15 of the Best Christmas TV Episodes to Help You Get Into the Festive Season

The festive season is the absolute best time of the year to curl up on the sofa with a hot chocolate in one hand and the TV remote in the other. And with it looking like we might be spending a lot less time travelling and a lot more time at home this Christmas due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, this year we may actually get through the long list of Christmas movies we plan to watch.

However, if we're honest, sometimes we don't want to commit to watching a full-length festive feature; we want something that falls into that sweet spot of 30 minutes to an hour long. Instead of being introduced to a whole new cast of characters, we want to see the familiar faces of characters we've already grown to love taking part in wholesome Yuletide activities. Sometimes, we just want to watch a Christmas TV special.

But which ones are worth watching? From comedies like Gavin and Stacey
and The Office (both the UK and the US versions!) to dramas like Downton Abbey, we've gone ahead and rounded up the very best festive offerings from TV shows old and new, guaranteed to give you a bite-size hit of Christmas cheer.