Christmas

Get the mince pies out and let’s have a cup of tea. Since we last saw them, Wallace and Gromit have converted their terraced house into a bakery, with a windmill on the roof. As usual, the industrious and uncomplaining Gromit is running things pretty much single-handedly as inventor Wallace dreamily gets man and his best friend into all sorts of trouble after they save Piella Bakewell and her dog Fuffles from brake failure. As ‘The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit’ proved, ‘Wallace And Gromit’ works at its very best when its scale is kept small, its horizons local and its running length to a strict half hour. Every frame counts. The shadow of a visitor at the door resembles the Grim Reaper; a billboard advertises Cheesy Jet airlines; and Fuffles has a ‘Puppy Love’ album by Doggy Osmond. ‘A Matter of Loaf and Death’ is packed with as much wit, delightful detail and tight storytelling as ‘A Close Shave’ and ‘The Wrong Trousers’ and as such it’s another instant classic.
'Wallace And Gromit: A Matter Of Loaf And Death' 8.30-9.00pm BBC1 & Thu Jan 1, 7-8pm, BBC1.

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