2011 Christmas Day UK TV Programme (Overview for Holiday)

Christmas – a time for stuffing yourself silly, exchanging gifts and spending quality time with loved ones… in front of the television. This year’s smorgasbord of festive programming will make your feast of leftovers, Toblerone and sherry look like a light entrée. From adventurous family drama in the shape of Just Henry to the long-awaited return of laugh-out-loud funny Absolutely Fabulous – there is something spectacular for everyone. Here is our pick of the best Christmas television for 2011…

Doctor Who Christmas Special: The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe
BBC1 London 7:00pm-8:00pm (1 hour ) Christmas Day



The Time Lord crash-lands on Earth during the Second World War, where he tries to make sure two unfortunate evacuees and their mother have the best Christmas ever. He transports them to a magical land dominated by an enchanted forest – but that is when their troubles really begin. Claire Skinner, Bill Bailey, Arabella Weir and Alexander Armstrong join Matt Smith in this year’s festive special, inspired by CS Lewis’s Narnia stories.

Downton Abbey: The Christmas Special

ITV1 London 9:00pm-11:05pm (2 hours 5 minutes) Christmas Day

The residents celebrate Christmas 1919 with a lavish party, but tensions are rife and Bates’s arrest casts a shadow over the festivities. Mary has to consider her future with Sir Richard Carlisle following a disagreement at a shoot and Violet has concerns about Rosamund, whose new suitor – the dashing but raffish Lord Hepworth – is not all he seems. One-off festive special of the hit costume drama, guest starring Nigel Havers and Sharon Small, with Brendan Coyle, Michelle Dockery, Iain Glen, Maggie Smith and Samantha Bond.

Merlin: The Sword in the Stone: Part Two Part two of two

BBC1 London 8:00pm-8:45pm (45 minutes) Christmas Eve

Morgana and Helios have captured Camelot, leaving Arthur and Merlin on the run – and faced with the betrayal of a trusted courtier and the strength of the enemy, the king has lost the will to fight. It seems only the young servant can restore his master’s faith – but only an extraordinary act can prove he was born to rule. Sword-and-sorcery adventure, starring Colin Morgan, Bradley James and Katie McGrath, with guest appearances by Ben Daniels, Miranda Raison and Terence Maynard. Last in the series.

The Borrowers

BBC1 London 7.30pm, 26th December

At Christmas 2011 the lives of The Borrowers will be brought back to our screens in a 90-minute show for BBC One.””The small family that live, hidden in a normal-sized person’s home will once again attempt to innocently stake claim to discarded belongings. But, determined to prove that they exsist Grandma Driver (Victoria Wood) and Professor Mildeye (Stephen Fry) aim to capture the little people.National treasures Victoria Wood and Stephen Fry (above) head the cast of this lovely BBC1 version of Mary Norton’s tale.Fry said: “I read the script and thought it was delightful and I had a funny part.”

Great Expectations
BBC1 London 9pm, 27th December, 28th and 29th December

Sarah Phelps’ (Oliver Twist, EastEnders) bold new three-part adaptation presents the heart and grit of Charles Dickens at his very best. This new telling of the classic tale in which a humble orphan becomes a gentleman stars Ray Winstone, Gillian Anderson, David Suchet and Douglas Booth.

Lapland

BBC1 London 10:00pm-11:15pm (1 hour 15 minutes) Christmas Eve

Festive comedy drama about a chaotic but close-knit Birkenhead family who believe in making Christmas as special as possible. This year looks like being the best yet as they pack their bags for an authentic yuletide in Lapland, complete with huskies, reindeer and hopefully a meeting with Santa himself. But the holiday promises even more than they bargained for – as they soon discover. Sue Johnston heads the cast, which also includes Elizabeth Berrington, Stephen Graham, Julie Graham and Keith Barron.

Absolutely Fabulous Christmas Special

BBC1 London 10pm, Christmas Day

Twenty years after Eddy, Patsy, Saffy, Bubble and Mother first staggered onto our screens, Ab Fabis back! The Christmas special is the first of three new episodes written by and starring Jennifer Saunders, with Joanna Lumley, Julia Sawalha, Jane Horrocks and June Whitfield. And as the last show aired seven years ago, there’s an awful lot of catching up to do.

Source:  http://www.goforenergy.com/2011/12/21/2011-christmas-day-uk-tv-programme-overview-for-holiday/