Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat has revealed that this year’s Christmas episode was inspired by David Tennant’s final episodes.

He told the New York Times that ‘A Christmas Carol’ would balance out the “dark” nature of ‘The End of Time’.

“There had been a feeling that we needed a really, really Christmassy one, because the previous [Christmas special] had been David Tennant’s exit from the role,” he explained. “It had been quite dark and not as Christmassy as normal. We had wanted to reset it and make [this year's episode] a hugely jolly, merry one. Well, jolly, merry and a little bit sad.”

Moffat also praised the original Charles Dickens novella A Christmas Carol, which serves as the festive special’s inspiration.

“It’s a fantastic story,” he said. “Time travel at Christmas says A Christmas Carol and it says Doctor Who. The moment you think of it, if you have The Doctor as the Ghost of Christmas Past, it sort of makes sense.”

‘A Christmas Carol’ will air on Christmas Day on BBC One in the UK and on BBC America in the US.

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Karen Gillan has admitted that she feels inspired by her Doctor Who co-star Matt Smith.

She told Shortlist that Smith’s “driven” nature is key to the show’s success.

“I’ve never met someone so focused and he never slacks off,” she claimed. “His approach to acting is really creative. Rather than just reeling off the lines, he changes it every time.”

The actress added that she and Smith would often joke together between takes.

“He takes it very seriously, but that’s not to say it’s not fun,” she explained. “In fact, part of our taking it seriously is messing around… because I feel like it’s us staying in character and being silly.”

The Doctor Who one-off special ‘A Christmas Carol’ will air on Christmas Day on BBC One in the UK and on BBC America in the US.

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Doctor Who producer Piers Wenger has suggested that viewers will have to wait a little longer to discover the true identity of River Song.

He confirmed to Crave Online that the mystery surrounding the character would not be resolved in the opening two-parter of the next series, which will see Alex Kingston reprise the role.

“We’re probably not finding that out quite yet,” he revealed. “But stay tuned. I think you’ll get really great clues in the coming season.”

Wenger also claimed that the decision to split the next series in half was driven by creative, rather than practical, reasons.

“I think it was basically driven by the story that Steven [Moffat] had in his head,” he suggested. “It was an excellent opportunity to really get the audience hooked by making it an end of season cliffhanger. We get a three month hiatus between the first part and the second part in the UK [so] you’re never more than three months away from the next Doctor Who.”

However, the producer admitted that he was unsure if the show would persist with the new format in the future.

“We don’t know that yet,” he said. “As I said, [this year] it was a story thing [driven] by a two-parter from Steven.”

The Doctor Who one-off episode ‘A Christmas Carol’ will air on Christmas Day on BBC One in the UK and BBC America in the US. The sixth series is to follow in spring 2011.

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The fourth and final episode of Doctor Who: The Adventure Games will be released on Christmas Day, it has been confirmed.

Titled ‘Shadows Of Vashta Nerada’, it will feature the first appearance of the shadow monsters since their debut in ‘Silence In The Library’ and ‘Forest Of The Dead’.

Following on from the ending of third episode ‘TARDIS’, it will feature a plot surrounding a real-world conspiracy and is set in a seabed colony called Poseidon.

“We’ve gone all-out for the season finale. ‘Shadows of the Vashta Nerada’ takes place entirely underwater – something which would be impossible for the TV series, as water is so expensive,” said executive producer Steven Moffat.

“It’s thrilling, terrifying, educational and fun. Just steer clear of those shadows…”

UK licence fee payers can download the episode for both PC and Mac for free from the BBC website.

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