CHRISTMAS FILMS

Grab a Baileys, put your feet up and settle down to a festive TV filmathon

Casino Royale

ITV, SATURDAY 21 DECEMBER, 8.10PM The first of the Daniel Craig era is grittier and more believable than its immediate predecessors, but still tons of fun. ★★★★★

Toy Story

BBC1, SUNDAY 22 DECEMBER, 1.50PM Relive the first time we all met –and fell in love with – Pixar’s lovable toys, from Woody and Buzz to Hamm the pig. ★★★★★

Quantum Of Solace

ITV, SUNDAY 22 DECEMBER, 9PM Maligned but enjoyable Bond thriller, which admittedly doesn’t make much sense – but Daniel Craig is as great as ever. ★★★

Elf

ITV, CHRISTMAS EVE, 5.15PM Elf has become an all-time favourite festive flick, with Will Ferrell in superb form as the man who thinks he’s an elf. ★★★★

Office Christmas Party

CHANNEL 4, SAT 21 DEC, 10PM A frenetic adults-behaving-badly comedy with a great ensemble cast that includes Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman. ★★★★

Gremlins

ITV, MONDAY 23 DECEMBER, 10.45PM The classic horror comedy film with the cutest little critters – as long as you don’t feed them after midnight. ★★★★

Beauty And The Beast

BBC1, CHRISTMAS EVE, 5.30PM Emma Watson and Dan Stevens take the title roles in this lavish, all-singing, all-dancing version of the classic tale. ★★★★

Paddington 2

BBC1, BOXING DAY, 3.10PM With his Aunt Lucy’s 100th birthday fast approaching, Paddington (Ben Whishaw) decides to buy her a special gift, and chooses a unique pop-up book of London. But before our favourite bear can save up enough to buy it, the book is stolen by villainous washed-up actor Phoenix Buchanan (a scene-stealing Hugh Grant). Thoroughly enchanting from start to end, it’s impossible not to fall in love with this film. HHHHH

Moana

BBC1, CHRISTMAS DAY, 12.55PM Princess Moana goes on a mission –aided by the demigod Maui – to find the ancient relic that will save her homeland. ★★★★

Finding Dory

BBC1, CHRISTMAS DAY,3.10PM Utterly heartwarming story with forgetful fish Dory (voiced by Ellen Degeneres) trying to find her parents. ★★★★★

The Woman In Black

CHANNEL 5, BOXING DAY, 10.55PM

Daniel Radcliffe stars in this ghostly thriller based on the bestselling book by spook-lit queen Susan Hill. ★★★★

Four Christmases

ITV, CHRISTMAS DAY, 11.40PM Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn play Brad and Kate, who are forced to visit all four divorced parents for Christmas. ★★★★

Skyfall

ITV, BOXING DAY , 8.30PM

The 23rd Bond film has Daniel Craig, an intriguing premise, great villain and a Home Alone-style climax. Perfection. ★★★★★

Mary Poppins Returns

SKY CINEMA ON DEMAND & SKY CINEMA PREMIERE, FROM CHRISTMAS DAY A glorious sequel to the much-loved 1964 original, Mary Poppins Returns is a treat for your eyes and ears. It’s colourful, packed with great songs and bursting with magic. Emily Blunt excels as the umbrella-travelling nanny, and even Dick Van Dyke pops up. It’s super califragilistic… ★★★★★

Avengers: Endgame

SKY CINEMA ON DEMAND & SKY

CINEMA PREMIERE, FROM BOXING DAY

The Avengers reassemble one last time in this powerful finale to Marvel’s Infinity Saga. ★★★★★

Love Actually

ITV, THURSDAY 27 DECEMBER, 10.10PM

It wouldn’t be Christmas without an airing of this funny, moving and romantic film. Emma Thompson steals the show. ★★★★

The Jungle Book

BBC1, BOXING DAY, 3.45PM Rudyard Kipling’s classic story of a boy raised by animals is brought wonderfully to life with the help of Disney’s clever CGI. ★★★★

The Limehouse Golem

BBC2, BOXING DAY, 10.20PM

Superior horror film about a serial killer on the loose in Victorian London, starring Bill Nighy and Olivia Cooke. ★★★★

Ant-man

BBC1, THURSDAY 27 DEC, 11.05PM On the funnier end of Marvel films, this caper features charming Paul Rudd as the dude who shrinks to insect size to fight crime. ★★★★

Inside Out

BBC1, SATURDAY 28 DECEMBER, 3PM

One of the all-time great Pixar movies takes place inside the mind of a girl, whose personality traits become characters. ★★★★★

Knocked Up

ITV, SUNDAY 29 DECEMBER, 10.45PM After a one-night stand, Alison (Katherine Heigl) discovers she’s pregnant by dope-fiend Ben. Hilarity ensues. ★★★★

Alice Through The Looking Glass

BBC1, SATURDAY 28 DECEMBER, 6PM A quirky take on the classic Lewis Carroll tale. Johnny Depp’s perfect as The Mad Hatter. ★★★

Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa

BBC2, SUNDAY 29 DECEMBER, 11.40PM Steve Coogan’s on top form in this hilarious movie, which sees Alan end up in a siege. ★★★★★

Cape Fear

ITV, SATURDAY 28 DECEMBER, 11.15PM Brilliant –and utterly terrifying – psychological thriller directed by Martin Scorsese and starring the unsurpassable De Niro. ★★★★

CHANNEL4, SUNDAY 29 DEC, 8PM Taron Egerton switches from the action-hero of Kingsman to the nerdy skier Eddie Edwards in this delicious biopic. ★★★★

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2

ITV, SATURDAY 28 DECEMBER, 8.30PM Marvel’s likeable superhero comedy returned with a sequel that had all the original’s winning ingredients: cartoony action, pop-culture jokes and plenty of tongue-in-cheek dialogue. The starry cast includes Chris Pratt’s Quill, the halfhuman, half-celestial leader of the Guardians, along with Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista and Karen Gillan. It’s exhilarating, witty and a full-on sci-fi spectacle – perfect viewing for Marvel fans, and those who might need a break from more festive fare. HHHH

Secret In Their Eyes

CHANNEL 5, MONDAY 30 DEC, 10PM A remake of an Oscar-winning Argentinian film starring Julia Roberts, Nicole Kidman and Chiwetel Ejiofor. ★★★★

Little Fockers

CHANNEL 4, MONDAY 30 DEC, 10.05PM Ben Stiller and Teri Polo are back under the scrutiny of mad dad Jack (Robert De Niro), this time with a baby in tow. ★★★

Shazam!

SKY CINEMA/ON DEMAND, FROM NEW YEAR’S DAY One day, 14-year-old misfit Billy Batson (Asher Angel) discovers he has a special power – all he has to do is shout “Shazam!” and he transforms into an adult superhero (handily called Shazam), played by Zachary Levi. But Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong) wants to get his evil mitts on Shazam’s superpowers for himself. Old-school fun for all the family. HHHH

The Lion King

CHANNEL 4, NEW YEAR’S DAY, 6PM Gorgeous Disney animation with the voices of Matthew Broderick (Simba) and James Earl Jones (Mufasa). ★★★★★

The Hangover

ITV, NEW YEAR’S DAY, 10.35PM

Bradley Cooper stars in this comic caper about three men on a stag do in Las Vegas, who lose the groom on a boozy night out. ★★★★

Bridget Jones’s Diary

CHANNEL 5, NEW YEAR’S DAY, 9PM The first (and our favourite) outing for Renée Zellweger as hapless romantic Bridget, with her many men problems. ★★★★★

BBC2, FRIDAY 3 JANUARY, 11.35PM A group of vampires attempt to deal with modern-day life in this spot-on mockumentary. ★★★★

The Holiday

ITV, MONDAY 30 DECEMBER, 10.15PM Now a Yuletide staple, this festive tale starring Cameron Diaz, Jude Law and Kate Winslet is a must for romcom fans. ★★★★

Mamma Mia!

CHANNEL 5, NEW YEAR’S EVE, 8PM The original and best Abba film, featuring Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, Pierce Brosnan and Colin Firth. ★★★★

Calendar Girls

CHANNEL 5, NEW YEAR’S EVE, 10.15PM True story about the women who made their own naked calendar, with Julie Walters, Helen Mirren and Penelope Wilton. ★★★★

Mission: Impossible - Fallout

CHANNEL 4, NEW YEAR’S DAY, 9PM The sixth instalment in the

Mission: Impossible franchise sees Ethan Hunt, the IMF team and a CIA assassin try to prevent a disaster caused by a group of terrorists. Angela Bassett joins the regulars as the new head of the CIA Erica Sloane in this action-packed thriller. Fighting! Dramatic set pieces! Tom Cruise dangling out of a helicopter! What’s not to love? HHHH ela

Spectre

ITV, NEW YEAR’S EVE, 8PM The most recent Bond romp does not have the power of Skyfall, but it’s still a super-slick ride boasting a juicy supporting cast. ★★★★

Billy Elliot

BBC2, NEW YEAR’S EVE, 9PM Jamie Bell dances his way into the nation’s hearts as the workingclass boy who’s determined to become a ballet dancer. ★★★★★

The Sound Of Music

BBC1, NEW YEAR’S DAY, 5PM Everyone’s favourite nunsand-nazis musical, with Julie Andrews shining in the role of Maria. A true classic. ★★★★★