Drama
Drama pick
Doctor Who: The Church on Ruby Road
The keys to the Tardis have been handed over and now it’s time for the new Doctor, Ncuti Gatwa, to take it for a spin. But first, he’ll need a companion. Enter Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson) whose world changes when she encounters the Doctor, and the mythical Goblin King. It’s the usual immersive sugar rush – but with Russell T Davies back at the helm, the show is more essential than ever.
Christmas Day, 5.55pm, BBC One
Blood Actually: A Murder, They Hope Mystery
Why is Johnny Vegas making a terrified dash through a snowy forest while dressed as Santa? It’s a festive edition of his and Sian Gibson’s comedy whodunnit, where a trip to a rural cottage backfires spectacularly. It’s a daft, slightly hammy, fun watch featuring more stars than a festive jumper – including Lee Mack, Rose Ayling-Ellis, Jane Horrocks, Martin Kemp and Robert Webb.
Saturday 16 December, 9pm, Gold
Vigil
Amy and Eliza’s investigations have led them into trouble – which is probably a sign that they’re getting close to some answers. But in the meantime, they have a problem as the dissidents at the heart of the investigation take them hostage. It’s lacking the first series’ intense claustrophobia but is still a pacy and involving watch.
Sunday 17 December, 9pm, BBC One
Vanishing Act
This true-crime drama starts with a shoe containing a decomposed foot washing up on an Australian beach – and the story only gets murkier from there. It’s told from the perspective of Melissa Caddick (Kate Atkinson), a financier who vanished after authorities started investigating her for allegedly swindling strangers and friends out of millions.
Monday 18 December, 9pm, ITV1
Sister Boniface Mysteries: Christmas Special
A crisp and frosty feature-length special with not one but three cases to solve. The titular Catholic crime-solver (Lorna Watson) is onboard a train stranded in the sparkling snow, with both a murderer and a jewel thief waiting to be unmasked among the passengers. Back at home, a naked man has been found dead in a shed. A light, often funny slice of retro escapism.
Tuesday 19 December, 8pm, Drama
Mayfair Witches
It’s a triple bill of this overripe adaptation of Anne Rice’s timeline-hopping supernatural story about a modern woman who discovers she has a witchy heritage. After her grandmother’s funeral, Rowan (Alexandra Daddario) learns she has inherited the fortune, house, feuds – and a lot more.
Wednesday 20 December, 10.30pm, BBC Two
All Creatures Great and Small Christmas Special
Slightly counterintuitively, this revival of a much-loved show manages to work on its own terms by changing almost nothing – the drama exists in a delightful bubble of innocence and is none the worse for it. Tonight, Darrowby is preparing for a community Christmas celebration and James is determined to get home to an emotional Helen. She’s in the latter stages of pregnancy, so no prizes for guessing where this may be going.
Thursday 21 December, 9pm, Channel 5
The Heist Before Christmas
Young Bamber Todd steals the show as a naughty boy with a good heart (and a big mouth) in this weepy comedy-drama about a struggling Northern Irish family at Christmas. Mikey and his little brother find two Santas in the woods: the “real” one (Timothy Spall) who’s lost; and a fake one who’s used the costume to steal lots of cash (James Nesbitt). Will Mikey try to take half of the money or will he discover another way of helping his mum? Great fun with plenty of heart, too.
Christmas Eve, 8pm, Sky Max
Beyond Paradise
This Death in Paradise spin-off – with put-upon DI Humphrey Goodman (Kris Marshall) swapping tropical island life for the Devon coast – was one of the BBC’s most successful drama launches of 2023. No wonder a festive special was fast-tracked. It sees Humph investigating a rash of burglaries while also dealing with a Scrooge-like proposal to shutter his local cop shop.
Christmas Eve, 9pm, BBC One
A Ghost Story for Christmas: Lot No 249
From super Sherlock showrunner Mark Gatiss, this classy adaptation of an Arthur Conan Doyle short story is a giggly, gothic half-hour set in Victorian England. Kit Harington, Freddie Fox and Colin Ryan (who all look as if they’re having a great time) play three very different but equally peculiar Oxford academics, who tackle an Egyptian mummy terrorising the campus. Farcical and frightening fun
Christmas Eve, 10pm, BBC Two
Call the Midwife
It’s Christmas 1968, Apollo 8 is orbiting the moon, Mrs Turner is contributing aid parcels to starving children in Biafra and, closer to home, a lonely man (Goodness Gracious Me legend Kulvinder Ghir) needs charity, too. All the while, Call the Midwife remains a masterclass in tonal balance: as earthy as a fresh-cut fir tree and as twinkly as the lights placed upon it.
Christmas Day, 8.15pm, BBC One
Vera
Just as she starts organising secret Santa, DCI Vera Stanhope (Brenda Blethyn) is called to investigate the apparent suicide of a shamed TV star during a school reunion weekend away on a tiny island. But when she spots some suspicious muddy footprints near his body, her attention turns to the victim’s four old friends staying with him. Hopefully, she’ll solve it in time for the office mince pies.
Boxing Day, 8pm, ITV1
Death in Paradise
Patsy Kensit guest stars in this feature-length episode of the sunny crime drama, playing the wife of an entrepreneur whose body is found at the bottom of a ravine. As DI Neville Parker (Ralf Little) and DS Naomi Thomas (Shantol Jackson) get on the case, an employee of the victim who is visiting Saint Marie for a Christmas business bash goes missing.
Boxing Day, 9pm, BBC One
* * *
Entertainment
Entertainment pick
The Hairy Bikers: Coming Home for Christmas
Last year, one half of the bikers – Dave Myers – was diagnosed with cancer. This bittersweet programme follows his story from undergoing chemotherapy to reuniting with Si King and ultimately getting back to what he loves and does best – serving scrumptious feasts, specifically a banquet for all those who have helped Dave on his journey. It’s not really about the food, but there’s plenty of recipe inspiration anyway.
Tuesday 19 December, 9pm, BBC Two
Survivor: The Finals
Just five players are left now as the endurance contest set on a Dominican beach approaches its endgame. Clearly tensions exist but, after all this time, so do friendships. A tricky challenge brings a vital immunity necklace for one player – but can the other alliances hold with the £100k prize now so close?
Saturday 16 December, 6pm, BBC One
Strictly Come Dancing: The Final
From Angela’s limber leg to Layton’s gobsmacking pole dance, it has been a vintage Strictly year. Layton joins Ellie and Bobby in the final – and the winner will be announced after they each perform three dances. To top it all off, the one and only Cher will be performing live as this year’s gang reunite to prance around her.
Saturday 16 December, 7pm, BBC One
The Royal Variety Performance 2023
Thirty years ago, Bradley Walsh performed at this revue for our monarchical overlords. And what better way to purge the terrible memory from history than by banning him from it forev … oh, he’s the presenter. He’ll be joined by guests including McFly, Rick Astley, Cher and the stars of numerous Disney musicals – all suggesting the calibre of performer is higher than it was in the 90s.
Sunday 17 December, 8pm, ITV
Rob & Romesh vs Lapland
Vanilla is an adult elf who lives in Lapland. She invites Romesh and Rob to Santa Claus Village for elf training and a baptism – renaming them Rom Rom and Ding Dong. Never quite knowing what’s going on, they help with reindeer, write replies to children’s letters and meet the big guy himself to see if they’ve made it on to his team.
Sunday 17 December, 9pm, Sky Max
Christmas University Challenge
A new series of the academic quiz’s annual festive contest in which distinguished alumni of various British seats of learning battle for supremacy. We begin with King’s College London taking on City University of London. The inevitable Amol Rajan asks the questions while among the contestants are journalists Ayshah Tull and Joe Crowley.
Monday 18 December, 8.30pm, BBC Two
BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2023
A break with tradition as this year’s Spoty takes place on a Tuesday evening. Otherwise, it’s business as usual as Gabby Logan, Gary Lineker, Alex Scott and Clare Balding present from MediaCityUK in Salford. Sweary goalkeeping Lioness Mary Earps is the bookies’ favourite but cricketer Stuart Broad and athlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson are also strong contenders.
Tuesday 19 December, 7pm, BBC One
World’s Strongest Man 2023
The annual festival of grunting and glowering is a peculiar but entertaining Christmas fixture; this year it comes from the Utilita Arena in Sheffield where contenders will face five tests of strength. The Deadlift Ladder, the Car Walk, the Viking Press, the Loading Race and the Power Stairs will test the lads to destruction before a winner is crowned. Commentary from Colin Bryce and Danny Wallace.
Wednesday 20 December, 7pm, Channel 5
Celebrity MasterChef: Christmas Cook-Off 2023
The Golden Whisk trophy is at stake as four Celebrity MasterChef veterans return to compete for the title of Christmas Champion. Mel Blatt, Richard Blackwood, Duncan James and Faye Winter will be making culinary magic with the contents of their Secret Santa Mystery Boxes while John Torode and Gregg Wallace judge.
Wednesday 20 December, 9pm, BBC One
Nigella’s Amsterdam Christmas
Nigella Lawson has longstanding family ties to Amsterdam and this special sees her dipping into the unique festive ambience of the city and creating some meals in its spirit. She visits a liquorice shop, a cheese emporium and a chip shop with queues round the block, then plans a menu. Traditional Dutch cookies represent continuity with the past while a chicken biryani reflects Amsterdam’s multicultural present.
Thursday 21 December, 8pm, BBC One
The Great British Sewing Bee: Celebrity Christmas Special
New host! Kiell Smith-Bynoe, of Ghosts, Stath Lets Flats and Taskmaster fame, takes over as presenter of the comradely embroidery contest, easing himself in with the celebrity version – in which he himself competed in 2021. Needling furiously here are punk legend Toyah Willcox, Black Ops star Hammed Animashaun and comic actors Kerry Godliman and Jessica Knappett.
Thursday 21 December, 9pm, BBC One
The Last Leg of Christmas
Green party: to liven up last year’s special edition of their smart but often silly news lampoon, Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker transformed themselves into Shrek, Kermit from A Muppet Christmas Carol and the Grinch. Will they be able to top that tonight? Helping the trio create merry mayhem will be recent Wonka standout Tom Davis and the reliably game-for-anything Alison Hammond.
Friday 22 December, 9pm, Channel 4
Christmas With Katherine Jenkins
There are no shortage of gown changes, crowd-pleasing songs and special guests in Katherine Jenkins’s festive gig, filmed in Swansea Arena. Joining her are Wynne Evans, classical pianist Chloe Flower and Jack Savoretti, who duets with the mezzo on a delicate version of What the World Needs Now Is Love.
Saturday 23 December, 7.10pm, BBC Two
The Voice UK
With all the blind auditions and callbacks out of the way, it’s time for some decisions. Judges Anne-Marie, Olly Murs, Tom Jones and will.i.am have already whittled 40 acts down to a final 12, but only four can make it through to next week’s final. Who will the judges choose?
Saturday 23 December, 8.10pm, ITV1
The Unofficial Science of Die Hard
Could you really jump off a roof with a firehose tied round your waist? This daft, fun documentary provides answers to this and many other conundrums thrown up by festive thriller Die Hard as Chris Ramsey, Paul Chowdhry and engineer Zoe Laughlin restage John McClane’s greatest moments. Meanwhile, Alex Brooker visits the actual Nakatomi Plaza and meets the actors who portrayed doomed yuppie Ellis and driver Argyle.
Saturday 23 December, 8.10pm, Sky Max
Blankety Blank Christmas Special
The yuletide episode of this gameshow features a selection of the loudest people in light entertainment history as Brian Blessed, AJ Odudu, Gemma Collins, Rob Beckett, Ainsley Harriott and Katherine Ryan jostle for airtime. Trying to keep them in line and win prizes for the outgunned civilian contestants is Bradley Walsh.
Saturday 23 December, 9pm, BBC One
The Hills Are Alive With the Kanneh-Masons
Sound of Music fans will be delighted by this documentary following one of Britain’s most gifted classical music families. They head to Salzburg to pay homage to the Von Trapps, whose film they watch – and sing their own arrangements of – every year. Yodel-ay-hee-hoo!
Christmas Eve, 5.40pm, BBC Two
Mog’s Christmas
“Bother that cat!” Poor Mog can’t catch a break as the Thomas family prepare themselves for Christmas in this delightfully animated adaptation of Judith Kerr’s book. But when she finds herself stuck on the roof, Mog starts to see things differently. Perfect for younger kids, it boasts an all-star cast including Adjoa Andoh, Claire Foy and Miriam Margolyes, as well as a new Sophie Ellis-Bextor tune.
Christmas Eve, 7.45pm, Channel 4
Tabby McTat
Julia Donaldson’s moving tale of the busker’s loud cat who becomes separated from his owner is brought to life beautifully in this animated treat. Jodie Whittaker narrates, Rob Brydon and Sopé Dìrísú play Fred and Tabby, and Susan Wokoma is feline love interest Sock. Children will love the story, while parents will wipe away a cremant-fuelled tear at the undercurrent of loss and love.
Christmas Day, 2.35pm, BBC One
The Piano at Christmas
One of the sweetest series of 2023 receives its first Christmas special. Highlights include surprise celebrities, a Secret Santa and, most movingly, the 13-year-old visually impaired and neurodivergent prodigy Lucy, joined at the piano by the Grammy-winning Gregory Porter.
Christmas Day, 8.45pm, Channel 4
Only Connect Specials: Boxing
Lateral thinking is prized on Victoria Coren Mitchell’s quiz. No doubt that’s how they came up with the pugilistic theme for tonight’s Boxing Day special. Two sporting teams from previous series return but the real question is this: will Victoria persist in wearing those unwieldy boxing gloves?
Boxing Day, 8pm, BBC Two
* * *
Comedy
Comedy pick
Ghosts Christmas Special
The final ever episode of this beloved sitcom begins with a scenario familiar to most new parents. Mike’s mum is staying for a few days to help Alison acclimatise to motherhood. A couple of months later, the couple are wondering if she’ll ever leave. Worse still, she’s sensed something unusual about Button House. A perfectly calibrated blend of humour and heart – you’ll want to have the tissues handy.
Christmas Day, 7.45pm, BBC One
Leo Reich: Literally Who Cares?
Posh, young, gay and hilariously self-involved, caustic standup Leo Reich was one of the breakout stars of the Edinburgh fringe in 2022. Considering his show’s playfully narcissistic themes, it feels appropriate that it has been immortalised as an HBO special; that brand still carries a whiff of luxury. But now a wider audience can experience Reich’s lacerating gen Z observations, banging musical interludes and eye-catching gym shorts.
Monday 18 December, 9.40pm, Sky Comedy
Never Mind the Buzzcocks Christmas Special
“I’ve Drunk a Pint of Baileys and Now I Hate Myself” is the title of host Greg Davies’s no doubt catchy but as yet unreleased Christmas chart-topper. Perhaps he can get some pointers from pop star guests Kaiser Chiefs’ Ricky Wilson and Leigh-Anne from Little Mix? There’s also some Harry Hill dad-dancing and a ribald anecdote involving drunk Noddy Holder and a donkey.
Tuesday 19 December, 9pm, Sky Max
The Lateish Show With Mo Gilligan: Christmas
Photograph: Dean Chapple/Channel 4
TV’s favourite late-night host warms up for the big day with a Christmas party. Leona Lewis, who has been touring her festive album (a casual decade after releasing it), joins in the fun, along with First Dates romantic Fred Sirieix, presenter Joel Dommett and People Just Do Nothing’s Allan Mustafa. There’ll be a Christmas carol edition of Nursery Grimes and Babatunde Aléshé will MC a karaoke battle.
Wednesday 20 December, 10pm, Channel 4
Late Night Lycett: It’s Christmas!
Like forgetting to switch off the Christmas lights and moving the elf on the shelf, Joe Lycett is now a festive late-night staple. Of course, Linda Biscuits, Hardev from the shop and Lycett’s quiche-brandishing aunties are on the guest list, but there’s also Self Esteem, Aisling Bea, Guz Khan, Shaun Ryder and Mel B. Plus, a celebrity secret Santa makes the pilgrimage to Birmingham to join the party.
Thursday 21 December, 10pm, Channel 4
A Very Brassic Christmas
It seems almost inevitable that a Brassic Christmas special will involve some sort of heist. And so it proves, as a raid on a winter wonderland becomes a route to saving Christmas. Elsewhere, look out for a typically roguish take on the nativity story. Featuring big-name guest turns from Greg Davies and Imelda Staunton.
Thursday 21 December, 10pm, Sky Max
Would I Lie to You? at Christmas
Wilty remains pretty much the best panel show on TV and this festive special provides more effortless entertainment. Guests include Alex Brooker, Melvyn Hayes, Naga Munchetty and, most notably, Victoria Coren Mitchell whose presence offers the prospect of a tantalising glimpse into her husband David Mitchell’s private life.
Friday 22 December, 8pm, BBC One
Here We Go
Jim Howick, Katherine Parkinson, Alison Steadman and Tom Basden return in this slightly-better-than-average Middle England family sitcom about the Jessops, whose son films their everyday life. Mum Rachel (a fantastically frazzled Parkinson) is “sweating blood” as she tries to plan the perfect day, but after receiving a baking tray as a present, a visit to the hospital and an electrical blackout, that’s not going to happen.
Friday 22 December, 8.30pm, BBC One
Have I Got 2023 for You
At the end of yet another year when being funny about world events was more difficult than ever before, a compilation show rounds up the best bits from the indefatigable king of satirical TV panel games. Among the hosts sitting with Ian Hislop on their right and Paul Merton on their left are Guz Khan, Victoria Coren Mitchell, Harry Hill and, mildly controversially, the Boris Johnson-bothering Clive Myrie.
Friday 22 December, 9pm, BBC One
Two Doors Down
Michelle (Joy McAvoy) is one of the least cartoonish characters in the droll, underrated comfort comedy, so what could possibly go wrong when she invites everyone round for a payday Chinese takeaway? Cue many Billy Connolly reminiscences, Christine discovering Deliveroo and some textbook barbed comments from Cathy (Doon Mackichan), who’s now back in her place as the drama queen of the crescent. Tomorrow, Alan and Michelle return from Vegas with big news.
Friday 22 December, 9.30pm, BBC One
Not Going Out Christmas Special
There’s more than one celebration in this special, as the sitcom hits its 100th episode. It’s typically chaotic, with Lee and Lucy inviting pensioner Wilfred for Christmas dinner. He insists on watching Naked Attraction and threatens to phone the police if he’s served a vegan dinner.
Christmas Eve, 10pm, BBC One
Ronnie Corbett: My 30 Funniest Moments
A two-hour special tallies up the late comic actor’s best bits, starting with his early film roles and cabaret career before moving on to Corbett’s work with David Frost and the future Pythons in the late 1960s. His fame peaks with The Two Ronnies and Sorry! in the 70s and 80s; then he’s a respected elder statesman with Extras among his guest roles.
Boxing Day, 8pm, Channel 5
* * *
Factual
Factual pick
Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution
Disco is often regarded as music of pure hedonism. But this excellent series rightly posits it as deeply political, too, soundtracking growing emancipation for LGBTQ+ and Black people during the 1970s and issuing an implicit challenge to American orthodoxies in the process. In this opening episode, Nicky Siano reminisces about his early days on the scene, we learn how the US “beef crisis” facilitated disco and the illustrious Earl Young walks us through the fundamentals of disco drumming.
Saturday 16 December, 10pm, BBC Two
Building the Billion Pound Cruise Ship
In which a crack team of French engineers race to meet the deadline to construct one of the world’s biggest, most advanced cruise ships; that’s wrangling 42,000 tonnes of steel and assembling more than 2,500 cabins. Not to mention 13 dining areas, numerous shops, bars, and seven swimming pools … So, slightly less complex than the average Ikea build.
Saturday 16 December, 8pm, Channel 4
Bad Host: Hunting the Couch Surfing Predator
This week’s instalment in the three-part documentary about a couch-surfing host who assaulted and raped his guests sees a Portuguese woman begin the fightback. It’s a moving, troubling tale of secret Facebook groups, online sleuthing and the start of a process to bring a predator to justice.
Saturday 16 December, 9pm, Sky Documentaries
Whale With Steve Backshall
More wondrous natural history from Steve Backshall as he continues to commune with the giants of the oceans. Tonight, he’s in Tahiti, having a close encounter with flesh-eating gulls and capturing rare footage of a newborn calf taking its first drink of mother’s milk. There’s also a slightly polemical edge to this episode as Backshall explores the threats of ever-increasing shipping traffic and, of course, the climate crisis on the living spaces of these incredible animals.
Sunday 17 December, 8pm, Sky Nature
24 Hours in Police Custody
A harrowing and complex feature-length episode of this true-crime documentary series deals with the alleged rape of a man after a Grindr date. It’s an incredibly tricky situation to unpick – one man says the sex was consensual while the other feels he was assaulted. What unfolds is an uncomfortably intimate exploration of boundaries and intentions that has wider implications in terms of the policing of the personal and whether someone’s sexual history should ever be used as evidence against them. Troubling and intriguing.
Sunday 17 December, 9pm, Channel 4
Killing Sherlock: Lucy Worsley on the Case of Conan Doyle
More from Lucy Worsley’s fascinating investigation into the odd relationship between Arthur Conan Doyle and his most famous creation. Tonight, with Sherlock now successful, Worsley explores the aftermath of Conan Doyle’s decision to kill him off (a development that was announced in the newspapers of the day as if it were an actual death). But could the writer, who had grown tired of Holmes, instead make himself the hero of his own story?
Sunday 17 December, 9pm, BBC Two
Where Is Baby Gabriel?
A new three-part documentary (with all the episodes shown consecutively tonight) traces the disappearance of seven-month-old Gabriel Johnson, who went missing from San Antonio in 2009. While his mother Elizabeth initially claimed to have murdered him, her later retraction (with a suggestion he was sold on the black market) only led to further mysteries. Will the truth ever emerge?
Sunday 17 December, 10.30pm, Channel 4
Jamie’s Christmas Shortcuts
Jamie Oliver has been a mainstay of Christmas food television for decades now, and he still hasn’t run out of ingenious ideas for transforming a panettone into a brand new dessert. Other suggestions for cooking in the “betwixtmas” period include a brussels sprout Caesar salad, a savoury twist on tarte tatin and a hearty winter vegetable gnocchi that should easily see you through to the new year.
Monday 18 December, 8pm, Channel 4
Aldi’s Christmas Secrets
Pigs-in-blankets ice-cream, anyone? In keeping with the bizarre trend of “inside supermarkets at Christmas” documentaries, this time we get to see the secrets behind Aldi’s magical middle aisle and beyond. But there’s also trouble afoot with a giant chocolate bauble and a badly dressed smoked salmon. High-stakes drama.
Monday 18 December, 9pm, Channel 4
Imagine: Russell T Davies – The Doctor and Me
Russell T Davies is, of course, several small-screen masterpieces deep into his career now and regarded as one of our finest TV writers. But the Tardis is a vessel he still finds irresistible. Alan Yentob fronts this incredibly affecting documentary that tracks his journey back to Doctor Who, the show that, since his childhood, has been his lodestar. Along the way, his creative life is explored in all its twists and turns. The common denominator seems to be an unusual degree of patience (“Most things I write, I’ve been thinking about for 30 years”) and the amazing, often heartbreaking warmth he’s capable of bringing to the darkest of subjects.
Monday 18 December, 10.40pm, BBC One
Dickens in Italy With David Harewood
Is it even Christmas without a helping of Dickens? Taking a slightly non-traditional approach this time, David Harewood retraces the great novelist’s footsteps in Italy – through Venice, Naples, Genoa and Rome. He discovers the country’s influence, in terms of writing style, political belief and his personal life.
Tuesday 19 December, 8pm, Sky Arts
Inside McVitie’s at Christmas
Have you tried a white chocolate digestive biscuit yet? This very important investigation into McVitie’s run-up to Christmas – and how they stay ahead of their rivals – shows us the creative process behind this new biccy. There’s also a twist on the Penguin bar, but is messing with such classics a step too far?
Tuesday 19 December, 9pm, Channel 4
Kirstie and Phil’s Love it or List it
The series in which Kirstie Allsopp upgrades an existing home while Phil Spencer scouts out potential replacements returns. Tim and Sonia moved back to Chippenham to care for his ailing mother. Now that she has died, they and daughter Ella are looking for a fresh start. It is an emotional episode but Kirstie still gives them a row when she hears their giant kitchen island plan.
Wednesday 20 December, 8pm, Channel 4
The 1970s Supermarket at Christmas
It’s the question that has taxed the finest minds in biochemistry for decades: how exactly is the white gooey centre in an After Eight mint created? These and more revelations coming at you like an avalanche of shiny festive baubles, including why sprouts make you fart and the mysterious fate of 1979’s sadly doomed but incredibly tantalising Terry’s Chocolate Lemon …
Wednesday 20 December, 9pm, Channel 5
The Real Vanishing Act: Missing Millionaires
There’s no need to have watched ITV’s Australian true-crime drama Vanishing Act – which has been streamed across this week. This accompanying documentary, also exploring the real-life story of fraudster Melissa Caddick, is fascinating regardless. In November 2020, amid an investigation of her estimated $30m fraud, the then 49-year-old Caddick walked out of her seafront Sydney mansion and disappeared. Had she engineered her own escape from justice? Or was something more sinister afoot?
Thursday 21 December, 9pm, ITV1
Caroline Aherne: Queen of Comedy
An emotional rollercoaster of a documentary: a reminder of both Caroline Aherne’s uncanny comic brilliance and the tragedy of her often difficult life and untimely death. Her career is recalled with the help of contemporaries including Steve Coogan, Henry Normal and Craig Cash – all of whom clearly feel blessed to have crossed her path. Aherne’s personal struggles are touched upon but there are also ample clips from her early standup sets, her bravura performances as Mrs Merton (look out for a memorably tetchy encounter with Bernard Manning) and, of course, the timeless sitcom she created with Cash, The Royle Family. Eventually, this feels more like a celebration of a remarkable life, albeit a bittersweet and by the end very moving one.
Christmas Day, 10.25pm, BBC Two
Charles III: The Coronation Year
Some BBC bunting to go with the festive tinsel, this documentary narrated by Helena Bonham Carter takes a forelock-tugging look at King Charles’s first full year on the throne. The centrepiece of the film is the coronation: how did the royal family persuade the surviving members of the Monty Python team to reunite and choreograph that surreal and comical ceremony? Also, expect to hear some words from at least one, but probably not both, of Charles’s sons.
Boxing Day, 6.50pm, BBC One
Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story
“I was trained when I was very young as a show-off and I’ve continued triumphantly until this moment.” Alan Cumming and Rupert Everett narrate an immersive Arena film about the remarkable life of “the master”. Through his own words and archive footage, it tells the story of him being a gay man in a straight world, becoming the highest-paid writer in the world by 30, and every mighty achievement in stage, TV and film beyond.
Boxing Day, 9pm, BBC Two
