The BBC has announced its Christmas 2024 schedule, including a number of stagey and theatre-related shows.
Their festive line-up, available on TV and to stream on BBC iPlayer, includes a wide selection of staged performances, documentaries and more.
Christmas film premieres on BBC this year include Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical, based on the smash-hit West End show Matilda The Musical, which continues to play at the Cambridge Theatre in London.
Broadcasts of live shows include Doctor Who at the Proms 2024 from London’s Royal Albert Hall, hosted by Doctor Who fan favourite Catherine Tate; Swan Lake from English National Ballet sees more than one hundred dancers take part in this spellbinding production of Swan Lake, filmed at London’s Royal Albert Hall; and from Glyndebourne comes a performance of Franz Lehár’s comic operetta The Merry Widow.
English National Ballet are also in the West End this Christmas, performing Nutcracker at the London Coliseum.
A Christmas Carol: The Read with Anne Marie Duff goes on a spirited journey through Victorian London with Charles Dickens’ timeless seasonal classic. Filmed in Manchester, The Read: A Christmas Carol is an intimate narration of the much-loved short story by BAFTA-winning actor Anne-Marie Duff, who is about to star in The Little Foxes in London, at the Young Vic Theatre.
Alan Bennett: 90 Years On is a documentary film about Britain’s much-loved playwright and screenwriter Alan Bennett, by BAFTA and Emmy Award-winning director Adam Low.
The doc celebrates the life and long career of one of our most loved playwrights, which is part reflection on the ageing process, part remembrance of the joys of youth. Alan is aided by the films he has written and the documentaries he has presented, in his quest to understand the person he has become.
My Life: The Snowman and Me (w/t) follows two boys as they are cast to perform the lead role in Birmingham Rep’s The Snowman for its 27th year at the West End’s Peacock Theatre.
Following the boys from their auditions, all the way through to the opening night in the West End, viewers see behind the scenes at the rehearsals and the opening night.
For younger viewers, CBeebies Presents: Beauty and the Beast, filmed in Edinburgh at the Festival Theatre, which takes the well-known story and brings it to life for a CBeebies audience with a toe-tapping soundtrack from Banks & Wag.
Other Christmas highlights this year on the BBC include Vengeance Most Fowl, Wallace & Gromit’s first new film since the 2008 BAFTA-winning and Oscar nominated A Matter of Loaf and Death, from Aardman; Ruth Jones and James Corden’s Gavin & Stacey The Finale, featuring current West End star Mathew Horne (The Tempest); The Outnumbered Christmas Special; and Doctor Who returns this Christmas with Joy To The World, starring Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor. Ncuti is currently starring in The Importance of Being Earnest at the National Theatre.
Abi Morgan’s hit legal drama The Split also returns with a two-part special set in Barcelona, and starring Nicola Walker and Stephen Mangan. Both of the actors are appearing together next year in the West End, in new comedy Unicorn at the Garrick Theatre.
The Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special this year will feature stage and screen star Tamzin Outhwaite, who recently starred in Abigail’s Party in London, along with comedian Josh Widdicombe, Drag superstar Tayce, presenter and podcaster Vogue Williams, Gladiator Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, and racing driver Billy Monger!
There’s also a behind-the-scenes programme about Inside No. 9 titled Inside No.9 The Party’s Over, which comes ahead of the live stage show Inside No. 9 Stage/Fright in 2025 at the Wyndham’s Theatre.
Also, Celebrity Escape to the Country is back, with West End legend Alfie Boe OBE (Les Miserables The Arena Spectacular) part of the line-up, plus H from Steps, flush from the success of the new Steps musical Here & Now, which is touring in 2025.
Charlotte Moore, BBC’s Chief Content Officer, said in a statement: “No one does Christmas quite like the BBC, and this year we have raised the bar even higher with a cracking line-up that will bring people together across the UK. I’m incredibly excited to be showcasing the finest British creativity and welcoming back some of the nation’s favourite characters in the last ever episode of Gavin and Stacey and the premiere of Wallace & Gromit’s new feature length adventure. Alongside a magical mix of new festive shows from the world of comedy, drama, entertainment and factual across the holiday season that viewers can rejoice in. Join us live or on iPlayer – there really is something for everyone!”
For more Christmas treats also check out our guide to Christmas in the West End, featuring all of the shows playing in London over the festive season.
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