The best Netflix Christmas movies and shows

Well, these are a lot more fun than we were expecting. Kurt Russell is Santa Claus - who doesn’t ‘ho ho ho’ - is brilliant casting and bringing in Goldie Hawn and Mrs Claus for the sequel is equally inspired. In both movies, In the first movie for the most part it takes place in modern-day America. For the second, the action shifts to the North Pole

Love it or hate it, Love Actually is a Christmas staple thanks to its intertwining tales of love and loss. Yes, it's endlessly cheesy but this is a Richard Curtis film so you know exactly what to expect. Plus, Bill Nighy brings some much needed comic relief as long-in-the-tooth rockstar Billy Mack

This is a beautiful animation about a postman who finds himself in a frosty part of the world where someone who looks remarkably like Santa Claus is hiding out. Directed by Disney vetern Sergio Pablos, and with the voice talent of JK Simmons, this is Netflix getting into the animated business and it’s a lot of Festive fun.

Yes, it’s a chocolate box version of England, where Brexit doesn’t exist and we all live in wonderful cottages out in the country and not house shares in Kilburn but this is a movie that will give you that warm, fuzzy feeling over Christmas - even if there’s not a chance in hell Jack Black could woo Kate Winslet.

Oh Bill. Are you OK mate? You’ve had a weird life, and this musical Netflix original just makes it even weirder. Miley Cyrus, George Clooney and niche French band Phoenix all guest star in this festive special directed by Sofia Coppola about Bill Murray just being Bill Murray, but at Christmas. Sure it might border on the downright wacky and indulgent, but the Ghostbuster’s Christmas cheer is properly authentic, and you don’t often get to see that these days.

Watching a deranged Charlie Kelly bite off Santa’s ear in an act of revenge for having sex with his mother every December 25 might not give you the warm, fuzzy feeling that It’s a Wonderful Life does, but it will give you a belly full of laughs with its look back at childhood Christmases that weren’t as special as they once thought.

Krampus is a brilliant fest fright fest about a family who loses their Christmas spirit, only to be terrorised by a demon called Krampus who doesn't like people who don't get into the festive spirit.

Office Christmas Party is a lot of fun. Jennifer Aniston plays a nasty boss who decides to shut down the office that her brother (TJ Miller) runs. The only way to save the branch is to throw the mother of all Christmas parties and invite a potential investor to woo them. What ensues is everything you expect from the makers of Blades Of Glory and some of the funniest comedians around. It's not perfect, but it's a refreshing, easy festive watch.

This very British variant of Jingle All The Way has a lot of charm and is under an hour long. So if you are after a quick hit of Christmas comedy joy, this tale of two mismatched neighbours that go on a road trip to find a doll will make you smile. Stephen Merchant and Asim Chaudhry are great as the neighbours, and there is one scene in particular that will bring the tears. Lovely stuff.

One of the newer Christmas movies and, if you are in the UK the movie title has rather dark connotations, this is a great, strange movie about a toy maker who makes the ultimate toy - a sentient matador doll. This one is a huge amount of fun and packed with heart.

A movie that is (literally) based on the Wham song, Last Christmas is a romcom that has an all-star cast, including Emilia Clarke, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh and Emma Thompson. It's directed by Paul Feig, which is a bit of a departure for the comedy director but it's a lot of fun, with one helluvah twist.

The best thing on Netflix about Christmas, bar none. Seriously, this Norwegian show is fantastic, focusing on Johanne who lies to her family about having a boyfriend and decides to go on the dating scene to actually find a suitor. It's a heartwarming show set in the snowy confines of Norway and there are two great seasons of the thing to watch

With a title so good we can't believe it hasn't been used before, Single All The Way is everything you want in a Christmas movie. It a feel-good film about Peter (Michael Urie) who takes his roommate back to his family for Christmas, asking him to pretend to be his boyfriend so he doesn't look like he's terrible at relationships. What ensues is heat-warming festive fun and it also stars Jennifer Coolidge which automatically gives it an extra star from us.

As you have probably guessed, the best Christmas movies aren’t on Netflix. BUT, The Holiday Movies that Made Us is a brilliant look at Elf and The Nightmare Before Christmas, through behind-the-scenes footage and talking head. This is a really great series and there’s a standard Movies That Made Us series as well which is equally great.

The Nativity movies are more fun than they should be, with director Debbie Isitt managing to find a decent balance between comedy and chaos. There are a slew of sequels on Netflix, too, and the movies were also spun off into a series of live shows.