The On-Screen Advent Calendar 2012: Day Fifteen & Sixteen

WEEKEND DOUBLE BILL
DAY FIFTEEN- HARRY POTTER SPIN-OFFS AT WC
First up, a relatively brief article promotion from yours truly. Over at WhatCulture, I've written an extensive feature on eight new potential Harry Potter television spin-offs that Warner Brothers would be well advised to invest in. Admittedly, I've tried to keep a sense of tongue-in-cheek to the piece in its entirety, but there are some solid actual plot ideas in there too. See what you think...http://whatculture.com/film/8-harry-potter-tv-spin-offs-we-want-to-see.php
DAY SIXTEEN- DOCTOR WHO: THE SNOWMEN PREVIEW
Next, it's time to look ahead to what the Doctor Who Christmas Special for 2012 holds for fans and newcomers alike. Following in the wake of A Christmas Carol and The Doctor, The Widow And The Wardrobe, you might expect this to be another light adaptation of a Christmas classic, yet from what we've heard, the title's allusion to The Snowman is mostly insignificant, leading into a far greater story of adventure to introduce Jenna-Louise Coleman's companion character Clara Oswin. Here, we've compiled a list of exciting elements of science-fiction to expect in the episode- the festivities begin below...

• THE ADVENTURE BEGINS- In September, we saw the Ponds meet their demise at the hands of the Weeping Angels, leaving the Doctor to mourn for his most faithful friends. Now, his journeys through time and space can commence once more, as the Time Lord's soul faces its potential redemption thanks to the emergence of Clara Oswin onto the scene. This young governess calls upon the 1000-year old alien to retreat from the shadows back into the light, as an army of evil living snowmen (voiced by Ian McKellen and led by Richard E Grant) threaten the freezing of the Earth. Now that's a global warming catastrophe...
• THE MYSTERY CONTINUES- But underneath the new adventures and mysteries waiting to be solved, there's something troubling our hero. Just who is Clara Oswin? Her name is familiar, an echo of the woman whose voice the Time Lord heard guiding him in Asylum Of The Daleks, only to discover Oswin Oswald was converted into a Dalek herself. This is the world of Steven Moffat, so there's no doubt a wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey connection, yet just what that turns out to be will remain to be seen!
• THE TRIO RETURNS- Meanwhile, Madame Vastra, Jenny and Sontraran nurse Strax are back in action in Victorian England. Yep, you read right- Strax is back, somehow resurrected from the dead in a way that the Moff has promised will be teased here and then revealed in full via a DVD extra in the Series Seven boxset next Summer. These willing aids will at first shield the Doctor from the rest of the world, but then work to help him save the world from an impending threat with all their romance and dastardly wit coming to the surface as they join forces once more.
• THE ANNIVERSARY BECKONS- And of course, Doctor Who's 50th Anniversary is coming, with 2013 marking the fifty-year landmark since An Unearthly Child aired way back in 1963. Steven Moffat and company know this, so with a new TARDIS, a new companion and a new titles sequence, the stage is set for a fitting opening for what's to come. There are apparently nods to the past, Game Of Thrones and Sherlock aplenty here, so The Snowmen should really be a satisfying watch to say the very least!

Doctor Who: The Snowmen will air on BBC1 at 5.15pm on Christmas Day.