What's On TV Tonight: Thursday 25th December 2025

Happy Christmas! The main event tonight is the Peep Show cast (minus Robert Webb) attempting to bake things on Channel 4. "I kind of assumed someone would do it for us," says Olivia Colman. Even Oscar winners have to muck in. Elsewhere, Saunders and Lumley reunite for the first time since Ab Fab, Wallace faces Feathers McGraw again, and Call the Midwife goes to Hong Kong. Quite the lineup.

Table of Contents

Quick Picks: Today's Best

• The Great Christmas Bake Off 2025 - Super Hans in the tent. Peep Show reunion. Cake chaos (8pm, Channel 4) ⭐
• Amandaland Christmas Special - Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley together again (9:15pm, BBC One)
• Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl - Feathers McGraw returns after 16 years (11:40am, BBC One)
• Call the Midwife Christmas Special - Nuns versus Triads. Yes, really (8:15pm, BBC One)

Morning & Afternoon: Family Viewing

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl - BBC One, 11:40am

Sixteen years since our last peek into Wallace's world, and what a return this is. The big baddie from The Wrong Trousers is back: Feathers McGraw, the silent but deadly penguin, has manipulated Wallace's latest invention - an irritatingly cheerful robot gnome called Norbot (Reece Shearsmith) - into carrying out his revenge.

Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham have crafted something that feels like a family reunion. Ben Whitehead takes over seamlessly from the late Peter Sallis as Wallace's voice, and the animation is as intricate as ever. If you haven't seen it on Netflix, this terrestrial premiere is the perfect Christmas morning treat.

White Christmas - BBC Two, 1pm

Mulled wine in film form. Bing Crosby's musical has been a yuletide mainstay for seven decades. Ostensibly it's about entertainers saving a failing Vermont inn, but really it's just an excuse to build a movie around Irving Berlin's famous song.

Danny Kaye steals scenes with his elastic-faced joy, Vera-Ellen dances like she predates gravity, and Technicolor Christmas cheer pours from every frame. The definition of classic Christmas viewing.

The Scarecrows' Wedding - BBC One, 3:10pm

Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's children's story gets the animated treatment, with scarecrows Betty O'Barley (Jessie Buckley) and Harry O'Hay (Domhnall Gleeson) planning a wedding to remember. But Harry's last-minute trip to pick up something special leads to disaster with villainous scarecrow Reginald Rake (Rob Brydon). Sophie Okonedo narrates. Sweet stuff for the post-lunch lull.

Early Evening (5pm - 8pm)

Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special - BBC One, 5:30pm

A final festive outing with Tess and Claudia hosting the annual celebrity special. Taking to the dancefloor: Scarlett Moffatt, Melanie Blatt (All Saints!), Brian McFadden, Babatunde Aléshé, Nicholas Bailey, and Gladiator Fury herself, Jodie Ounsley.

It's sparkly, it's festive, the judging is generous because it's Christmas. You know what you're getting, and on December 25th, that's exactly what you want.

The Little Mermaid - E4, 6:30pm

Disney's live-action remake actually works. Halle Bailey's Ariel is luminous, possessing a voice that could melt stone, and the underwater world is even more vibrant than the animated version. True, not everything lands - the world wasn't quite ready for a photorealistic fish performing a song - but it's sweet, sincere, and more emotionally complex than you might expect.

Prime Time (8pm onwards)

The Great Christmas Bake Off 2025 - Channel 4, 8pm ⭐

Ten years since Peep Show ended, and they're back. Olivia Colman, David Mitchell, Matt King (Super Hans!), Isy Suttie (Dobby!) and Paterson Joseph reunite in the tent - sadly minus Robert Webb - to conjure up shortbread, turkey pies and famous scenes from the sitcom rendered in cake.

"I kind of assumed someone would do it for us," says Colman when faced with actual baking. Classic. No barbecued dogs on the menu, but there are apparently two buns described as "looking like eyeless pigs."

This is the Christmas special we didn't know we needed. Super Hans in the Bake Off tent is the crossover event of the season.

Call the Midwife Christmas Special - BBC One, 8:15pm

It's nuns versus Triads in this year's festive two-parter. Most of the Nonnatus House crew have decamped to Hong Kong, where a building collapse calls for emergency mobilisation. Parts of Kowloon are clearly not safe. Meanwhile, back in snowy Poplar, a skeleton team face their own series of emergencies.

Call the Midwife goes global! Whether you find this exciting or think the show works best in its East End setting is personal preference, but the production values are undeniably impressive.

Bullseye Christmas Special - ITV1, 8:15pm

Last December's Bullseye revival with Andrew Flintoff attracted more than 8 million viewers, spawning a full series and this second Christmas special. No Luke Littler this time, but Dutch world champion Michael "Mighty Mike" van Gerwen is on hand to try to secure some cash for charity.

Look at what you could have won! You can't beat a bit of Bully.

Amandaland Christmas Special - BBC One, 9:15pm

When Amanda and family spend Christmas Day at eccentric Aunt Joan's country pile (which, according to Felicity, smells of "damp, dogs and desperation"), the stage is set for the spillage of an extraordinary family secret.

Here's the hook: Jennifer Saunders plays Aunt Joan. This is the first time she and Joanna Lumley have shared a screen since Absolutely Fabulous. Ab Fab fans, this is your moment.

Jaws - BBC Two, 9:15pm

Spielberg's 1975 masterpiece turns 50, and BBC Two is celebrating with the film itself followed by a documentary. Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss versus a rubber shark that malfunctioned so often Spielberg had to film around it - which is why the film's so terrifying. You barely see the thing.

"You're gonna need a bigger boat" remains one of cinema's great ad-libs. If you've never seen it on a big screen, the living room will have to do.

Late Night: For Night Owls

Mrs Brown's Boys Christmas Special - BBC One, 10:15pm

Love it or hate it - and British critics hate it while 8 million viewers love it - Mrs Brown's Boys is a Christmas institution now. Brendan O'Carroll does his thing. You know if this is for you.

Absolutely Fabulous - BBC One, 11pm

The 2003 Christmas special "Cold Turkey" - a perfect chaser after the Amandaland reunion earlier. Edina and Patsy at their finest.

When Harry Met Sally - BBC One, 11:35pm

Because New Year's Eve is only a week away, and Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan's romantic comedy remains the gold standard for the genre.

Film Choices

A Minecraft Movie is on Sky Cinema Premiere at 7:10am and again at 6:15pm. Director Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite) brings his signature silliness to the video game adaptation. Jason Momoa and Jack Black guide siblings through a blocky world. Catnip for the under-12s.

What's on Streaming

Netflix - Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl available if you miss the BBC One broadcast.

BBC iPlayer - Everything from today available on catch-up. The Bake Off Peep Show special will be in high demand.

Disney+ - Moana 2 if you want to continue the animation theme.

The Viewing Schedule Table

Final Verdict

Christmas Day delivers. The Peep Show Bake Off special is the headline - Super Hans attempting patisserie is comedy gold waiting to happen - but Saunders and Lumley reuniting for Amandaland is the emotional pull. Wallace & Gromit in the morning, Jaws after the turkey sandwiches, Call the Midwife going full action thriller in Hong Kong. Merry Christmas, everyone.

Jen Thakar writes about television for TVRadar.co.uk