Lucy Worsley's Christmas Carol Odyssey

Christmas Eve '45

October 2012 •English

The post-war guilt and horrific secrets of Nazi Germany serve as a backdrop to a disturbing mind game between a young anatomist and a prostitute in a small hotel room the first Christmas following the war.

Jingle Bells: RFK - 1964

January 1977 •English

Surrounded by his children, his wife Ethel, and Sammy Davis, Jr., RFK visits schoolchildren around the city, and is every bit the good patriarch and dutiful public servant. But it’s the films’ fleeting, in-between, moments where Pennebaker most precisely hits the mark, offering reflection on the possibilities that Robert Kennedy’s all too brief life foreclosed. Set against the pageantry of a long ago Christmas, the film speaks to tragic contingencies of history lying far beyond the ken of politics that continue to circumscribe the tortured destiny of our country.

A Norman Rockwell Christmas

September 1993 •English

Could there ever really be a Christmas without Norman Rockwell? For three generations, America's most beloved and popular artist treated us with his inspiring, fun-loving and wonderfully optimistic portraits of American life. To Rockwell, people were at their best during holidays and Christmas was certainly his favorite. Join Eddie Albert and Ross Malinger (TV's Good Advice) as they host this nostalgic, heartwarming look at the illustrious world of Norman Rockwell. With the help of the magnificent 170 voices of the world famous Pacific Chorale, you'll experience these Christmas scenes springing to life with all the magic and wonder Rockwell originally envisioned. Lift your spirits with this Christmas adventure you'll watch again and again!

Joyeux Noel

November 2005 •French

France, 1914, during World War I. On Christmas Eve, an extraordinary event takes place in the bloody no man's land that the French and the Scots dispute with the Germans…

A Christmas History

December 2010 •English

Simon Russell Beale takes a journey through Italy, Britain, Germany and Austria as he explores how the sound of Christmas has evolved in response to changing ideas about the Nativity. His story takes us through two millennia of music, from a fragment of papyrus preserving the earliest known piece of Christian music to the stories behind Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Silent Night and In the Bleak Midwinter, and the work of popular Christmas composer, John Rutter. Music is performed by Harry Christophers and his choir, The Sixteen.

The American St. Nick

November 2015 •English

On Dec. 5, 1944, American soldiers, led by Harry Stuts, put their guns down for one day and organized a party celebrating the town's centuries-old Saint Nick tradition. Soldiers made hot chocolate from their D-rations, company cooks made donuts and cookies for the children, and 22-year-old corporal Richard Brookins from Rochester, NY played the role of Saint Nick. An emotional and heartfelt story, THE AMERICAN SAINT NICK illustrates how American soldiers and residents of the hamlet were able to bond over a moment in time, creating a tradition that continues to this day.

The Unwrapping of Christmas

January 1999 •English

This exciting video explores the history of many traditions surrounding the Christmas holiday and examines their connections to paganism. Viewers will discover the real story of Christmas and be challenged to take advantage of "the holiday season" to proclaim the truth. Find out the truth about: why we decorate the Christmas tree, put up lights around the house, Santa Claus and his magical reindeer Was December 25th really Jesus's birthday? Discover answers to these and much, much more...

A Midnight Clear

April 1992 •English

In 1944 France, an American Intelligence Squad locates a German Platoon wishing to surrender rather than die in Germany's final war offensive. The two groups of men, isolated from the war at present, put aside their differences and spend Christmas together before the surrender plan turns bad and both sides are forced to fight the other.

The Man Who Invented Christmas

October 2017 •English

In 1843, despite the fact that Dickens is a successful writer, the failure of his latest book puts his career at a crossroads, until the moment when, struggling with inspiration and confronting reality with his childhood memories, a new character is born in the depths of his troubled mind; an old, lonely, embittered man, so vivid, so human, that a whole world grows around him, a story so inspiring that changed the meaning of Christmas forever.

Christmas at Hampton Court

December 2020 •English

A special one-off programme going behind the scenes of preparations for Christmas at the palace. Shows what it takes to bring the magnificent palace to life over the festive season, from cooking traditional Tudor recipes to harvesting mistletoe from the gardens. Joint Chief Curator Tracy Borman also explores royal Christmas traditions through the ages, including gifts from the past.

The Lion in Winter

August 1968 •English

Henry II and his estranged queen battle over the choice of an heir.

A Big Lego Christmas

December 2016 •English

A look behind the scenes as the world's most profitable toy maker opens its biggest ever Lego store, in London. Designer Justin's first ever kit finally hits the shelves, and Lego pro Duncan prepares to make the largest model ever - a replica of Tower Bridge.

Joe’s Pub Presents: A Holiday Special

December 2016 •English

Taping at the iconic Joe’s Pub inside the historic Public Theater in downtown Manhattan, Joe’s Pub Presents: A Holiday Special will feature a variety of holiday themed performances from acclaimed comics, singers and actors including Bridget Everett, Jo Firestone, Jen Kirkman, Nick Thune and many more. Funk and soul group THE DAP-KINGS will serve as the house band for the evening.

Vianoce na Honte

January 2009 •Slovak

They Wore The Red Suit

July 2013 •English

Every year, tens of thousands don the Red Suit for families, parties and parades, but only a handful of men have reclaimed the connection to childhood magic by turning the portrayal of Santa into a full-time career. They Wore the Red Suit is a documentary featuring the rare individuals who have devoted their lives to keeping that magic alive in the world by actually being Santa Claus 365 days a year.

Inside Lidl at Christmas

December 2020 •English

Does the supermarket offer the cheapest Christmas cheer? The Wynne family put the store through its paces, to find out whether it offers the cheapest turkey and trimmings.

Dreaming of a Jewish Christmas

November 2017 •English

An offbeat, irreverent musical documentary that tells the story of a group of Jewish songwriters, including Irving Berlin, Mel Tormé, Jay Livingston, Ray Evans, Gloria Shayne Baker and Johnny Marks, who wrote the soundtrack to Christianity’s most musical holiday. It’s an amazing tale of immigrant outsiders who became irreplaceable players in pop culture’s mainstream – a generation of songwriters who found in Christmas the perfect holiday in which to imagine a better world, and for at least one day a year, make us believe.

Carol of the Bells

March 2022 •Ukrainian

Immortalised as one of the most scintillating and uplifting Christmas songs, 'Carol of the Bells' adapted from a popular and loved Ukrainian folk melody, came to represent the spirit of brotherhood and unity all over the world. The peaceful and neighbourly existence of three families, Polish, Ukrainian and Jewish, sharing a large house, musical evenings and merriment in the city of Stanislaviv in the years preceding and post war, is shattered. First in the Soviet occupation and the persecution of the Polish family, then, by the Nazi occupation of Ukraine, and the decimation of the Jewish family. Sacrificing their lives the Ukrainian family manage to save their neighbours' children and their own daughter. Death and loss come to these families, but the healing power and joy , and a promise that the Future Will Not be Cancelled which "Carol of the Bells' evokes will be everlasting.

London Zoo at Christmas

December 2022 •English

An exclusive, festive behind-the-scenes look at the iconic London Zoo, as they prepare for the most wonderful time of the year and make the holiday magic happen.

Dolly Parton's Mountain Magic Christmas

December 2022 •English

Follow Dolly's desire to uplift an exhausted world's spirits by sharing the unique "mountain magic". Throughout the chaos, Dolly finds herself taking a journey guided by the mysterious appearances of her Three Wise Mountain Men.