Bright Spot

We didn't watch Dr Who over Xmas, but we caught up tonight. It's trivial, feelgood television; overacted, characature characters, sentimental, constantly self-referential. But Steven Moffat's writing is witty, clever and touches on real human experience in the midst of entertaining sci-fi nonsense. On Chrismas day, over 4 million people watched Nicola Coughlan reminding us of the time that some people were saying their last goodbye to their mother on a tablet, while other people were emptying and restocking wine coolers as they made the rules

This was not trivialised, glossed-over or played for laughs in any way. Nor was it shoe-horned in as trite polemic; it was integral to the story. Full marks for bringing it into this day, when many families will be remembering those dark times, despite the determination of politicians and commerce that we should forget and move on. A pivotal part of the plot was that Coughlan's character held a deep anger from those times that could be brought out in order to assert her humanity and free her mind from control by an amoral corporate behemoth. Did I say this was trivial and sentimental? Sometimes there is more inside Chistmas wrapping paper than you expect

We had yet another day of dark times. Like the spark of anti-establishment life at the BBC - not yet quite extinguished - it was good to see a flash of white in the damp gloom. We know the darkness will not last for ever, but it's nice to have promises