‘Tis the season of Christmas television. Here is what I am looking forward to over the next week in chronological order (and mostly for my own reference!):
The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff (19/12, BBC2, 8.30pm)
- Dickensian parody, set in the same universe as the wonderful radio comedy Bleak Expectations, and starring Robert Webb and lots of other funny people.
Rev. (20/12, BBC2, 9.30pm)
- Christmas special and final episode of the second series of this brilliant sitcom about an inner-city vicar.
Doctor Who (25/12, BBC1, 7pm)
- It’s the Doctor Who Christmas Special! Do I need to say anything more?
The Borrowers (26/12, BBC1, 7.30pm)
- I remember watching the old television show and film versions of this when I was a kid, and I loved Arrietty, the Studio Ghibli version. This one stars Christopher Eccleston and Stephen Fry, so it is worth checking out.
Top Gear (28/12, BBC2, 8pm)
- Okay, so I know a lot of people hate the show, and Clarkson recently got a lot of flack, and rightly so, for some offensive comments. But I do enjoy the show, and the special episodes are always the best ones, so I am hoping this is one of the good ones where I don’t need to be embarrassed to admit to watching it.
Felix and Murdo (28/12, C4, 10.35pm)
- I have no idea what to expect from this, but is a show starring Armstrong & Miller, set in 1908. That is enough to get me to watch it.
QI (29/12, BBC2, 9pm)
- It is a Christmas themed episode of QI. I am a regular viewer of the show, so obviously I’m going to watch this episode. Brian Blessed as one of the panellists is just an added bonus!
Charlie Brooker’s 2011 Wipe (30/12, BBC4, 10.30pm)
- Charlie Brooker reviews the year, in the style of Screenwipe/Newswipe.
Sherlock (1/1, BBC1, 8.10pm)
- Series 2 of Sherlock! The first episode is based on ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’, one of the most popular and interesting Holmes stories. I am so excited for this, and really looking forward to how they put their unique twist on it (and for the rest of the series too).
There is one other show that I should mention, which was on yesterday and which I’m just about to watch on iPlayer now, which is the Christmas special episode of James May’s Man Lab. I’ve enjoyed the recent series, so again I am expecting it to be a fun episode and worth checking out.
I’ve probably missed some great stuff off the list, but those are the shows that I made a note of when looking through the TV listings, and I’ll definitely be watching them.
