I always enjoyed the Terry Pratchett novels I came across in my youth, so it’s a surprise that I missed his Christmas-adjacent novel The Hogfather completely. And that they did a TV adaptation as well. Since I’ve been remiss in updating the site, I decided to settle down for a post-Christmas viewing of the series since it was available on Peacock, though in three parts as opposed to the original two parts it was released in.
HOGFATHER takes place in Discworld, Pratchett’s fantasy world is set on a disc on the back of a turtle. The titular character is sort of like Santa Claus, and brings presents to children on Hogswatch Eve. At least he is supposed to until he goes missing. Fortunately, there is another supernatural character to take up the mantle—Death (voiced by Ian Richardson). He slaps on a robe and a fake beard and sets out delivering presents while his grand-daughter Susan (Michelle Dockery), takes time away from being a nanny to try and sort out what is going on.
And what is going on is that some other supernatural beings have hired an assassin named Mr. Teatime (Marc Warren) to kill the Hogfather so that the belief in him will free up so people can believe in something else. And to do this they are first tracking down the Tooth Fairy.
That’s pretty much the plot without spoiling anything, and it’s enough. There are also some wizards involved to add to the hijinks.
It’s a fun and interesting tale, one that makes me want to track down the book to see what is missing, though apparently it’s a rather faithful adaptation. The sets and special effects are what you might expect from mid-2000s made for TV fantasy, and everything is shot well and in an interesting manner. The cast is where the show truly shines. Michelle Dockery is absolutely ethereal as Susan, fearless as she hunts down those responsible for the Hogfather’s disappearance. I love the white hair with the black streak, giving her a very striking appearance.
Marc Warren is suitable creepy as the assassin Mr. Teatime, playing it with an earnestness that ends up being quite sinister. A big departure from the “Love and Monsters” episode of Doctor Who I had seen him in previously.
For me, Ian Richardson steals the show as Death. His voice is pitch perfect in how I imagined it from the books and has that sly, sardonic boom that I love so much.
It’s not something that I would watch every year, as it does take up a fine chunk of time, but I’m glad I watched it. It’s a warm, lovely and heartfelt movie that offers up some great philosophical questions and also features Death as Santa Claus.
Check it out.
