Upstart Crow: Lockdown Christmas 1603

BBC2, 9pm It’s an all-too-familiar scenario: Christmas is fast approaching, but London is under lockdown yet again as the Government bids to combat a raging pandemic. But the disease in question is plague and the year is 1603, as the sitcom by Ben Elton, starring David Mitchell (right) as Shakespeare, returns for a seasonal special.

Though we might have had enough of lockdown, the situation proves to be a rich source of comedy thanks to Elton’s ingenuity, with the cast pared down to just Will and wife Kate (Gemma Whelan).

While the Bard is desperately chasing inspiration – he needs to write a play for the new king, James I – she’s passing her days baking and cutting hair. And in between it all there’s the little matter of finding Christmas cheer when you’re trapped away from loved ones. Still, at least their plight will raise our spirits in 2020.