From Taskmaster specials to the Stranger Things final episode: The big festive TV Guide for Christmas 2025

an image of four pictures spliced together showing (L-R) Joana Lumley, Tom Hiddleston, Claudia Winkleman and Timothee Chalamet

(Image credit: BBC/ Matthew Kavanagh)

There is a lot to look forward to at Christmas – mountains of mince pies, gallons of mulled wine, piles of presents, stuffed stockings, festive PJs... and that's all before Christmas lunch. But, the main star of the season has to be the Christmas TV.

We're not just talking family favourites like the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special — we're talking festive finales to the likes of Stranger Things and top-drawer drama in The Night Manager. There is enough top tier TV to get you through your post-roast food coma and straight onto Letterboxd.

Between ITV, BBC, Netflix, Channel 4, and more, these are the best shows on TV across the season, day by day:

21st December

Does it feel a little too early to see the Christmas specials trickling in? A little, but that won't stop us – nor the BBC programmers. Monday sees the return of Death in Paradise's spin off show, Beyond Paradise, starring the Kris Marshall as hapless, lovable DI Humphrey Goodman solving crimes (a rather surprising amount of crimes given the size of the town) in the picturesque (fictional) town of Shipton Abbott.

a still image from the show, showing the main characters standing in the police station

Beyond Paradise, BBC One, 9pm
The Royal Variety Performance 2025, ITV1, 7.05pm

Streamer pick: A Muppet's Christmas Carol on Disney+

22nd December

The 22nd of December is not holding back on the gifts, delivering a brand spanking new episode of Taskmaster – and it's a Champion of Champions special, perfect to celebrate the King of Kings.

a promotional image showing the five contestants running on a fake stadium track with Greg Davies and Alex Horne behind them

Taskmaster: Champion of Champions, Channel 4, 9pm
Mandy, BBC Two, 10.25pm

Streamer pick: Love Actually, Netflix and Prime Video

23rd December

The TV Gods (or rather, programmers) must know that Christmas Eve Eve is peak time for last minute Christmas shopping, wrapping, panicking, and prepping, so there's not too much to dip into. But, the 23rd does see Guz Khan and Morgana Robinson starring in a hilarious Christmas comedy Stuffed – a story of The Farooqis family who have an unforgettable Christmas when a surprise bonus leads to a Lapland holiday. But things go downhill fast after a disastrous discovery...

an image showing guz khan and morgana robinson in the show behind a reindeer

Stuffed, BBC One, 9pm
Live at the Apollo, BBC Two, 9.45pm

Streamer pick: How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Disney+

Christmas Eve

Kick off your Christmas Eve with a slightly spooky drama. A Ghost Story for Christmas is back for a second year, and for 2025 it's an adaptation by Mark Gatiss of The Room in the Tower. Starring the inimitable Joanna Lumley and brilliant Tobias Menzies, it follows Roger who has been haunted by a recurring dream, a mysterious house and an unseen terror. He becomes disturbed as they become reality leading to the question, what is lurking in the room in the tower?

an image of joanna lumley and tobias menzes in a promotional picture for the show

A Ghost Story for Christmas, BBC Two, 10pm
Two Doors Down, BBC One, 10pm

Streamer pick: The Holiday, BBC iPlayer, Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+

Christmas Day

The big day brings even bigger TV, and probably the stand out has to be the reunion of Joanna Lumley and Jennifer Saunders in the hilarious Motherland spin-off Amandaland, starring Lucy Punch. Mince Pies, mothers from hell, and many, many Christmas gags, it's not one to be missed.

Oh, and let's not forget over on Netflix the next wave of the final episodes of Stranger Things drop too.

an image of joanna lumley and jennifer saunders in bbc's amandaland christmas special

Stranger Things 5, Volume Two, episodes 5, 6, and 7, Netflix
Strictly Come Dancing, BBC One, 5.30pm
Amandaland, BBC One, 9.15pm
Mrs Brown's Boys, BBC One, 10.15pm
Michael McIntyre's The Wheel, BBC One, 6.45pm
The Great Celebrity Bake Off, Channel 4, 7.40pm
The Bullseye Christmas Special, ITV, 8.15pm
Call the Midwife, BBC One, 8pm

Streamer pick: Elf, NOW TV

Boxing Day

If you are able to rouse yourself from your roast-potato-induced coma, and fancy going something more than staying horizontal and whacking on the telly, why not pop out to your cosy local cinema and catch the BAFTA-buzzing, Chalamet starring Marty Supreme? It's out on Boxing Day, and is being tipped for Oscars glory.

an image of Timothee Chalamet from the upcoming film, Marty Supreme, he is wearing glasses and a sweater vest, exiting from a building with red doors

Call the Midwife Part Two, BBC One, 8pm
The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, Channel 4, 9pm
The Repair Shop, BBC One, 7.30pm
Marty Supreme, in cinemas
The Housemaid, in cinemas

Streamer pick: Home Alone, Disney+

28th December

Robert Thorogood's original Death in Paradise is back for a festive special, so why not soak up the San Marie sunshine by proxy through the old gogglebox, and try and keep up with which actor is currently playing the new detective.

a promotional image of the cast standing in front a fairy lit restaurant

Death in Paradise, BBC One, 9pm

Streamer pick: It's a Wonderful Life, PLEX, ITVX, Prime Video, NOW

29th December

Lord Sugar is back but he's got a new line up – British Celebs. Putting the likes of Sarah Hadland, Judge Rinder, JB Gill, Angela Scanlon, and more to a series of Christmasy challenges.

a promotional image showing the contestants against a christmassy skyline backdrop

The Celebrity Apprentice, BBC One, 9pm (part two on 29th)

Streamer pick: The Jingle Bell Heist, Netflix

New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve always holds lots of promise and expectation, and this year it's already delivering on both with a festive special of what is probably the greatest British comedy since Gavin & Stacey, Here We Go. If you've not watched it yet, catch up on the first two series on iPlayer as a fun midnight countdown.

But of course, if you're staying in, all eyes are going to be on the very final episode of Stranger Things, which hits Netflix on New Year's Eve. It's a feature-length episode, and brings the long-running sci-fi teen horror story to a dramatic close.

Here We Go, BBC One, 8pm
Last Leg of the Year, Channel 4, 9pm
Graham Norton New Year's Eve Show, BBC One, 10.30pm
Stranger Things, series five, final episode, Netflix

Streamer pick: Stranger Things, Netflix

New Year's Day

Controversially, it's not Christmas Day that's taking the crown for the best day of telly, as New Year's Day sees the return of The Traitors – and not just its return, but the start of a brand new season, with episodes 1-3 dropping daily until 3rd Jan. And, if that wasn't enough, there's the surprise return of The Night Manager, and more festive Bake Off. Winning.

an image of claudia winkleman standing in front of the traitor's castle

Harlan Coben’s Run Away, episodes 1-8, Netflix
The Night Manager, series two, BBC One, 9pm
Mrs Brown’s Boys (II), BBC One, 10.05pm
Shedites, BBC One, 10.35pm
The Great New Year's Bake Off, Channel 4, 6.40pm
The Traitors, series 4, episode 1, BBC One, 8pm

Streamer pick: Miracle on 34th Street, Prime Video Disney+

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Hermione Blandford is the Content Editor for Shortlist’s social media which means you can usually find her scrolling through Instagram and calling it work, or stopping random people in the street and accosting them with a mini mic. She has previously worked in food and drink PR for brands including Johnnie Walker, Tanqueray, Gordon's, The Singleton, Lagavulin and Don Julio which means she is a self confessed expert in spicy margaritas and pints, regularly popping into the pub in the name of research.

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