Viewers Will Say 'Farewell to Doc Martin' This Christmas

It's hard to believe that a show as popular and long-running as Doc Martin has been has never had a Christmas special prior to this point, but it hasn't. At least not until now, as the show prepares to close out its ten season, two decade run with a festive holiday installment, an hour that will finally see television's grumpiest doctor learn about the true magic of the season after a series of predictably ridiculous events that involve him (at least temporarily) ruining the fun for everyone else.

Portwenn is full of Christmas cheer until Martin (Martin Clunes) decides he needs to shut down the local Santa's grotto upon suspicion that Leonard (guest star Ron Cook), the man playing Jolly Old St. Nick, may have something contagious that could give the local kids a lot more than a stocking full of treats. Annoyed at this turn of events, Leonard decides it's his job to teach "Doc the Grinch" about the magic of Christmas, and plenty of unintended consequences ensue.

Meanwhile, Martin's wife Louisa (Caroline Catz) works to arrange a holiday parade through town, and, after a mishap, Martin himself is forced to confront some of his lingering fears in order to embrace the festive spirit. It's true, this all sounds like exactly what we'd expect from a Doc Martin Christmas special, but it's sort of lovely that the show will not only get to end on such a charmingly satisfying emotional note, but that it will get the chance to check this last, missing box in its (literal!) final hour.