Am-dram Alien documentary comes to TV as ‘unintentional pantomime’

Documentary about amateur theatre group’s take on classic horror film made available to wider audience

For anyone who is weary of the usual feelgood festive films – Love Actually, Elf, Miracle on 34th Street and so on – a more offbeat offering involving a bunch of bus drivers and a joyfully amateur retelling of the space horror Alien may just appeal.

The documentary Alien on Stage tells the unlikely story of how the bus drivers, plus friends and relatives, decided that rather than put on their usual pantomime they would have a bash at Ridley Scott’s classic – and how, despite shaky sets, dodgy special effects and uneven acting (to put it kindly), they ended up in London’s theatreland.