Ellen Gray: 'Doctor Who' does 'Carol'

DOCTOR WHO: A CHRISTMAS CAROL. 9 p.m. tomorrow, BBC America.

BY NOW YOU may have had your fill of pseudo-Scrooges and the ghosts of Christmases Past, Present and Yet to Come Calling in a Very Special Holiday Movie. I know I have.

But if you can handle one more wrinkle on the Charles Dickens classic, BBC America has a treat tomorrow, as it premieres "Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol" on Christmas Day - the same day Britons will be seeing it for the first time.

Michael Gambon ("The King's Speech") stars as Kazran Sardick, tyrant of a planet encircled by flying fish - really, flying fish - whom the Doctor (Matt Smith) must persuade to lift a finger to save travelers in an approaching ship.

How he does it not only provides one of the cleverer twists on the Scrooge story I've seen in a while but it's a lovely introduction to Smith's Doctor for those who might not have caught "Who" since David Tennant hung up his sonic screwdriver (or even for those who've never encountered the Doctor in any of his many incarnations).

And, let's face it, there aren't many retellings of "A Christmas Carol" that manage to work in Marilyn Monroe. What can I say? God bless us, every one.

Send e-mail to graye@phillynews.com.