets go of the wiring and manages to grab hold of it, fumbling awkwardly as he falls.

In 1938 England, Madge Arwell is thrown off her bike by the force of a collision in a nearby field. When she goes to investigate, she sees the Doctor lying face-up in the middle of a large pit; he managed to climb into the collision suit mid-fall, but is weakened by the force of the impact. When Madge lifts the visor on his helmet, she realizes that he put the suit on backwards and cannot see where he is going. She offers to help him find his blue police box. Returning home, she asks her young son, Cyril, to tell his father that she's borrowed the neighbor's car to take the Doctor, whom she describes as her space angel, to find his police box. Madge locates the box in the town square, though she accidentally crashes into a pole while trying to park. The Doctor realizes he cannot reach the TARDIS key, which is buried in the suit, and Madge graciously offers to pick the lock; though he insists that she will not be able to, she manages. He thanks her for her kindness and insists that if she ever needs him for anything, all she needs to do is make a wish. He steps into the police box only to find that it is, in fact, a real police box.

When World War II starts, Madge's husband Reg joins the fight as a pilot. His plane is lost one foggy night while he is flying over the Thames, and Madge receives the telegram informing her of his death a few days before Christmas. Though she is devastated, she does not tell Cyril or his sister, Lily, of Reg's death because she does not want their holiday to be miserable. Instead, she makes a wish and prepares her children for a visit to their Uncle Digby's country estate, which is being managed by a caretaker -- who happens to be the Doctor, come to answer Madge's wish. The Doctor has taken the "boring" house and affixed it with all sorts of eccentricities, including moving furniture in the drawing room and a lemonade tap in the kitchen. He warns them away from the attic by claiming that a leopard lives there. He also shows off the kids' bedroom, which he has stockpiled with toys and hammocks for sleeping. Madge is not impressed and orders her children downstairs so that she may berate the caretaker for being foolish. Lily mentions that her mother doesn't have to yell.

When she and the Doctor are alone, Madge informs him that Reg is dead, but that she hasn't told her children yet because she doesn't want their father's death to be associated with the happiness of Christmas. She also admits to not knowing why she keeps yelling at them, though the Doctor suggests that it's because she knows they'll be miserable later. Madge returns to her children, who make her promise to stay. Cyril has discovered a large blue box underneath the Christmas tree, but the Doctor insists that he cannot open it unitl Christmas morning. As the Doctor watches from afar, Madge tells her children that they are going to have the best Christmas ever.

Later that night, Lily explores the house on her own, and is drawn up to the attic by strange lights and electrical noises. There, she finds the Doctor doing some rewiring with the TARDIS parked nearby; he tells the confused girl that it's merely his wardrobe.

Cyril sneaks downstairs and opens the box, discovering a wintery world waiting for him inside. He is alarmed by its presence. The Doctor, meanwhile, continues to perfect the world from his room upstairs as Lily watches, and expresses some doubt that Cyril is really in bed, though Lily insists he is. Cyril climbs into the box and looks around. He accidentally jostles a tree branch, which cause silver ornaments to sprout from the needles of their own accord. The ornament grows in size before his eyes; when it grows too big, it falls off the tree branch and continues increasing in size. The Doctor and Lily realize that Cyril has fooled them and rush downstairs in time to see him crawling into the box again, having stepped out to get his torch. The Doctor and Lily follow, but as soon as they climb in, the Doctor ascertains that Cyril is already twenty minutes ahead of them, even though they only just saw him. The Doctor sees the ornament lying on the ground. It has split in half, as though something has hatched from it, and there are footprints leading from it into the woods. Cyril's own footprints follow it.

As the Doctor and Lily go off in pursuit of Cyril, the Doctor explains that the world they are in is part of the safest planet in the universe, and was meant to be a Christmas surprise for the family; however, he hasn't perfected it yet. Following the footprints, they realize that the footprints Cyril has been following are increasing in size, and the Doctor realizes that something is wrong in the forest -- and Cyril has landed right in the middle of it.

Madge comes downstairs and sees that the box has been opened. She climbs inside, also astonished by the world she finds, but sets off in pursuit of her children nevertheless. She is confronted by three Harvest Rangers, who scan her for weapons. She earns their sympathy by sobbing, and they agree to drop their guns before interrogating her. One of the Rangers declares that they are from Androzani Major, and the year is 5345. Madge declares that she is from 1941 England -- where there's a war on -- before producing a pistol from the pocket of her robe. When the lead Ranger expresses some doubt that she would be willing to fire at him, Madge replies that she is looking for her children.

Meanwhile, Cyril has followed the footsteps to a large tower set deep within the forest. Upon entering, he sees a statue of a king sitting atop a throne; both appear to be made of bark. He climbs to the top of the tower, not noticing as the statue blinks and turns to look at him. Another statue waits at the top, this of a young female, the Queen, who holds a metallic crown poised to set it on someone's head. The Doctor and Lily follow Cyril to the tower, where the Doctor deduces that the statue Cyril saw earlier is not really a statue, nor is the building really a building; rather, it's a group of trees grown together to look like building. The Doctor tells Lily that they have walked right into a trap -- a people trap -- though he doesn't know why a forest would need people. However, rather than escape, the Doctor and Lily decide to go search for Cyril.

Cyril has been looking out at the forest's activity from the top of the tower, but turns when he hears Lily and the Doctor's voices. Upon turning, he sees that the Queen has advanced on him, threatening to place the now-glowing crown on top of his head. The Doctor and Lily find it difficult to get inside the room where Cyril is being kept because the sonic screwdriver doesn't work on wood. While the Doctor works, Lily looks out at the forest and sees that there are stars coming out of the trees. The Doctor identifies the stars as the trees' life forces, and Lily tells him it's so beautiful that it makes her want to cry. The Doctor is amused by the idea of crying when you're happy, which he refers to as being "so human." Inside the room, the Queen succeeds in placing the crown on Cyril's head. Below, the King awakens and moves upstairs.

The Harvest Rangers allow Madge onto their ship. She compares the control room to the cockpit of an airplane, which she understands in basic terms because Reg took her flying once. One of the Rangers tells Madge that there can't be anyone in the forest, and if her children really are out there, "God help them." Madge sends the only female Ranger to scan for her children's life signs while the other Rangers explain that the forest is about to be harvested for fuel. It will be melted down with acid rain to create battery fluid, and anyone who is still in the forest when it starts up in five minutes is going to burn.

The Doctor and Lily succeed in getting into the top room, where they find Cyril unconscious on the throne, the crown still on his head. The Doctor begins speaking to the Queen, but is drawn away by Lily, who notes that the stars appear to be moving, even leaving the forest. The King enters, but all he and the Queen want to do is talk. Cyril awakes, exclaiming that the trees are scared and screaming. The Doctor scans the crown on his head, realizing that it enables Cyril to connect to the entire forest.

The female Ranger picks up the life signs, but insists she cannot drive the platform because she is not trained; nevertheless, she establishes an audio link to the tower, enabling them to hear the Doctor, Lily, and Cyril as they converse. The Androzani mothership calls the Rangers back to prepare for the acid administration, and despite Madge's protests, the Rangers dematerialize.

Cyril tells the Doctor that the trees are evacuating the forest because they're afraid of the rain. The Doctor deduces that the trees' life forces are trying to escape the planet, but need to travel inside a living thing -- namely, Cyril, who is wearing the crown that establishes a relay with the trees. The Queen, speaking through Cyril, explains that the coming of the Doctor was foretold, but the trees can't escape because Cyril is weak. The Doctor believes this is because Cyril is a child and offers to wear the crown instead. Despite the Queen's protests that the Doctor is also weak, he removes the crown from Cyril's head and finds that it burns to the touch. When he realizes that he can't let go, Lily takes the crown from him, but is not in any pain; in fact, she claims that it tickles to the touch. The Queen says that Lily is strong, but young. Cyril asks for Madge and wonders when they'll be able to go home; however, as it starts to rain outside, the Doctor gravely admits that may not be possible.

Madge listens to the conversation from the control platform. Cyril stubbornly informs the Doctor that they will stay in the tower and wait for Madge -- because "Mummy always comes." Through the window behind them, the control platform jolts to life with Madge at the controls, and begins stumbling towards the tower; though the Doctor cannot see her clearly, he claims to recognize the poor driving. However, the control platform tips too far to one side and crashes. Using her wool coat to shield her from the acid rain, Madge rushes inside and reunites with her children. The Queen places the crown on Madge's head, explaining that she is strong as the trees' life forces enter her head through the relay. The Doctor realizes that the forest chose Madge because she is a female and a mother -- literally, "the mothership." The top of the tower immediately transforms into a spaceship and takes off through the time vortex. The Doctor asks the Queen how they can get home, and the Queen informs him that Madge "must only think." Madge agrees to think of home until it hurts, though she begins to think of Reg's death and begs not to see the night he died. In this memory, Reg's plane is overtaken by a bright yellow light.

The "ship" crashes on the front lawn of Digby's estate on Christmas morning. The entire forest has left Madge's head, and the wooden bodies of the King and Queen have been emptied. Cyril and Lily, who heard Madge's pleas not to see the night of Reg's death, demand to know what happened to their father. The Doctor agrees to give them privacy, but Madge begs him to stay close. As the Doctor leaves the ship, he sees something off in the distance that fascinates him. Inside, Madge explains to Lily and Cyril the circumstances of Reg's disappearance, claiming that because his plane was damaged and there were "no stars to light his way," he got very lost. The Doctor reappears once more and insists that the family follow him outside, where Madge is thrilled to see Reg's plane landed safely on the lawn in the distance. The Doctor tells Madge that there was one star out the night of his would-be disappearance: it was Madge, flying through the time vortex, and Reg followed her home. Reg happily reunites with his family while the Doctor looks on.

Later that evening, the Doctor watches while the Arwell family celebrates Christmas in the drawing room. Madge goes to the attic to see him and immediately recognizes the TARDIS -- rather, the "blue police box" -- and addresses the Doctor as her space angel. She thanks him and invites him to stay for Christmas; however, when the Doctor hesitates, she takes it to mean that he has plans with his own family, though he corrects her and says he doesn't have one. He does, however, admit to having friends, though he acknowledges that they all believe he's dead. Like a true mother, Madge sends him off to reunite with them. The Doctor departs in the TARDIS, with Madge watching, hardly fazed, as it dematerializes. As Reg enters and sees it disappear, Madge casually explains that it was merely the caretaker returning to the time vortex.

The Doctor knocks at the Ponds' door. Amy answers, proffering a water pistol as she believed he was a carol singer. She bitterly informs him that it's been two years since he last saw them and promptly squirts him with the water pistol, which he admits he deserved. She also explains that River told both her and Rory the truth of his "death," which the Doctor is hardly surprised by. Both stubbornly refuse to be the first to hug, but ultimately break at the same time and happily embrace. Rory appears, and both he and Amy invite the Doctor to dinner, mentioning that they set a place for him; when the Doctor questions why, as they didn't know he was coming, Amy mentions that they always do. As the Doctor steps inside, he wipes away tears -- happy tears -- and closes the door behind him.

Cast

 * The Doctor - Matt Smith
 * Amy Pond - Karen Gillan
 * Rory Williams - Arthur Darvill
 * Madge Arwell - Claire Skinner
 * Cyril Arwell - Maurice Cole
 * Lily Arwell - Holly Earl
 * Reg Arwell - Alexander Armstrong
 * Co-Pilot - Sam Stockman
 * Wooden King - Spencer Wilding
 * Ven-Garr - Paul Bazely
 * Droxil - Bill Bailey
 * Billis - Arabella Weir
 * Wooden Queen - Paul Kasey

Planets

 * The Doctor says that the planet is one of the safest planets he knows.

Story notes

 * Alexander Armstrong (Reg Arwell) previously supplied the voice of Mr Smith throughout the run of The Sarah Jane Adventures and in the Doctor Who story The Stolen Earth / Journey's End.
 * Arabella Weir (Billis) previously played an alternative, female version of the Third Doctor in BFDWU: Exile.
 * Spencer Wilding (The Wooden King) previously played the Minotaur in DW: The God Complex.
 * This is the first Doctor Who story of the Matt Smith era where neither Karen Gillan nor Arthur Darvill's names appear in the opening credits. Claire Skinner's name appears instead.
 * At seven words, this episode has the longest title of any Doctor Who episode.

Ratings

 * UK Overnights: 8.92m (34.2% share)
 * UK Final: 10.77m
 * UK Live+7: 12.88m

Filming locations
to be added

Production errors

 * The plane Reg was flying is an Avro Lancaster, which didn't see active service until 1942, but the episode is set in 1941.

Continuity

 * The Doctor mentions the Magna Carta. (DW: The King's Demons)
 * The Harvest Rangers are from Androzani Major. (DW: The Caves of Androzani)
 * The Doctor refers to a tree from the Forest of Cheem fancying him, referencing Jabe. (DW: The End of the World)
 * The sonic screwdriver doesn't work on wood. (DW: Silence in the Library, The Hungry Earth)
 * The Doctor's respiratory bypass system has previously let him survive briefly in the vaccum of space (DW: Four to Doomsday)
 * Madge Arwell aims a Webley revolver at the Harvest Rangers. The same type of revolver has been carried by Jack Harkness and Wilfred Mott.
 * The Doctor describes crying when happy as being "humany-wumany", much like he described time as "more like a big ball of wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey...stuff" to Sally Sparrow. (DW: Blink)
 * It has been two years since the Doctor last met Amy and Rory, suggesting the closing scene takes place at Christmas 2013. If so this marks a return to the "one year after the real world" dating for present-day Doctor Who, which had been dropped after the end of Series 4, only now it appears the gap is two years.

For the Doctor

 * This story occurs after: WC: Prequel (The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe)

For Amy and Rory

 * This story occurs after: DW: The Wedding of River Song
 * This story occurs some time before they wave at their past selves in: DW: The Hungry Earth

Home video releases

 * The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe will be released on a standalone DVD and Blu-ray on 16 January 2012.