Its Christmas Eve 9:30pm BBC 1 just before going to Midnight Mass what more could you ask for than Steptoe and Son it was their first Christmas special. In fact, they only ever made two.
Harold and Albert are planning Christmas, while Albert is planning for a nice Christmas at home Harold is planning a holiday in the sun and his plans do not include Albert. Harold knows the minute he tells is dad the emotional blackmail will begin. A joke from another episode shows his problem. When Harold did is National Service is dad wanted to go with him.
While Harold is at the travel agency making his final payment for is 10-day trip Albert is home making daisy chain decorations. He is happily reminiscing about Harold’s first Christmas and how his wife die two days before Christmas and how he already bought her a present. Decorations up and all the Christmas treats in hand, biscuits, fruit, and even crackers for a Christmas for two.
Harold announces his return home with a scream from the outside toilet Albert as left a Holly Wreath on the seat. In the house Albert is talking so much that Harold can barely get a word in with what he wants to say but he manages to slip in “I won’t be here” as Albert keeps on chatting until it hits him. Thinking they were both going Albert announces that we don’t need to go but Harold tells him “I didn’t say we”.
Harold then explains he is tired of just the two of them after he has been telling him for years and now he is going. Albert begins to lay it on thick faking illness, using his dead wife, all to destroy Harold, which we have seen many times before if Harold tries to find some Independence. Albert makes is way to bed, Harold looked a broken man, and you knew the holiday was no more.
“All right” Harold shouts.“What” Albert shrieks running back into the living room looking rather fit after leaving the room close to deaths door?“I’m not going”“On no son you don’t have to stay on my account”“It’s all right I didn’t expect to go, not really”“I knew I wouldn’t be going. When I booked it. When I chose the hotel. When I gave him the money. When he gave me the ticket”Now growling in anger, “I knew I was staying”.“It’s all a game now, really”.
Harold’s plan is not to spend Christmas alone with his dad. With the ticket refund from his holiday, he is planning to blow the money on the biggest party they and the house had ever seen. Preparations are in full swing with the old grotty little Christmas tree swap for a bigger and less grotty one. The food is in with Albert wondering how they were going to eat it all as Harold explains there are 12 coming to the sit down Christmas Dinner with 20 coming in the evening and 40 on Boxing Day when the Skinner Arms closes.
Surely, Albert can’t spoil the party but he does. Christmas morning he comes downstairs covered in spots, he as chicken pox. Harold protests you can’t have chicken pox at his father’s age to which he replied, “You haven’t either”. Of course he catches them and he is not happy telling is dad “You rotten stinking little git” and when he explains to the guests they are scared off leaving the two to share another Christmas together.
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