I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day [AUDIO/2019.12.10]

★★★☆☆

  I find parties to be a great setting for fiction; they can be whodunits, horror, hard science fiction, even fantasy. Furthermore, the blanket theme of Christmas immediately lends the story a sort of freedom to be sillier than usual, to reach a level of flippancy not usually afforded to normal releases. That's why I'm enjoying Blood on Santa's Claw and Other Stories so much -- it's not so much the individual stories, but instead the overall playfulness of the stories that enamours me. It helps that Colin Baker, ever since at least The One Doctor, has been the quintessential festive incarnation, and (I hate to sound like a broken record but) he's absolutely fantastic in the role.

  I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day is another solid short story from the collection, one with a great premise -- a Christmas party that seemingly never ends, trapping all the partygoers inside -- to work with. There's immediately more to chew on as the adventure becomes more than just a fun romp and hints on something awry with both the setting and Peri's relationship with Joe, and Nicola Bryant and Luke Allen-Gale play up their performances accordingly. It's very light on plot, but the atmosphere is enough to soak you up in the warmest feeling; it's also a Nev Fountain script, so expect a lot of tongue-in-cheek humour and very real emotions (read: Peri crying in a bathroom stall and another woman coming up to tell her that it's her designated stall, actually). Shucks, I enjoyed it.