‘CUDDLES’

I wanted to have this third episode of the Christmas anthology dedicated to Nyssa and Billy’s characters with the Doctor out of the picture for most of the time. I wanted to make this episode almost like the romantic ‘Circular Time: Autumn’ episode that I love, except do it for Nyssa and Billy.

It was a struggle trying to come up with an idea for a romantic plot between Nyssa and Billy, but it soon eventually developed into the story idea of having Cuddles, their cuddly toy dog, coming to life. So many ideas came flooding in for me when I wrote about Nyssa and Billy and their cuddly toy dog.

I wanted to make the story earthbound as possible in the present day, which at the time of writing this episode was around Christmas 2012. It gave me an opportunity to explore what Nyssa and Billy would be like living together in a house and how they would cope without having the Doctor around.

The episode is entirely written by me and not with Stephen Buckley for a change. Revisiting the episode has made me realise how often the concept of a cuddly toy dog coming to life for Nyssa and Billy was often silly and yet often wonderful at the same time. I’m pleased with the Fotomoths idea.

I hope you’ll enjoy this special festive Christmas episode of ‘Doctor Who’ by me called ‘Cuddles’. You may find it silly in places, especially when Nyssa and Billy interact with Cuddles, the toy dog, but I’m sure you’ll find it entertaining. And don’t worry. The Doctor does have a vital role to play in the tale.

TIM BRADLEY, December 2018