Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL: A GHOST STORY at Alexandra Palace Theatre

Possibly the best remembered of all redemption stories, it focuses on the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge (Matthew Cottle), who, instead of marrying his sweetheart and starting a family, chooses to place the pursuit of money at the centre of his life. Entering into business with Jacob Marley (Neil Morrissey) he treats everyone with equal disdain. The poor in general, those who collect alms on behalf of the poor, poor relatives, poor employees —all are beneath his contempt.

Then, on Christmas Eve, a full seven years since departing this world, Marley’s ghostly spirit pays a visit to his former business partner, warning of his soul’s future plight should he not mend his ways. As everyone knows, there follow three more apparitions, the ghosts of Christmas Past (Grace Daly), Christmas Present (Mark Theodore), and of Christmases Yet To Come! Each takes the terrified Scrooge on a journey during which he reflects on past events, witnesses how others talk and feel toward him, and finally, he gets to experience his own miserable and pitiable end. Scrooge’s joy at awakening on Christmas morning, knowing that he has been given a chance to mend his ways, means he instantly resolves to be a kinder and more generous human being. It is possibly the best known and most often presented salutary tale to be found in English literature and as such, holds a special place of affection in the nation’s collective heart and consciousness.

A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story at Alexandra Palace. Photo by Mark Douet.

A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story at Alexandra Palace. Photo by Mark Douet.

Key to the story’s effectiveness, is the comparison made between Scrooge and others who manage to be kind and generous spirited despite their relative poverty, notably his own nephew Fred (Lance West) who continues to invite the curmudgeon to Christmas dinner, despite years of ill-tempered rebuttals, and the Cratchit family, Bob (Henry David) his wife (Charlotte Bate) and their children. Neatly knitting everything together and tying up any loose ends, Michael Mears acts as Narrator to ensure the stage adaptation does everything expected of it.

Paul Wills has provided a set design of ancient towering filing cupboards, sensitively lit by Philip Gladwell with the all important sounds created by Ella Wahlström and video designs by Nina Dunn.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL: A GHOST STORY plays 2 hours and 10 mins (including interval) and continues until 4th January 2026.