Our take
A short, sharp Christmas Eve special that turns the show's usual escape plan on its head: the holiday is cancelled and the family Christmas is the threat. It is slighter than the feature-length specials around it, but the return of Kate O'Mara as Jackie gives it a proper villain, and Patsy facing a festive season at home is a neat seasonal joke for a show built on running away from one.
What happens
It is Christmas, and the first Christmas for Saffron's baby daughter, Jane. Edina breaks the habit of a lifetime and plans to spend the festive season at home with her family rather than away on holiday, spoiling her granddaughter, and she has not yet told Patsy. The break in tradition sends Patsy into a serious trauma. Then Patsy collapses and is rushed to hospital, and her sinister sister Jackie arrives, pushing her closer to the edge and leaving everyone waiting to find out whether Patsy will pull through. It is a Christmas spent indoors with the whole extended family, Bubble and Mother included, and the break with tradition hits Patsy hardest of all. Saffron's father Justin, Edina's ex-husband Marshall and his wife Bo, Fleur and Catriona, and Patsy's mother all turn up across the episode.
Can the kids watch it?
Rated 15 by the BBFC for moderate sex references, drug references and comic violence, so best for older teenagers and adults.
Cast and crew
Starring
- Jennifer Saunders as Edina
- Joanna Lumley as Patsy
- Julia Sawalha as Saffron
- June Whitfield as Mother
- Jane Horrocks as Bubble
Guest stars
- Christopher Malcolm as Justin
- Harriet Thorpe as Fleur
- Helen Lederer as Catriona
- Eleanor Bron as Patsy's Mother
- Mo Gaffney as Bo
- Christopher Ryan as Marshall
- Kate O'Mara as Jackie
- Felix Dexter as John
- Simon Brodkin as Doctor
- Alex Lowe as Wood Cutter
Writers
- Jennifer Saunders
- Sue Perkins
Director
- Dewi Humphreys