Christmas TV 2024 schedule is best in years – 7 shows to look out for

Forget opening presenters from Santa Claus, tucking into a roast with each the trimmings and getting giddy disconnected mulled vino arsenic each we attraction astir is the Christmas TV schedule.

Nothing is amended than sinking into the sofa for a afloat eight-hour displacement portion drip-feeding yourself segments of a Terry’s Chocolate Orange and mainlining Baileys connected Christmas Day.

It’s the required antidote aft a festive play packed afloat of parties, cosy trips to the pub and agelong walks successful frost-bitten parks and besides serves arsenic the cleanable excuse to dodge immoderate simmering household tension.

In fact, Christmas TV is astir wholly stress-free. The 1 azygous enactment of exertion is deciding what to ticker erstwhile the schedules are overfilled with TV gold, frankincense and myrrh.

It’s hard to prime – erstwhile there’s the likes of the instrumentality of The Split, Death successful Paradise and Strike – The Ink Black Heart – but we’ve done the hard enactment for you and narrowed it down.

Here are our 7 apical picks connected this year’s Christmas TV docket – which is easy the champion offering successful years.

Gavin and Stacey

This is nary overstatement: the Gavin and Stacey Christmas special volition beryllium the TV lawsuit of the year.

The sitcom’s instrumentality came similar a bolt retired of the bluish arsenic it has been 5 agelong years since it graced our screens and viewers assumed that was that.

But the pack – Nessa (Ruth Jones), Smithy (James Corden), (Mathew Horne) and Stacey (Joanna Page) – are mercifully backmost for a last time.

That means yet the show’s immense cliffhanger volition beryllium answered: did Smithy accidental ‘yes’ to Nessy aft her daze proposal?

Where to watch: The Gavin and Stacey Christmas peculiar is coming to BBC One and iPlayer.

Outnumbered

If you privation to consciousness little atrocious astir the chaos imploding astir your ain location astatine Christmas, look nary further than Outnumbered.

No uncertainty flustered parents, Hugh Dennis as Pete Brockman and Claire Skinner arsenic Sue Brockman, volition conflict to juggle their yuletide festivities.

And we’re definite their children, Tyger Drew-Honey arsenic Jake Brockman, Daniel Roche arsenic Ben Brockman and Ramona Marquez arsenic Karen Brockman volition bring the mischief, contempt present being young adults. Older, not wiser.

Outnumbered is besides the perfect 00s nostalgia deed for Christmas – the drama primitively aired for 5 seasons betwixt 2007 until 2014.

Where to watch: The Outnumbered Christmas Special is coming to BBC One and iPlayer.

Doctor Who

For those wishing they were decking the halls of the Tardis this Christmas, there’s an epic festive extravaganza of Doctor Who successful store.

It stars the Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor who is joined connected his time-travelling adventures by Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan arsenic Joy.

This being Doctor Who, the crippled is being kept strictly nether wraps but showrunner Russell T Davies promised it was ‘mad’.

‘It’s epic, it goes to truthful galore antithetic places. And it’s a large communicative of who the Doctor is erstwhile he’s alone.’ helium added successful a behind-the-scenes video on YouTube for Empire of Death.

Where to watch: Doctor Who volition aerial connected BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Wallace and Gromit

Wallace and Gromit successful Vengeance Most Fowl is further grounds the BBC has pulled retired each the stops for this year’s Christmas TV schedule.

The 70-minute movie volition diagnostic the return of the duo’s top nemesis, Feathers McGraw, past seen successful the 1993 Bafta-winning The Wrong Trousers erstwhile the dastardly penguin became Wallace’s tenant, manipulating the Wensleydale obsessive’s mechanical trousers to bargain a bluish diamond.

The vertebrate was caught and has been down bars ever since but has present been released and is looking for humor successful this epic revenge communicative that volition beryllium bound to spice up your Christmas Day.

Where to watch: Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl volition premiere connected BBC iPlayer and BBC One.

Bullseye

Christmas is the play to bask each the classics truthful it’s thrilling to spot caller beingness breathed into 80s darts-themed quiz amusement Bullseye.

The crippled amusement has not been connected our screens for astir a 4th of a period but ITV has decided to particulate the cobwebs disconnected the format this year.

The new-look Bullseye volition beryllium presented by Freddie Flintoff, who is taking implicit from precocious comedian Jim Bowen.

‘I emotion the darts and Bullseye was 1 of my favourite shows arsenic a kid,’ the former Top Gear presenter said. ‘I can’t rather judge I’ll get to big this Christmas special.’

Where to watch: Bullseye is coming to ITV and ITVX.

Strictly

If you volition beryllium mourning the extremity of the main amusement connected December 14, you volition lone person to hold a fewer days until the Strictly Christmas extravaganza.

The Last Leg prima Josh Widdicombe and media property Vogue Williams are among the celebrities who execute festive-themed routines as they vie to beryllium named Champion.

They volition conflict it retired connected the ballroom level against RuPaul’s Drag Race UK finalist Tayce, Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, known arsenic Nitro successful Gladiators, EastEnders star Tamzin Outhwaite and erstwhile racing car operator Billy Monger.

Just marque definite you particulate disconnected your feather boa.

Where to watch: The Strictly Christmas peculiar is coming to BBC One and iPlayer.

EastEnders

If Christmas cheer isn’t your vibe, you tin ever trust connected EastEnders for a dramatic crook of events.

While the nonstop crippled details this twelvemonth are a intimately guarded secret, it looks acceptable to beryllium Dickensian.

And fans person theorised that Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) could beryllium astatine the centre pursuing the resurgence of her alcoholism.

There’s besides the anticipation that Danny Dyer could reprise his relation as Mick Carter – aft each his body inactive hasn’t been uncovered aft being washed retired to oversea successful 2022.

Where to watch: EastEnders is coming to BBC One and iPlayer.

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