1. The
Real Face of Santa BBC2 Saturday 18 December 8.30pm.
What was St.
Nicholas really like? This fascinating documentary profiles
the Christian bishop and reconstructs how he may have looked
using forensic science and CGI.
2. Big
Brother Panto E4 Monday 20 December - Christmas Eve 9pm.
Tuesday 28 – Thursday 30 December 9pm.
Oh yes they
are! Former BB housemates including Alex Sibley and Jade
Goody move into together to rehearse and perform their own
updated version of Cinderella. Also shown on Channel 4 the
following morning.
3.
Christmas Lights ITV1 Monday 20 December 9pm.
This
comedy drama sees Mark Benton and Robson Green as
ultra-competitive brothers-in-law who go all out to have the
best Christmas decorations. Maxine Peake and Nicola Stephenson
star as their long-suffering wives.
4. The
Smoking Room BBC3 Monday 20 December 10.30pm.
The
chain-smoking colleagues are bullied into performing a Christmas
variety show for local pensioners by boss Sharon (Siobhan
Redmond), but will a sly ciggie calm their nerves?
5. Teachers
Channel 4 Tuesday 21 December 10pm.
Dig out the
confetti for the final episode of the series, which sees hapless
Bob (Lloyd McGuire) and his Thai bride marry in a yuletide
ceremony in the school playground
and Clare (Gillian Bevan) deal with
an Ofsted inspection.
6.
The
BBC3 Christmas Musical: AD/BC BBC3
Tuesday 21.
December
10.30pm.
Nighty Night’s
Julia Davis and Little
Britain’s Matt Lucas are among the BBC3 comic talents
joining together to perform this unique rock opera take on the
nativity.
7.
Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special BBC1 Wednesday.
22
December 8pm & 10pm.
Strictly
Ice Dancing BBC1 Boxing Day 6.30pm.
Brucie
and Tess are back to see the top couples from the last two
series
team up for a special dance-off, while famous faces including
David Seaman and Carol Smillie put their skates on and take to
the ice.
8.
The British Comedy Awards ITV1 Wednesday 22 December 9pm.
Will
it be the stars of The
Office or the Little Britain boys who end up clearing yet another space on their
mantelpiece as they do
battle
in this year’s ceremony hosted by Jonathan Ross?
9. Shameless
Channel 4 Thursday 23 December 9pm.
Prior to a
second series in the New Year, the outrageous Gallaghers
celebrate the season of goodwill by causing a full-scale riot
when they steal a lorry-load of contaminated meat to sell on the
estate.
10.
The World of Nat King Cole BBC4 Christmas Eve 9pm.
Stevie Wonder and Whoopi Goldberg are
among the stars offering
their views on the life and career of
the velvet-voiced crooner.
11.
The Simpsons’ Christmas
Message Channel 4 Christmas Day.
3pm.
Queen
of Springfield Marge Simpson gives Her Majesty a run for her money as her
dysfunctional clan gather round to present this year’s
Alternative Christmas Speech.
12. A Christmas Carol: The Musical Hallmark Christmas Day 7pm.
Kelsey
Grammer swaps grumpy Frasier for equally miserable Scrooge in
this musical version of Dickens’ classic tale. Jennifer Love
Hewitt and Seinfeld’s
Jason Alexander co-star.
13.
The Vicar of Dibley BBC1 Christmas Day 9.25pm.
After
an absence of five years, Dawn French returns as the
chocolate-loving
cleric in a seasonal special which sees her coming to terms with
the chilling thought that she has spent a decade in the
country’s most eccentric village.
14.
Absolutely Fabulous BBC1 Christmas Day 10.30pm.
Meanwhile
French’s comedy partner Jennifer Saunders also makes a festive
comeback as bolly-swigging Edina Monsoon who undergoes
regression therapy after deciding her kitchen needs a makeover.
15. Sherlock Holmes and
the Case of the Silk Stocking BBC1.
Boxing
Day 9.25pm.
Rupert
Everett finds it’s elementary as he stars as the famous Baker
Street sleuth in a classic murder mystery concerning the body of
a young woman found floating in the Thames.
16.
Surreal Life VH1 from Monday 27 December 9pm NEW SERIES.
Bridget
Nielsen and former New Kid on the Block Jordan Knight are among the ‘stars’ sharing a Hollywood mansion in this Big
Brother-style
reality show.
17.
Auf Wiedersehen Pet BBC1 Tuesday 28 & Wednesday 29.
December 9pm.
In
a two-part special, the building buddies bow out for good with a
madcap final fling taking in an job in Laos, a journey on the
Orient Express and a trip to Thailand.
18.
The Truth About Britain’s Favourite Toys Five Wednesday.
29
December 8pm.
This
entertaining documentary looks back at the playthings which
weren’t a big hit with the kids due to bad luck, poor
marketing and even political incorrectness.
19.
The Beatles’ Biggest Secrets Five Wednesday 29 December
9pm.
Friends,
colleagues and relatives of the Fab Four share memories of their
heyday and provide revelations about their lives and loves.
20.
Roman Road ITV1 New Years’ Eve 9pm.
Alan
Davies and John Gordon Sinclair star in this one-off comedy
drama about a thief who teams up with a long-lost pal to walk an
ancient Roman Road when he realises he’s being followed. Anna
Chancellor
co-stars.
VARIATIONS
Teachers
S4C Tuesday
21 December 11.05pm.
Shameless
S4C Thursday 23 December 10.30pm.
