Doctor Who: Joy to the World is the 2024 Christmas special from the Time Lord – here’s our handy recap on series 14 and last year’s festive special.

There’s a lot to be reminded of… such as what happened to companion Ruby and how the Doctor got to where he is now.

The Doctor and Ruby met last Christmas (Credit: BBC)

Doctor Who Christmas special 2023 recap

Last Christmas saw Doctor Who return to its traditional festive slot of Christmas Day on BBC One for the first time since 2017.

In the episode, titled The Church on Ruby Road, fans were introduced to Ruby Sunday, a young woman who had been abandoned as a baby on Christmas Eve outside a church.

Not knowing her origins, Ruby was on a mission to find out who her parents were.

And then the Doctor came crashing into her life.

While looking after a foster baby under the care of her adopted mother Carla, Ruby encountered goblins who stole baby Lulubelle and took her up to their floating pirate ship in the sky. Their aim? To feed baby Lulubelle to the Goblin King.

As Ruby attempted to chase the goblins, she crossed paths with the Doctor, who helped her save Lulubelle and defeat the Goblin King.

At the end of the episode, the Doctor invited Ruby aboard the TARDIS, and they shot off into space and time together.

Doctor Who season 14 recap – Space Babies, landmines, and musical monsters

The Doctor and Ruby’s first adventure saw them land aboard a spaceship run exclusively by talking babies.

To make things weirder and creepier a terrible monster was stalking the bowels of the ship.

After defeating – and then saving – the Bogeyman (made of literal bogies) – and sending the babies on their way to civilisation, the Doctor and Ruby travelled back to the 1960s to watch the Beatles play.

Except the 60s they landed in was devoid of music thanks to the malevolent god of music, Maestro (Jinx Monsoon).

After returning music to the world, Ruby and the Doctor landed on an alien planet, where the Doctor accidentally stepped on a landmine.

As he attempted to stay calm and prevent the landmine from blowing, a war raged on around him and, at one point, Ruby was shot and almost killed.

With the help of AI, the Doctor survived, taking viewers into the next episode, 73 Yards, a Doctor-lite episode.

In this episode, which took place in an alternate timeline without the Doctor present, Ruby was stalked by an old woman who was always 73 yards away. Using her stalker to her advantage, she took down a malevolent Prime Minister, before a timey-wimey ending saw normality resume.

Doctor Who and Rogue met in season 14 (Credit: BBC)

Killer slugs, Rogue, and the God of Death

In episode five, the Doctor and Ruby attempted to save the inhabitants of Finetime from killer slugs.

However, the social media-obsessed Finetimers turned out to be horrifically racist, prejudiced people and refused the Doctor’s help, embarking on a mission to save themselves, which would undoubtedly end in their deaths.

After Finetime, the Doctor and Ruby travelled back in time to the Regency era, where they danced at Bridgerton-style balls and fought the shape-shifting Chuldurs.

It was during this episode that the Doctor met – and fell for – the enigmatic Rogue, a mysterious bounty hunter who helped him fight the Chuldur. However, the Doctor lost Rogue, as the hero sacrificed himself to save the world.

The series finale saw the Doctor, Ruby, and UNIT battle with Sutekh, the so-called God of Death, who had been clinging to the TARDIS for a millennia, biding his revenge. The Doctor had first fought Sutekh back when he looked like Tom Baker back in the 1970s.

Ruby bid the TARDIS farewell in the previous Doctor Who Christmas special

The final episode saw answers given to the Doctor and Ruby.

After years of searching, Ruby finally found out who her mum was. Turns out she wasn’t a mysterious god, or an alien, or the Master in disguise. She was just an ordinary woman called Louise.

After defeating Sutekh by throwing him into the time vortex, Ruby reunited with her mum in an emotional coffee shop meeting.

Then, as the Doctor prepared to fly off to the stars again, Ruby heartbreakingly revealed that she wasn’t going with him.

“Your life is out there now,” the Doctor told her as she broke down in tears.

“I’ve shown you monsters and planets and legends, but this… honey, your adventure is just beginning,” he told her.

As Ruby left the TARDIS and whispered a final “I love you” to her pal, the Doctor turned away and cried.

And that’s where we last saw him, flying off into the Time Vortex, alone, with Ruby at home with her family.

But what next for the Doctor? And knowing that Ruby will be in the next series, what will happen at Christmas to bring them back together?

The Doctor Who Christmas special airs on Christmas Day at 5.10pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.