Blackadder's Christmas Carol

A fantastic idea, this one. Take the old chestnut 'A Christmas Carol', give it a shake-up, and turn it on its head.

Ebenezer Blackadder (Rowan Atkinson in fine form as ever) is a good guy, who gives away anything to anyone, and is truly chock-full of the Christmas spirit. Time for the Spirit of Christmas (a rip-roaring turn from Robbie Coltrane) to work his magic, invoke the spirits of Ebenezer's ancestors and descendants, and inform him of the errors of his ways.

We're reminded of Blackadder's former incarnations, in Tudor and Regency times, and of the cunning plans and twists of the long-gone relatives. We meet again with the likes of Queenie (Miranda Richardson), Melchett (Stephen Fry), Nursie (Patsy Byrne), and Prince George (Hugh Laurie). And of course the Cratchit character - Baldrick, who else! - suffers more and more as the story unfolds.

A scary turn from Miriam Margoyles and Jim Broadbent (Victoria and Albert), and a mind-boggling look into the distant future completes the transformation.

Not shown often enough, this is a real plum-pudding of a piece.

Blackadder's Christmas Carol makes for exceedingly good comedy. It is memorable because it turns Dicken's tale of the Victorian holiday season on its head. So, rather than a mean old miser repenting his evil ways, Ebeneezer Blackadder, the kindest man in England, repents his kind ways and turns into a nasty loner. The writing is sublime and it is good to see past Blackadders, but not the futuristic version. That just rings hollow with its over use of incomprehensible jargon and silly costumes.

Edmund Blackadder is one of the greatest characters British television has ever produced . He`s cruel , selfish and oh so cunning and it`s a bit of a shock to see him undergo a character change and be the kindest man in all of England . But don`t worry , in this reworking of Dickens A CHRISTMAS CAROL Blackadder soon turns into the anti hero we all know and hate

This is a side splitting Christmas feast for fans of the BLACKADDER series and we get flashbacks to series two and three of the historical sit-com and a glimpse of how the show might have looked if it continued into the space age . To be honest I don`t think a science fiction version of BLACKADDER would have worked well but I did find the concept interesting and highly amusing at the same time .

Don`t worry if you watch it in the height of summer , you`ll still find it funny

Blackadder is back and Dickens has him! Join us as we look in on kind-hearted Ebenezer Blackadder and his assistant Baldrick. He is the biggest patsy in London, until he is visited by a Chrismas spirit (who has been imbibing in a few spirits of his own!). A look at his past and future sets Blackadder on his true course.

The gang is all here for this one, with all of our favorite haracters and actors back for the fun. The only bad part is Baldricks costume in the future. Boy, that'll give you nightmares on Christmas!

If you're tired of false sentiment and prefer the Grinch before his heart grows, catch this one. Bah, humbug, indeed!

A grand reversal of "The Christmas Carol".

Very funny, but *perhaps* viewing the BlackAdder series is a prerequisite so you know the characters. (Well at least the first 3 series.)

Amanda Richardson does the switch from Elizabeth I to the future perfectly.

And BlackAdder's progression, vs. Baldrick's progression are shown well.

An annual event here!