The Wedding of River Song

224 – "The Wedding of River Song"
Doctor Who episode
The Doctor reveals his escape to River Song by use of the Teselecta.
Cast
Doctor Matt Smith (Eleventh Doctor)
Companions Karen Gillan (Amy Pond) Arthur Darvill (Rory Williams) Alex Kingston (River Song)
Others Frances Barber – Madame Kovarian Simon Fisher-Becker – Dorium Maldovar Ian McNeice – Emperor Winston Churchill Richard Hope – Dr Malokeh Marnix Van Den Broeke – The Silent Nicholas Briggs – Voice of the Dalek Simon Callow – Charles Dickens Sian Williams – Herself Bill Turnbull – Himself Meredith Vieira – Herself Niall Greig Fulton – Gideon Vandaleur Sean Buckley – Barman Rondo Haxton – Gantok Emma Campbell-Jones – Dr. Kent Katharine Burford – Nurse Richard Dillane – Carter Mark Sheppard – Canton Delaware
Production
Directed by	Jeremy Webb
Written by	Steven Moffat
Produced by	Marcus Wilson
Executive producer(s)	Steven Moffat Piers Wenger Beth Willis
Incidental music composer	Murray Gold
Series	Series 6
Length	45 mins
Originally broadcast	1 October 2011
Chronology
← Preceded by Followed by → "Closing Time" "The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe"

"The Wedding of River Song" is the thirteenth and final episode in the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One on 1 October 2011. It was written by lead writer and executive producer Steven Moffat and directed by Jeremy Webb.

In the episode, alien time traveller the Doctor (Matt Smith) attempts to escape his apparent death at the hands of the Silence. River Song (Alex Kingston), whom the Silence had programmed to kill the Doctor, refuses, and they end up in an alternative timeline where all of time is running simultaneously and beginning to disintegrate. The Doctor tries to restore the universe with the help of River and the alternative universe versions of his companions Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill). It is revealed that he had already planned escape by posing as himself using the shape-shifting Teselecta.

"The Wedding of River Song" concludes the story arc of the series and reveals what really happened at the start of the season premiere, "The Impossible Astronaut". The episode features many returning characters. It also pays tribute to the classic series character Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart following the death of the character's actor Nicholas Courtney. One of the last episodes to be filmed for the series, production for "The Wedding of River Song" finished in April 2011. The episode was watched by a total of 7.67 million viewers in the UK, and received positive to mixed reviews from critics. While visual elements were praised, the characters and resolution of the episode received a mixed reception.