Astrid Peth "a full return to the limelight", Minogue's appearance was not universally praised. Gareth McLean, a TV writer for "The Guardian", described Minogue as "not that good...she's blank and insipid". McLean wrote: "There's no chemistry between Astrid and the Doctor, she delivers her lines with a real lack of conviction and thus we never really believe in Astrid as a character. Where Catherine Tate's Donna in last year's special was overbearing, Kylie Minogue's Astrid is hardly there at all. It does make you wonder why casting Kylie was regarded as a coup. She's a pop star – of course she's going
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (TV special) The special was released on high definition Blu-ray Disc in 2009 with the title changed to "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" It contained all the bonus features from the 2000 DVD, except for "Horton Hears a Who!", and also included a DVD of the special and a Digital Copy. Three songs with lyrics were included in the special: "Welcome Christmas," "Trim up the Tree" and "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch." The last of these was performed by Thurl Ravenscroft; the other two were performed by a chorus representing the voices of the Whos. None of the vocalists