White Christmas

Lore & Background

The world of White Christmas introduces 'Z-Eyes,' implants that transmit vision and hearing, allowing users like Matt to remotely guide others through social interactions. This technology enables voyeuristic observation where groups contribute advice in real time. The episode also defines the terrifying mechanics of 'cookies': digital clones of people stored in egg-shaped objects. These copies possess full consciousness but can be subjected to extreme time dilation; for instance, six months can pass in a cookie's simulated world within seconds of real-time. Furthermore, the concept of social media blocking is extrapolated into reality: when Joe was blocked by his fiancée Beth, he saw her as a grey silhouette and could not contact her, an effect that extended to their unborn child even after Beth died.

In Their Own Story

Joe Potter (Rafe Spall) and Matt Trent (Jon Hamm) live together in a cabin for five years but barely speak. Matt recounts his past as a 'Z-Eyes' advisor who helped client Harry meet Jennifer at an office party; the session ended when Jennifer, mistaking the group's chatter for hallucinations, poisoned them both in a murder-suicide. Matt also details his job training Greta (Oona Chaplin) as a cookie assistant, forcing six months of simulated time upon her to break her resistance. Joe then reveals he was blocked by fiancée Beth after an argument over abortion; he later confronted her pregnant silhouette and was arrested. Years later, Joe visited Beth's father's house on Christmas Eve to see Beth's daughter, only to discover the child was from an affair. When confronted by Beth's father, Joe bludgeoned him with a snow globe and fled. The girl wandered into the snowy wilderness and froze to death. As Joe speaks, the cabin transforms into Beth's father's house, revealing that both men are actually cookies experiencing five years in seconds, with Joe's testimony used to convict the real Joe.

Reader's Guide

To understand White Christmas, note the production context: it was filmed in London on a restrictive budget and timescale during October 2014 while stars Jon Hamm and Rafe Spall suffered heavy colds. The episode reuses 'Z-Eyes' technology with the same design as the 'grain' from Series One's 'The Entire History of You,' marking an unprecedented crossover for the show. Narrative inspiration came from Dead of Night, Twilight Zone: The Movie, Stephen King's 'The Jaunt,' and Brooker's own 2001 series Unnovations regarding glasses that showed homeless people as cartoons. Casting details include Oona Chaplin joining just two days before filming while in Los Angeles, and Jon Hamm originally playing a cheerful Cockney character before shifting to an affable persona to contrast his actions. The soundtrack was composed by Jon Opstad, using monochrome tones for the first story and digital synths for the cookie segments, culminating in Wizzard's 'I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day' repeating during Joe's eternal sentence of 1,000 years per minute.

Did You Know?

• Jon Hamm was the first American actor to participate in a Black Mirror episode.
• The 'Z-Eyes' technology uses the exact same design as the 'grain' device from Series One's 'The Entire History of You'.
• Oona Chaplin, who played Greta, was cast roughly two days before filming began while she was working in Los Angeles.
• The episode aired on Channel 4 on 16 December 2014; it was the last Black Mirror episode produced before the series moved to Netflix.
• Rafe Spall was nominated for an International Emmy Award for Best Actor for his role as Joe.