xmas/new year tv

So to the inaugural blog. None of that awful drivel you get on other
showbiz blogs. This is quality. It may even include the odd celebrity interview, as audio. Don't get too excited. They may well be about to appear on a reality show.

Well, what a tv week. The funniest thing on tv was that great episode in Alan Partridge in which he pitches Monkey Tennis to Tony Hayers from the Bbc. Thank god that type of tv show has never seen the light of day... Partridge will never date. We shall grow old with him.

It comes but once a year, but alcohol doesn't diminish xmas tv. Royle Family (BBC1) was eclipsed by its namesake earlier in the day, The Queen's Christmas message. It was seven minutes of fascinating insights about the Commonwealth. I do wish Philip would do it one year. That would do it for the ratings!

So the end of another Doctor Who era comes and goes. Doctor Who: The End of Time (bbc1, fri) was indeed a long time coming. We've been talking about the exit of David Tennant for almost two years, and it's almost like he's the only Doctor we've ever known. To a younger generation, with apologies to previous incumbent Christopher Ecclestone (remember him?), he actually is. The BBC also decided that this was the only show worth publicising over Christmas/New Year and the Scottish actor appeared no fewer than 76 times over the past two weeks to not talk about what would happen. Was it worth it?

In short, no. It was a brilliant send-off for Tennant – his performance matched the hype – but as a piece of television it was overlong at 78 minutes and as impregnable as any Doctor Who I've ever watched. It certainly didn’t eclipse the Titanic Christmas special, nor the Cybermen Yuletide offering.

The centrepiece of the two-parter was the battle between the Master (John Simm) and the Doctor, but interwoven with the Time Lords of Gallifrey, including an imposing Timothy Dalton, and two aliens wearing cheap green swimming hats. They were really scary! After that was dealt with, Tennant dropped in on some old girlfriends/assistants, before regenerating into actor Matt Smith, saying: “I don’t want to go.” But I think it was time. The new boy looks well up to it.

Heading to Dancing On Ice monday. Will post some audio.