Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol has been adapted many times in the 178 years since its publication, and objectively the best adaptation of all is 1992’s The Muppet Christmas Carol. One key factor that makes the Muppet version stand out is, of course, Rizzo the Rat’s tail catching fire; yet on the whole, it’s a very faithful adaptation of the original novella. Michael Caine famously agreed to play Ebeneezer Scrooge on the condition that he would “play like I’m working with the Royal Shakespeare Company… as if it is an utterly dramatic role and there are no puppets around me”, and he smashed it. The whole tone of the film is exactly the right mix of serious and comedic. Kermit-as-Bob-Cratchit singing One More Sleep as he closes up shop simply *is* Christmas Eve. The ghosts are perfect. Gonzo’s narration as Charles Dickens is genuinely captivating. It’s even worse for mouses.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve marked every Christmas Eve with The Muppet Christmas Carol – first on VHS then graduating to DVD, roping in extended family, friends, Twitter followers, anyone who isn’t bored with me rambling about this film yet. But this year’s obvious victim willing participant was my boyfriend, who had never seen it before, which meant doing the annual Muppet screening before we both went home for Christmas. This made me wonder about all those other A Christmas Carol adaptations which I’ve neglected over the years in my singular pursuit of Muppets, so when I found myself home a little earlier than expected so as not to be caught out by Omicron, I asked Twitter and a few group chats for their suggestions.
It quickly became clear that I was not going to get through every single A Christmas Carol adaptation, so I was guided by what I had time for and what was most readily available, and they’re listed below in the order I watched them. Apologies if I didn’t get to your favourite – it’s probably on the list for next year! In an attempt to make this a tiny bit scientific, I’ve even used a tortured acronym to rate each adaptation on the TIMMY scale: Truthfulness to original story, Is there a talking rat?, Music, Mr Scrooge, and Yuletide applicability.
Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol (2010)
This happens to be my favourite Doctor Who Christmas special, but that’s mostly a coincidence – it’s basically an entirely different story. When the Scrooge-like Kazran Sardick (Michael Gambon) refuses to help a crashing spaceship land safely, Matt Smith’s Doctor is inspired by A Christmas Carol in his plan to persuade Sardick by showing him the past, present and future. It’s a Doctor Who Christmas special with all the trimmings – snow, a sleigh pulled by flying sharks, and a Katherine Jenkins guest appearance.
Truthfulness to original story: 1/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 4/5, thank you Murray Gold
Mr Scrooge: 3/5
Yuletide applicability: 5/5
Thomas the Tank Engine: Diesel’s Ghostly Christmas (2016)
Yes, really. In this two-part story amounting to around 20 minutes, the “Scrooge” character is Diesel, who refuses to help anyone with work – until other engines pretend to be ghosts to scare him into doing so. The irony that the original Scrooge is obsessed with work to the exclusion of all else was not lost on me. While essentially a different story again, they do work in “Bah humbug!” and “I’m as light as a feather! As merry as a schoolboy!” which was a nice surprise. Thomas himself is the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come, if you were wondering…
Truthfulness to original story: 1/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 1/5
Mr Scrooge: 3/5
Yuletide applicability: 3/5
A Christmas Carol (1971)
This made-for-TV animation stars Alastair Sim as the voice of Scrooge; he’s reprising his role from the 1951 film Scrooge, which I sadly didn’t fit in this time round. It’s a faithfull retelling of the original tale, and it was nice to revisit aspects left out in the Muppet version (such as visiting the miner and lighthouse keeper, and seeing Ignorance and Want). Coming in at 25 minutes, it sometimes feels rushed, particularly the scenes with the Cratchit family – they ultimately spend more time on Scrooge’s curtains than on Tiny Tim! The tone leans into the story’s ghostly elements more than most, and the slightly cursed old animation adds to this effect, but also gives it a very Christmassy nostalgia factor.
Truthfulness to original story: 4/5
Is there a talking rat?: No, but there are non-talking rats in the Yet To Come section
Music: 1/5 (like many adaptations here, it just uses God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen a few times)
Mr Scrooge: 3/5
Yuletide applicability: 3/5
Aldi advert (2021)
Of course I had to include it! Given the time constraints, Ebanana Scrooge is visited by only one “Spirit of Christmas” (Kevin the Carrot) and is whisked around various vaguely-relevant sights, including a guest appearance from *ahem* Marcus Radishford.
Truthfulness to original story: 2/5
Is there a talking rat?: No, only talking food.
Music: 1/5 (it’s Fairytale of New York, which didn’t exist in 1843)
Mr Scrooge: 2/5
Yuletide applicability: 4/5
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Blackadder’s Christmas Carol (1988)
This parody of A Christmas Carol stars Rowan Atkinson as Mr Blackadder, the nicest man in England – until he is visited by a ghost (just the one, again!) who inadvertently reveals the benefits of being selfish. Doctor Who‘s Nicola Bryant appears as Millicent, a relative with a terrifying laugh who takes advantage of Blackadder’s kindness. Its message is the opposite of what Dickens intended, but there are lots of laughs along the way!
Truthfulness to original story: 2/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 2/5 (points for replacing most of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen‘s lyrics with “piggy-wiggy-woo”)
Mr Scrooge: 3/5
Yuletide applicability: 2/5
ChuckleVision: A Christmas Chuckle (2002)
Paul Chuckle is the Scrooge-like character in this parody, employing Barry in a shop. After the (singular) ghostly visitation fails to have the usual effect, Barry simply dresses up as a ghost to get Paul to do anything he wants, and the usual hilarity ensues.
Truthfulness to original story: 1/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 1/5 (there is none, bar the opening theme)
Mr Scrooge: 3/5
Yuletide applicability: 3/5
A Christmas Carol (1977)
This hour-long BBC special stars Michael Hordern as Scrooge in a faithful retelling of the original story. Again, I mostly appreciated the snippets from the book which The Muppet Christmas Carol doesn’t include, like the Ghost of Christmas Past’s cap and Belle (Zoe Wanamaker) in her new life with another man.
Truthfulness to original story: 4/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 1/5 (another one in the “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen only” category)
Mr Scrooge: 4/5
Yuletide applicability: 3/5
Scrooged (1988)
A modern take on the A Christmas Carol story starring Bill Murray as Frank Cross, a selfish TV exec who spends lots of time shouting at no-one in particular but changes his ways after the usual visits from three spirits. I watched this one just after my booster jab hit me like a freight train so maybe it didn’t get a fair hearing, and it’s great at what it does, but I think I just prefer the more direct adaptations (cheeses for us meeses notwithstanding). I particularly enjoyed the more meta elements of the film – Cross himself is working on a TV adaptation of A Christmas Carol throughout, which means A Christmas Carol exists in his universe and he must be fully aware of the plot as it happens to him!
Truthfulness to original story: 2/5
Is there a talking rat?: No, although there are non-talking mice
Music: 1/5, although using Good King Wenceslas as the sole song at least gains points for creativity at this stage
Mr Scrooge: 3/5
Yuletide applicability: 2/5, bonus points for the fictitious festive TV idents
A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong (2017)
In this festive offering from Mischief Theatre (The Play That Goes Wrong, Peter Pan Goes Wrong, The Goes Wrong Show etc.), a straightforward retelling of A Christmas Carol starring Derek Jacobi as Scrooge is hijacked by Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society, and the result is typically hilarious,. Directoooorrrr Chris Bean (Henry Shields), who plays Scrooge for most of the show, is also forced to confront his own mistreatment of his fellow cast, adding a brilliant extra layer to Scrooge’s redemption. Some of the original A Christmas Carol elements are curtailed to make room for the Goes Wrong hijinks we’ve come to expect; the Past section is hit particularly hard, skipping Scrooge’s childhood entirely.
Truthfulness to original story: 3/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 1/5 (there isn’t really any music)
Mr Scrooge: 4/5
Yuletide applicability: 4/5
Scrooge, or Marley’s Ghost (1901)
Available on the BFI’s YouTube channel, this early adaptation is a three-minute silent film that probably wouldn’t make much sense if you weren’t already familiar with A Christmas Carol. That said, it still manages to pack in most of the main story, albeit with Marley doing all the time-traveling rather than introducing more ghosts. I particularly appreciated the “God bless us everyone” sign above the Cratchits’ dinner table – dedication to getting in the original line when the technology didn’t allow for any lines at all!
Truthfulness to original story: 3/5
Is there a talking rat?: No, there isn’t a talking anything
Music: 0/5, no sound
Mr Scrooge: 2/5
Yuletide applicability: 1/5, you’re only likely to watch this if you’re very into silent films or obsessively tracking down A Christmas Carol adaptations for an ill-advised blog post…
Scrooge (1970)
This was my favourite of the week by a considerable margin. While it’s framed as a straightforward retelling, it does deviate quite significantly from the original novella at times. Some of these embellishments work better than others – I’m still not sure about Scrooge (Albert Finney) going to actual literal Hell before he wakes up – but the majority are there to facilitate more children and/or more singing, which is exactly what you want in a Christmas film. I particularly enjoyed the reframing of the Yet To Come section from “who died?” (Scrooge) to “what wonderful thing did Scrooge do?” (die) – it’s more brutal, and leads into the incredibly catchy Thank You Very Much. The character leading the song, Tom Jenkins (Anton Rodgers) may have been entirely made up for this film, but so was Rizzo the Rat…
Truthfulness to original story: 3/5
Is there a talking rat?: No, but there are non-talking rats in Hell
Music: 5/5, A+, no notes
Mr Scrooge: 4/5 (effectively docked for not being Michael Caine, which isn’t his fault)
Yuletide applicability: 4/5
Peloton advert (2021)
A 30-second advert where Scrooge gets an exercise bike and instantly becomes happy. No ghosts. It barely counts.
Truthfulness to original story: 0/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 1/5, just background music taken from The Nightmare Before Christmas
Mr Scrooge: 1/5, doesn’t really do anything
Yuletide applicability: 1/5, only if you really want a Peloton
Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas Carol (2006)
Another modern re-imagining of the original, with Daffy Duck in the Scrooge-like role as a retail mogul. I struggled to get into this, mainly because of the pacing – there’s lots of the usual cartoon-violence-fun you’d expect from Looney Tunes, but we get halfway through the 45-minute film before any ghosts show up! The spirits are roughly as you would expect, though much of the story around them has changed; there’s no Tiny Tim, but the Cratchit stand-in of Porky Pig has a (healthy) young daughter who fulfils much of this role.
Truthfulness to original story: 2/5
Is there a talking rat?: No, but it’s the closest one on the list – one of Daffy Duck’s employees is Speedy Gonzales, a talking mouse.
Music: 2/5
Mr Scrooge: 3/5
Yuletide applicability: 2/5
A Christmas Carol (1984)
Another direct film adaptation of the original novella; this time, Scrooge is played by George C Scott (and portrayed in the past by Doctor Who‘s Mark Strickson!). As usual, there are a few embellishments – I particularly appreciated Tiny Tim watching the children slide on the ice, because it reminded me of the similar The Muppets Christmas Carol scene with penguins – but on the whole it’s a very faithful re-telling. Sadly, it is not a musical, which gives Scrooge (1970) the edge in my brain.
Truthfulness to original story: 4/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 2/5
Mr Scrooge: 4/5
Yuletide applicability: 4/5, I watched it on Christmas Eve so it must be okay!
The introduction to Bradley and Barney Walsh: Breaking Dad At Christmas (2021)
Just when I thought I was done with A Christmas Carol adaptations for this year and had settled down for an evening of extremely normal Christmas Eve TV with my parents, the Breaking Dad Christmas special opens with a dream sequence in which Scrooge (Bradley Walsh) asks Cratchit (Barney Walsh) to take down all the Christmas decorations. I decided this counts.
Truthfulness to original story: 0/5
Is there a talking rat?: No
Music: 0/5, there wasn’t any
Mr Scrooge: 3/5
Yuletide applicability: 4/5, attached to a Christmas Eve special
Mind the Flap 