Doctor Who: 14 Cool Details Revealed In Steven Moffat's Wedding Of River Song Commentary

That Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart cameo: explained.

Doctor Who The Wedding of River Song the Doctor Matt Smith
BBC Studios

Coming off the back of the hugely successful Series 5, star man Matt Smith and showrunner Steven Moffat were under a lot of pressure to deliver the goods with the sixth series in 2011.

And while the overall package isn't as neat and tidy as Series 5, Series 6 is another strong run of episodes, with some incredible standalone stories (The Girl Who Waited, The Doctor's Wife, The God Complex), and an overarching plot that is both twisty-turny and ambitious, despite all the pieces not slotting together as smoothly as you'd like.

This is largely because series finale The Wedding Of River Song feels a little bit bloated (it should've been a two-parter), but still, it's got tons of action, charm, and emotion, and it also improves upon repeat viewings, because the insane hype leading into its initial broadcast date simply doesn't exist anymore.

And if you are going to give it a rewatch, it's worth doing so with the official commentary track, because it's a really good one.

With Moffat on the mic (plus director Jeremy Webb and Kovarian actress Frances Barber), there are tons of insightful production details here, and it's fascinating to hear about the challenges involved in bringing this complex episode to life.

14. The Calisto B Scenes Were Filmed In The Same Place As A Christmas Carol

Doctor Who The Wedding of River Song the Doctor Matt Smith
BBC

The first few scenes after the opening titles take place on a planet called Calisto B, a location that looks heavily industrial, like it was filmed in some sort of factory or steel mill.

And surprise! It was.

The scenes set on Calisto B - like the docks and the chess game - were all filmed at Mir Steel in Newport, Wales, and as noted by Webb during the commentary, this location was also used for the 2010 Christmas special, A Christmas Carol.

Doctor Who A Christmas Carol
BBC

In addition, Mir Steel can also be seen in episodes like Planet Of The Dead and Journey's End, but it hasn't been used for Doctor Who in quite some time.

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WhoCulture Channel Manager/Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture. Can confirm that bow ties are cool.