BBC Announces Christmas TV Line-Up Including New Dramas And Festive Specials

Forget the turkey, mince pies and presents – the best thing about Christmas is all the festive telly.

And it looks as if we have plenty to look forward to, thanks to the BBC, as the broadcaster has released its full festive line-up.

As always, the Beeb has Christmas specials of all our favourite shows, including laugh-out-loud Would I Lie To You, Not Going Out and two visits to Mrs Brown’s Boys.

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Game show fans will be thrilled to hear that The Wheel, hosted by Michael McIntyre, will be returning, as well as Danny Dyer’s The Wall, Bradley Walsh’s Blankety Blank and classic quiz show The Weakest Link – now hosted by Romesh Ranganathan.

Natural history lovers are treated with not one but two brand new films from Sir David Attenborough - The Wonder of Song in which David chooses some of his favourite recordings from the natural world; and Attenborough and the Mammoth Graveyard where he is joined by Professor Ben Garrod and a team of archaeologists at a quarry in Swindon.

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Elsewhere, soap buffs will be pleased to hear EastEnders will be back at its dramatic best for Christmas. Two couples are prepared to marry: Denise and Jack, (Diane Parish and Scott Maslen) and Chelsea and Gray (Zaraah Abrahams and Toby-Alexander Smith) head to the registry office, but as always in EastEnders, the road to wedded bliss is anything but smooth.

But it’s drama fans who are spoiled for choice this Christmas. Sarah Phelps’ A Very British Scandal, starring Claire Foy and Paul Bettany as the Duke and Duchess of Argyll, recounts one of the most notorious legal cases of the 20th century.

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Psychological thriller The Girl Before, adapted from the novel of the same name by JP Delaney, tells the story of Jane, played by Gugu Mbatha-Raw who moves into a strange house designed by an enigmatic architect played by David Oyelowo.

Around the World in 80 Days is a brand new adaptation of the classic novel from Jules Verne and stars David Tennant, Ibrahim Koma and Leonie Benesch as the intrepid threesome Phileas Fogg, Passepartout and Abigail ‘Fix’ Fortescue. There's also mystery packed thriller The Tourist starring Jamie Dornan charts one man’s search for his identity through the vast and unforgiving Australian outback in a character-driven drama full of shocking, surprising, funny and brutal turns.

And of course, kids both big and small will be catered for as usual, with a number of beloved family films, and a Shaun the Sheep special.

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That’s on top of festive editions of Doctor Who, Call The Midwife and Death in Paradise, among many others.

Charlotte Moore, BBC’s Chief Content Officer, says: “Christmas 2021 is a time to reunite with friends and family once more, and this year’s line-up of must-see shows will bring everyone together to share the festive season on the BBC. There’s a stocking full of special programmes to enthral and enchant featuring your favourite stars and characters, whatever your mood. The BBC is the place to be entertained this Christmas and New Year.”

You can read the full line-up of programming here. Scheduling is yet to be officially announced.

Topics: BBC, TV And Film, Christmas

Kimberley Bond

Kim is a journalist at Tyla, and has previously worked at the Evening Standard, Radio Times as well as several national newspapers. A showbiz obsessive and a television fanatic, Kim is particularly interested in celebrity gossip, A-list events and the latest releases on either the big or small screen. Contact her at [email protected]

@0xKimberley