"The Giggle" is the third and final of the 2023 60th anniversary specials of the British science fiction television programme ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'', written by Russell T Davies, directed by

Chanya Button Chanya Joyce Dorothy Button (born on 25 December 1986) is an English director and screenwriter. After studying at RADA and learning the ropes in the assistant directors' department on the ''Harry Potter'' franchise, she directed two feature ...

and broadcast in the United Kingdom on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

on 9 December 2023. It features the final regular appearances of David Tennant as the

Fourteenth Doctor The Fourteenth Doctor is the current incarnation of the Doctor, the fictional protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme, ''Doctor Who''. The Fourteenth Doctor is portrayed by Scottish actor, David Tennant, who previously port ...

and Catherine Tate as

Donna Noble Donna Noble (later Donna Temple-Noble) is a fictional character in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Portrayed by British actress and comedian Catherine Tate, she is a former companion of the Tenth Docto ...

, introduces Ncuti Gatwa as the

Fifteenth Doctor The Fifteenth Doctor will be the next incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme, ''Doctor Who''. He will be portrayed by Rwandan-Scottish actor Ncuti Gatwa. Gatwa is the first black actor and the ...

and guest stars Neil Patrick Harris as the Toymaker, a character last seen in ''

The Celestial Toymaker ''The Celestial Toymaker'' is the mostly missing sixth serial of the third season in the British science fiction television programme '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 2 to 23 April 1966. In this serial, t ...

'' (1966). The episode also features

Jemma Redgrave Jemima Rebecca Redgrave (born 14 January 1965), known as Jemma Redgrave, is a fourth-generation British actress of the Redgrave family. She played the title character in four series of '' Bramwell'', and has a recurring role in ''Doctor Who'' as ...

and Bonnie Langford as UNIT commander Kate Lethbridge-Stewart and

Mel Bush Mel, also sometimes referred to as Melanie, is a fictional character played by Bonnie Langford in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. A computer programmer from the 20th century who is a companion of the ...

, respectively. Set directly after the events of " Wild Blue Yonder", the episode sees the Doctor, Donna and UNIT confronting the return of the Doctor's old enemy, the

Toymaker A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and pet ...

, who is behind a series of signals in a form of a "giggle" being transmitted, causing majority of the human race to go mad over their beliefs. The episode was watched by 6.85 million viewers and received positive reviews from critics, who praised Harris' performance and the writing.

Plot

The Doctor and Donna are taken by UNIT to its headquarters, as the world's population has gone violent. The Doctor is reunited with Shirley, head of UNIT Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, and former companion and friend

Melanie Bush Mel, also sometimes referred to as Melanie, is a fictional character played by Bonnie Langford in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. A computer programmer from the 20th century who is a companion of the ...

. The Doctor determines the cause of the violence is a giggle from a

Stooky Bill Stooky Bill was the name given to the head of a ventriloquist dummy that Scottish television pioneer John Logie Baird used in his 1924 experiments to transmit a televised image between rooms in his laboratory at 22 Frith Street, London. Baird ...

video from 1925, which

John Logie Baird John Logie Baird FRSE (; 13 August 188814 June 1946) was a Scottish inventor, electrical engineer, and innovator who demonstrated the world's first live working television system on 26 January 1926. He went on to invent the first publicly demo ...

had recorded to demonstrate his invention,

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

. The Doctor and Donna travel to 1925 and discover that the

had sold Stooky Bill to Baird's assistant. The Toymaker traps the two in his domain and reveals he transmitted the signal to make humanity play a never-ending game of debate, by making all of their opinions supreme and causing them to go violent if they're proven wrong. The Doctor and the Toymaker play a game of cards, with the latter winning. However, the Doctor states that since he won the last game, they are tied. The Toymaker resolves to have one final game with him and transports himself to the present day, with the Doctor and Donna in pursuit. The Toymaker attacks UNIT before taking control of a laser cannon. He reasons that since he faced separate incarnations of the Doctor for each game, he must face another, and mortally injures the Doctor with the beam, triggering his

regeneration Regeneration may refer to: Science and technology * Regeneration (biology), the ability to recreate lost or damaged cells, tissues, organs and limbs * Regeneration (ecology), the ability of ecosystems to regenerate biomass, using photosynthesis ...

. However, to everyone's surprise, the Doctor instead splits into two incarnations via "bigeneration". Both the Fourteenth and

s challenge the Toymaker to a basic game of catch. The Doctors emerge victorious and the Toymaker is banished from existence and sealed in a box, which is then confiscated by UNIT. Aboard the TARDIS, the Fifteenth Doctor advises his predecessor to recover from the extensive traumas that his past incarnations have accumulated across their lives. Donna suggests to the Fourteenth Doctor that his old face returned because, subconsciously, he is emotionally exhausted and needs to deal with these traumas. She invites him to consider retiring from travelling and staying with her and her family, but the Doctor signals his intention to not leave the TARDIS behind. The Fifteenth Doctor, realising that the Toymaker's rules of play still apply – that when one wins a contest, one gets a prize – uses a mallet from within the TARDIS to create a second identical TARDIS, which he departs in. The Fourteenth Doctor settles down with Donna and her family, while the Fifteenth Doctor travels the universe.

Continuity

The Toymaker taunts the Doctor by reminding him of the unfortunate fates of three of his companions: Amy Pond,

Clara Oswald Clara Oswald is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. She was created by series producer Steven Moffat and portrayed by Jenna Coleman. Clara was introduced in the seventh series as a new travelli ...

and Bill Potts, all of whom he met after leaving Donna behind. He responds to the Doctor's attempts to explain the nuances of each woman's departure with a dismissive "Well, that's all right, then!" An unknown hand picks up the Toymaker's gold tooth, which contains the Master. This is similar to a scene in the

third series Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hig ...

finale "

Last of the Time Lords "Last of the Time Lords" is the thirteenth and final episode of the third series of the revived British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was broadcast on BBC One on 30 June 2007. It is the last of three episodes that form a l ...

" (2007), where the Master's ring is picked up by an unknown hand after his death.

Production

David Tennant and Catherine Tate returned to the series as part of the 60th anniversary specials. Tennant stars as the

while Tate reprised her role as

. Ncuti Gatwa made his first appearance as the

. Neil Patrick Harris portrayed the Toymaker, a character last seen in ''

'' (1966), then portrayed by

Michael Gough Francis Michael Gough ( ; 23 November 1916 – 17 March 2011) was a British character actor who made more than 150 film and television appearances. He is known for his roles in the Hammer Horror Films from 1958, with his first role as Sir Arthu ...

directed the episode. Filming for the specials commenced in May 2022, and wrapped at the end of July 2022. Due to failing health, Bernard Cribbins' role as Wilfred Mott was reduced, however, he was able to film one last appearance for the ending of "Wild Blue Yonder", his final performance before his death on 27 July 2022, one day after production for the specials wrapped. An uncredited double stood in as Wilfred for "The Giggle", which featured usage of an archival audio recording of Cribbins from " The Poison Sky" (2008).

Broadcast and reception

Broadcast

"The Giggle" was broadcast on 9 December 2023 as the third and final of the three 2023 specials, filmed for the 60th anniversary of ''Doctor Who''.

Ratings

"The Giggle" was watched by 4.62 million viewers overnight, and had an

Appreciation Index The Audience Appreciation Index (AI) is an indicator measured from 0 to 100 of the public's appreciation for a television or radio programme, or broadcast service, in the United Kingdom. Until 2002, the AI of a programme was calculated by the B ...

score of 85. It was the third most watched programme of the day. The consolidated ratings figures for the episode were 6.85 million viewers, making it the tenth most watched programme of the week behind episodes of '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!'' and ''

Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (informally known as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly ballroom and Latin dance. Each couple is scored by a panel of usually 4 ...

''.

Critical reception

The special received positive reviews, with praise for Harris' performance and the writing. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, a

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website, 100% of 7 critics gave "The Giggle" a positive review. The site's consensus reads "Capping off David Tennant's encore run, 'The Giggle' puts a twist on ''Doctor Who''s regenerative conceit and gives fans the best of both worlds." The "bi-generation" polarised several fans, with some praising it as a "brilliant" plot twist, while others felt it would undermine Gatwa's role as the Fifteenth Doctor in the upcoming fourteenth series. In 2024, the scene was nominated for a BAFTA award for most memorable TV moment.

Home media

"The Giggle", along with the other two specials " The Star Beast" and " Wild Blue Yonder", were released on home media on 18 December 2023.

In print

novelisation A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent of ...

of the episode, written by James Goss, was released as an eBook 14 December 2023 and was released in paperback on 11 January 2024 as part of the ''Target Collection'' and as an audiobook read by Dan Starkey on 1 February 2024.

Notes

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Giggle, The 2023 British television episodes British television specials Doctor Who anniversary specials Doctor Who multi-Doctor stories Doctor Who stories set on Earth Fiction set in 1925 Fiction set in 2023 Fifteenth Doctor episodes Fourteenth Doctor episodes Television episodes set in London Television episodes set in the 1920s Television episodes written by Russell T Davies UNIT serials