Jackson Booth-Millard The Carry On film were a huge success, with eighteen (out of the thirty one made), and in the year that brought Camping and Again Doctor there came this seasonal television special. This spoofs the classic Charles Dickens story A Christmas Carol, with Ebenezer Scrooge (Sid James) being mean and greedy with his money and to people in the Victorian town, and he is visited by three ghosts. Instead of showing Scrooge his personal past, present and future, the Ghosts of Christmas Past (Charles Hawtrey), Present (Barbara Windsor) and Future (Bernard Bresslaw) show him the fortunes of those people he did not give money to for whatever they needed. The characters affected by the miser's include Dr. Frank N. Stein (Terry Scott), Elizabeth Barrett (Hattie Jacques), Bob Cratchit (Bresslaw), Dracula (Peter Butterworth) and Robert Browning (Frankie Howerd). Obviously like the regular versions, Scrooge sees the error of his ways and gets started on mending things and giving money to those who need it, only he is carrying it in a toilet pot. All the actors in the Dickensian format do as well as they have before, it is a little annoying that Kenneth Williams does not feature, but the usual innuendos and double double entendres as always are what make this comedy special good fun. Worth watching!

ShadeGrenade With the 'Carry On' movies proving popular both on television and in the cinema, Thames decided in 1969 to make a special for I.T.V. This uproarious parody of Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' was the first of four Yuletide romps, and easily the best.Sid James starred as 'Ebenezer Scrooge', not merely mean but a dirty old man to boot, keeping his money under the bed in a chamber pot! Other returning cast members included Terry Scott, Bernard Bresslaw, Charles Hawtrey, Peter Butterworth, Hattie Jacques, and Barbara Windsor.Conspicuously missing, however, was Kenneth Williams. The man with the wonderfully snide voice and flared nostrils regarded the whole enterprise as a waste of time, and in any case had signed to do a B.B.C. sketch show with Joan Sims - the disastrously received 'The Kenneth Williams Show'. His input into 'Carry On Christmas' would have been welcome, but its a credit to the cast that they coped rather well without him.Talbot Rothwell's innuendo-laden script stayed close to the Dickens classic, occasionally straying into the cobwebbed universe of Dracula and Frankenstein, as well as the poetic and romantic world of Robert Browning. All done in typical 'Carry On' style, of course.The cast threw themselves into the piece with commendable enthusiasm, Butterworth and Howerd in particular looked to be having the time of their lives.As Andrew Collins noted in Channel 4's '100 Greatest Christmas Moments', the specials were cheaply made ( as indeed were the films ) and studio bound. 'Carry On' humour was not reliant on big budgets and spectacular scenery so this was not a problem. Collins' positive comments were overshadowed by a powerful blast of sanctimony from the editor of 'Q' magazine, Paul Rees, who made comparisons with 'Love Thy Neighbour' ( eh? ), trotted out the old 'we've thankfully moved on since' argument and sneered: "What sort of a world was it back then?". Well, Paul, you would do well to learn something about that world before passing judgement. People in those days were not conditioned to think through the political ramifications of a joke before laughing - unlike yourself. I'm so glad I have never bought 'Q' magazine.'Carry On Christmas' topped the ratings for that year's festive television ( Sid James fans could see their hero again on Boxing Day in the 'Two In Clover' segment of 'All-Star Comedy Carnival' ), led to a further three specials, and ultimately to the disappointing 'Carry On Laughing', made by A.T.V. in 1975.The idea of a 'Scrooge' send-up was reused in 1988 by Ben Elton and Richard Curtis in the excellent 'Blackadder's Christmas Carol'.

freestyla24 Just about everything you'd expect when you mix a pantomime, Charles Dicken's Christmas Carol & a carry on film together. OK, so its not exactly a classic in the collection of carry on films, but its certainly watchable just to see Sid James having a laugh playing a leeching Scrooge, Charles Hawtrey popping up as a fairy & ghost in his own unique manner and Frankie Howered playing up to the camera (& getting on Hattie Jacques nerves at the same time, just look at her face!) I couldn't tell weather it was canned laughter or a live studio audience but it came across pretty well. Although not the best performance from the legendary carry on team, its worth a watch.

DownLoAdEr Very amusing television show, with every slapstick innuendo, classic line possible from all previous and future films and TV specials.This is 50 mins of little giggles to huge belly laughs. Barbra Windsor is wonderful with her wicked giggle. The rest of the cast (familiar from all our favourite Carry On films including Frankie Howard) all have at least two roles to play and it is obvious they were having fun filming the show. There are too many instances where you can see they are about to giggle while delivering lines to mention. If you get a chance to see it on a TV special, and you are a Carry On fan and missed it. DO IT! What a carry on Xmas giggle........For those perfectionists it is a 1 starFor me it is the perfection of television humor in the 70's and is worthy of TEN stars (out of ten) for the classic 70's humor back then.Feel free to Flame Me but this is classic Brit Humour from the 70'sThis humour will never be seen in new shows, enjoy!!Comedians just want to have a giggle. It would be great if they could be as open and honest as the Carry On team, and funny, without the HR Political Police ruining it for the rest of us.My score is 5 out of 5 but NOT on a cultural scale, just a Carry On scale..... simply brilliant and funny.