This year closes out the with national US premieres of 25 titles from the UK and Canada, plus two from England debuting in local markets.
For updates about shows from the UK, Canada, and Ireland added to US linear TV and streaming channels throughout the month, see the British TV Viewing Guide.
(For details about the premieres of shows from Australia, New Zealand, and countries in Europe and other continents, visit The Down Under TV Place, The Euro TV Place, and The Global TV Place.)
Programs and dates are subject to change without prior notice.
Videos below may contain content that is not suitable for everyone.
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NATIONAL PREMIERES
Dalgliesh: Season 3 (UK)
SAG® Award-nominee Bertie Carvel (The Crown, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell) is returning to our screens as the titular enigmatic investigator, DCI Adam Dalgliesh, in the new season of this hit detective series based on titles in P.D. James’s best-selling “Adam Dalgliesh” murder mystery novels. Set in 1979, the three two-part stories include “Death in Holy Orders,” “Cover Her Face,” and “Devices and Desires.”
Season 3 opens with “Death in Holy Orders,” which sees Commander Dalgliesh head to a seminary in West Sussex to investigate the bloody murder of a senior churchman. He finds that nearly everyone here had a personal grievance with the victim, and several of them are lying.
Bertie Carvel directs both episodes of “Cover Her Face,” in which a murder in the house of an influential family brings Dalgliesh to the heart of Essex. As he considers the prospect of a politically-motivated attack, a local man comes forward with an explosive allegation.
And in “Devices and Desires,” as Kent police search for a serial killer targeting the female employees of a nuclear power station, Dalgliesh arrives to investigate a possible terrorist connection.
Carlyss Peer (The Crown, Doctors) and Alistair Brammer (House of the Dragon, The Watchers) reprise their roles as Detective Sergeant Kate Miskin and DS Daniel Tarrant, respectively.
Guest stars this season include Anton Lesser (Endeavour), Lloyd Owen (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power), Claire Goose (Silverpoint), Liz White (The Long Shadow), Adam James (Mr Bates vs. The Post Office), Richard Lintern (Silent Witness), Ellora Torchia (The Gold), Parth Thakerar (Gangs of London), Soni Razdan (War), and Josie Walker (Belfast).
Dalgliesh: Season 3, an Acorn TV Original Series, premieres in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand on Monday, December 2, exclusively on Acorn TV. New two-part stories will debut on Mondays through December 16.
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Death in Holy Orders by P. D. James
Devices and Desires by P. D. James
“Inspector Adam Dalgliesh” novels by P. D. James
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Jack in Time for Christmas (UK)
In this holiday special, a part scripted comedy/part unscripted travelogue, actor-comedian Jack Whitehall (Bad Education, Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father) finds himself stranded in the US with just four days to make it back to the UK for Christmas. With time ticking away, Jack embarks on an incredible (and perhaps implausible) journey involving planes, trains, huskies, and bobsleighs. Along the way, some of his famous friends — including Michael Bublé, Dave Bautista, Rebel Wilson, Jimmy Fallon, Daisy May Cooper, and Tom Davis — join the fun and lend Jack a hand (or hoof!) as he navigates the chaos of Christmas and tries to make it home in time.
Jack in Time for Christmas premieres globally on Tuesday, December 3, exclusively on Prime Video.
That Christmas (UK)
Adapted from the beloved children’s book series (The Empty Stocking, Snow Day, and That Christmas) written by BAFTA® winner and Oscar® nominee Richard Curtis (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, Love Actually), this heartwarming animated comedy film follows a series of entwined tales about family and friends, love and loneliness, and Santa Claus making a big mistake, not to mention an enormous number of turkeys! It centers on the townsfolk of Wellington-on-Sea, a charming seaside town where the worst snowstorm in history turns things upside down and alters everyone’s plans — including Santa’s.
Providing their voice talents for the film are Brian Cox (Succession, Medici) as Santa, Fiona Shaw (Killing Eve, Baptiste) as Ms. Trapper, Jodie Whittaker (Doctor Who, Broadchurch) as Mrs. Williams, and Bill Nighy (Joy, Love Actually) as Bill.
The cast also includes Lolly Adefope (Ghosts), Alex Macqueen (Hijack), Katherine Parkinson (Humans), Sindhu Vee (Starstruck), India Brown (The Stranger), Zazie Hayhurst (Halo), Sienna Sayer (Trying), Jack Wisniewski, Rosie Cavaliero (Gentleman Jack), Paul Kaye (Vera), Guz Khan (Man Like Mobeen), Andy Nyman (A Small Light), Kuhu Agarwal, Bronte Smith (Still Up), Freddie Spry (Spencer), Ava Talbot (Trying), and Rhys Darby (Our Flag Means Death).
That Christmas, a Netflix Film, premieres globally on Wednesday, December 4, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
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“The Empty Stocking” by Richard Curtis
“That Christmas” by Richard Curtis
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Black Doves (UK)
Set against the backdrop of London at Christmas, this six-part, action-filled spy thriller follows Helen Webb (Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game, Pride & Prejudice), a quick-witted, down-to-earth, dedicated wife and mother — and a professional spy. For ten years, she’s been passing on her politician husband’s secrets to the shadowy organization she works for: the Black Doves. When her secret lover, Jason, is assassinated, her spymaster, the enigmatic Reed (Sarah Lancashire, Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax), calls in Helen’s old friend, Sam Young (Ben Whishaw, A Very English Scandal, This is Going to Hurt), to keep her safe.
Sam is a suave, champagne-drinking assassin. But having been out of the game since a failed job with disastrous consequences, he’s come home to a London that’s moved on without him. As his past threatens to catch up with him, Sam’s task is to protect Helen as she investigates who killed Jason and why. Together, they set off on a mission that will lead them to uncover a vast, interconnected conspiracy — one that links the murky underworld of London to a looming geopolitical crisis — and to question the cost of the moral choices they’ve made.
Costars include Andrew Buchan (Carnival Row) as Wallace Webb and Andrew Koji (Warrior) as Jason, along with Kathryn Hunter (Andor), Sam Troughton (Chernobyl), Ella Lily Hyland (Fifteen Love), Adam Silver (The Diplomat), Ken Nwosu (Look the Other Way and Run), Gabrielle Creevy (In My Skin), Tracey Ullman (Curb Your Enthusiasm), and Omari Douglas (Rye Lane), amongst others.
Black Doves, a Netflix Series, premieres globally on Thursday, December 5, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
Mary (US-UK)
Told through the eyes of Mary (Noa Cohen, 8200, Infinity), this drama tells the story of one of history’s most profound figures and the remarkable journey that led to the birth of Jesus. Following a miraculous conception, Mary is shunned and goes into hiding after King Herod (Sir Anthony Hopkins, The Father, The Silence of the Lambs) orders a murderous hunt for her newborn, Jesus. Bound by faith and driven by courage, Mary and Joseph (Ido Tako, Sisters, Black Space) go on the run to save his life at all costs.
Mary, a Netflix Film, premieres globally on Friday, December 6, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
Paris Has Fallen (UK-FR)
This Paris-set action-thriller series is the first local-language television spin-off of the Gerard Butler-starring “Has Fallen” film franchise. It sees a terrorist group, led by the villainous Jacob Pearce (Sean Harris, Mission: Impossible – Fallout), attack a high-profile event, with the French Minister of Defense as their target. Working together and saving the day are the unlikely pair of protection officer Vincent Vincent Taleb (Tewfik Jallab, Spiral, Blood Coast) and street-smart MI6 operative, Zara Taylor (Ritu Arya, The Umbrella Academy, The Good Karma Hospital).
But then events take a dark turn, and Vincent and Zara soon realize that the plan extends beyond just one politician. When they suspect that one of their colleagues in the security services is feeding information to Jacob, the two find themselves increasingly isolated and needing to rely only on each other even more.
Paris Has Fallen premieres in the US on Friday, December 6, on Hulu.
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The Sticky (CA)
Inspired by the “Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist,” the real-life, headline-making heist that saw more than $18 million worth of maple syrup stolen from Quebec’s national reserves in 2012, this crime comedy series follows Ruth Landry (Margo Martindale, The Americans, Sneaky Pete, American Crime Story), a tough, middle-aged maple syrup farmer who turns to crime when the bureaucratic authorities threaten to take away everything she loves. She teams up with a hot-tempered Bostonian mobster (Chris Diamantopoulos, Silicon Valley, Episodes) and a mild-mannered French-Canadian security guard (Guillaume Cyr, Outbreak, 19-2) to carry out a multi-million dollar heist on Quebec’s maple syrup surplus.
Guest-starring Jamie Lee Curtis (The Bear), The Sticky, an Amazon Original Series, premieres globally on Friday, December 6, exclusively on Prime Video. (You can add it to your watchlist now.)
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Add The Sticky to your watchlist
Escuminac Canadian Maple Syrup Variety Set
Biodélices 100% Pure Organic Maple Syrup
Lucy Worsley’s Holmes vs Doyle (UK)
This three-part docuseries follows British historian Lucy Worsley, Chief Curator at the UK’s Historic Royal Palaces, author, television presenter, and a lifelong Sherlock Holmes fan, as she seeks to answer the question of why author Arthur Conan Doyle came to despise Sherlock Holmes, his most famous character and the one that made him rich and famous. Throughout the series, Worsley explores the parallel lives of Doyle and Holmes in the historical context of their times. From the dying years of Victorian England, through the imperial crisis of the Boer war, from the optimism of the early Edwardian years, to the trauma of The Great War, Arthur and Sherlock lived through them all.
In the first episode, “Doctor and Detective,” Lucy unearths Holmes’s origins in Doyle’s early life as a medical student in Edinburgh. She unpacks the early stories, revealing the dark underbelly of late Victorian Britain, from drug use to true crime. Worsley also explores how Doyle infused his stories with cutting-edge technological developments, as well as traces the author’s growing disenchantment with his detective, heading to Switzerland to visit the site of one of the most famous deaths in literature.
The second episode, “Fact and Fiction,” sees Lucy explore Doyle’s desire to distance himself from Sherlock after the detective’s apparent death at the Reichenbach Falls. From the delights of the ski slopes to the horrors of the Boer War, she reveals how far Doyle went to make himself the hero of his own story. He even took on the role of detective himself in one of the most important legal cases of the 20th century (which was dramatized in the limited series Arthur & George, starring Martin Clunes as Doyle, currently available for streaming on the PBS Masterpiece Prime Video Channel).
And in the series finale, “Shadows and Sleuths,” Lucy investigates the return of Sherlock. Doyle began the Edwardian age delighting in all it had to offer, but as World War I approached, the darkness of the later stories mirrored the reality of Doyle’s life. After losing his eldest son, he became an evangelist for spiritualism, and his star declined after a public spat with famous magician and former friend Harry Houdini. By contrast, Sherlock Holmes found a life beyond his author on both stage and screen.
Lucy Worsley’s Holmes vs. Doyle premieres in the US on Sunday, December 8, at 8pm ET, on PBS (check your local listings), with streaming available on PBS.org, the PBS app, and the PBS Documentaries Prime Video Channel. New episodes will air at the same time on December 15 and December 22.
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Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Collection by Arthur Conan Doyle
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Miss Scarlet: Season 5 (UK)
In the brand-new season of this hit period whodunit starring Kate Phillips (Wolf Hall, The Crown) as Eliza Scarlet, private detective, Eliza’s agency is thriving and her professional life is on a successful path. However, not all is peachy keen in her personal life: William Wellington, aka the Duke, has been away in New York for several months, and Eliza is forced to make a difficult decision. Meanwhile, a new Detective Inspector comes to Scotland Yard — Alexander Blake (Tom Durant-Pritchard, The Crown, Tom Jones) — and Eliza must navigate building a relationship with him if she’s going to continue having access to police resources.
In addition to Kate Phillips, also reprising their roles are Evan McCabe (Doctor Who) as Detective Fitzroy, Cathy Belton (Hidden Assets) as Ivy, Felix Scott (Our House) as Patrick Nash, Paul Bazely (The Ipcress File) as Clarence, Simon Ludders (Bridgerton) as Mr. Potts, and Tim Chipping (Outlander) as Detective Phelps.
Miss Scarlet: Season 5 premieres in the US as a six-episode streaming binge on Sunday, December 8, at 12am ET/PT, on the PBS Masterpiece Prime Video Channel, PBS Passport (the streaming benefit for members of their local PBS stations), and the PBS app. (The broadcast premiere of the new season happens on Sunday, January 12, 2025, at 8pm ET/PT, on PBS. Check your local listings.)
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Masterpiece Mystery!: Miss Scarlet and the Duke DVD
Miss Scarlet & the Duke: Season Two (Masterpiece Mystery!) DVD
Miss Scarlet & the Duke: Season Three Masterpiece Mystery! DVD
Miss Scarlet & the Duke: Season Four (Masterpiece Mystery!) DVD
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999 Murderer Calling (UK)
In this new true-crime docuseries, scheming killers in the UK call 999 and set out to escape justice, deceive police, and lie about committing murder, only to be damned by their own words. Detectives unravel the false trails and deception within the 999 call to expose the truth and catch the killer. 999 Murderer Calling premieres in the US on Monday, December 9, on Discovery+.
The Great British Baking Show: Holidays: Season 7 (UK)
Baker-chef-author Paul Hollywood and restaurateur-broadcaster-author Prue Leith, aka the bake-off judges, welcome former GBBS hopefuls back to the tent to whip up seasonal sweet treats for a chance to win the coveted Star Baker title. The Great British Baking Show: Holidays: Season 7, a Netflix Series, premieres in the US on Monday, December 9, exclusively on Netflix.
Sugarcane (CA-US)
This multi-award-winning documentary is an epic cinematic portrait of a community during a moment of international reckoning — a stunning tribute to the resilience of Native people and their way of life. In 2021, evidence of unmarked graves was discovered on the grounds of an Indian residential school run by the Catholic Church in Canada. After years of silence, the forced separation, assimilation, and abuse many Native children experienced at these segregated boarding schools was brought to light, sparking a national outcry against a system designed to destroy Indigenous communities. Set amidst a groundbreaking investigation, the film illuminates the beauty of a community breaking cycles of intergenerational trauma and finding the strength to persevere.
Sugarcane premieres in the US on Monday, December 9, at 9pm ET, on National Geographic, with streaming available on Disney+ and Hulu starting December 10.
Shetland: Season 9 (UK/Scotland)
In the new season of this hit crime drama series, inspired by characters in the best-selling “Shetland Mystery” novels by award-winning crime writer Anne Cleeves, a double missing persons case blurs the lines between the personal and the professional, as DI Ruth Calder (Ashley Jensen, Agatha Raisin, After Life) and DS Alison “Tosh” McIntosh (Alison O’Donnell, Holby City, Do No Harm) are drawn into a labyrinthine investigation. When Tosh’s friend, Annie Bett, goes missing, she suspects something is seriously wrong. Calder, now living in Shetland, has no time to recover from a life-threatening ordeal of her own, as she and Tosh set out in search of Annie and her young son, Noah. They discover Annie, an accountant, is estranged from her husband, Ian, and has been staying with mussel farmer John Harris and his two sons, Patrick and Fergus. Worryingly, there’s no sign of Annie there either.
Calder follows Tosh’s instincts and looks for Annie at the home she shared with Ian. There, they discover Professor Euan Rossi, who claims to have been Annie’s tutor at Oxford University many years ago. Suspicions are stirred when Tosh and Calder learn Rossi traveled all the way to Shetland after Annie left him a distressed voicemail the night she vanished. Calder can’t shake the feeling there’s more to Rossi than meets the eye.
Meanwhile, at the station, Calder delves deeper into another case involving a deadly argument between two brothers. The missing persons investigation draws Tosh and Calder into a web of lies, and when a bloodied person turns up at a remote garage, nothing can prepare the team for what lies ahead.
Reprising their roles are Steven Robertson as DC Sandy Wilson; Lewis Howden as Sgt. Billy McCabe; Anne Kidd as forensic pathologist Cora McLean; Conor McCarry as PC Alex Grant; Eubha Akilade as PC Lorna Burns; Angus Miller as Donnie Russell, Tosh’s partner; Steven Miller as Rev. Alan Calder, Ruth’s brother; and Tibu Fortes as Harry Lamont.
The Season 9 cast also includes Sarah MacGillivray (Outlander) as Annie Bett, Jacob Ferguson as Noah Bett, Robert Jack (Succession) as Ian Bett, Vincent Regan (House of the Dragon) as John Harris, Ross Anderson (Granite Harbour) as Patrick Harris, Macleod Stephen (Granite Harbour) as Fergus Harris, and Ian Hart (The Responder) as Euan Rossi.
Additional cast members include Leeroy Boone, Stuart Campbell (Rogue Heroes), Nalini Chetty (Karen Pirie), Richard Thomson (This Is Going to Hurt), Andrew John Tait (Rebus), Tara Lee, Jimmy Yuill (Guilt), Lesley Hart (Granite Harbour), and Gemma McElhinney (Karen Pirie).
Shetland: Season 9, a BritBox Original, premieres in North America on Wednesday, December 11, exclusively on BritBox, with episodes airing weekly through the season finale on January 15, 2025.
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Shetland (8 book series on Kindle) by Ann Cleeves
Shetland (8 book series in paperback) by Ann Cleeves
Shetland: Seasons One and Two DVD
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Monkey on a Stick: Murder, Madness & the Hare Krishnas (CA)
Based on the eponymous book by John Hubner and Lindsey Gruson, this new two-part documentary is an exposé of the criminal activity that took place within the Hare Krishna movement in America in the 1970s and ’80s. It tells the story of devotees like Nori Muster, a young woman from Los Angeles who joins the movement to find inner peace and spiritual meaning but instead discovers a rotting heart of criminal activity taking place within ISKCON, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Drug smuggling, stockpiling weapons, and the subjugation and exploitation of female devotees metastasizes to widespread child sexual abuse and murder, all under the watch of ISKCON’s spiritual leaders — the gurus who run the movement.
Monkey on a Stick: Murder, Madness & the Hare Krishnas, a Sundance Now Original, premieres in the US and Canada on Thursday, December 12, exclusively on Sundance Now and the AMC+ streaming bundle.
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Monkey On A Stick: Murder, Madness, And The Hare Krishnas by John Hubner and Lindsey Gruson
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If I Go Missing (CA)
In this thriller, a true-crime fanatic becomes obsessed with finding the neighborhood killer responsible for the disappearance of her best friend. Starring Emma Elle Paterson (The Apprentice, The Wall), If I Go Missing, a Tubi Original, premieres in the US on Friday, December 13, on Tubi.
The Chelsea Detective: Season 3 (UK)
Starring Adrian Scarborough (Killing Eve, The King’s Speech, 1917), the third season of this fan-favorite mystery series opens with the feature-length Christmas special, “Everyone Loves Chloe.” After former pop star and one-time darling of the tabloids, Chloe Carmichael, is found dead in her Chelsea mansion flat in the days leading up to Christmas, DI Max Arnold (Scarborough) and DS Layla Walsh (Vanessa Emme, Dublin Murders, Three Families) suspect a drug overdose at first, but forensics soon establishes that Chloe had been drowned in the bath. Max and the team must contend with a string of potential suspects, including Chloe’s hard-bitten manager, a conniving journalist, and a Tory MP. Each of them has a secret connecting them to Chloe, but who was it that killed her?
Also reprising their roles in Season 3 are Peter Bankolé (DI Ray, Bodkin) as DC Connor Pollock, Lucy Phelps (Grace) as DC Jess Lombard, Sophie Stone (Shetland) as Chief Forensics Officer Ashley Wilton, Anamaria Marinca (Temple) as Max’s estranged wife, Astrid, and Frances Barber (Whitstable Pearl) as Max’s Aunt Olivia.
The Chelsea Detective: Everyone Loves Chloe premieres in the US and Canada on Monday, December 16, exclusively on Acorn TV. (Season 3 will continue in 2025.)
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The Chelsea Detective: Series 1 DVD
The Chelsea Detective: Series 2 DVD
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Sister Boniface Mysteries Christmas Special 2024: Once Upon a Time (UK)
In this popular whodunit’s feature-length Christmas special, members of the local constabulary in Great Slaughter are enlisted to swell the cast for the town’s pantomime production — Cinderella! But when Tibbles the cat presents the production with the grisly gift of a human eyeball, Sister Boniface (Lorna Watson, Father Brown), the crime-solving Catholic nun, is on the case.
Events take a sinister turn when an actor is found dead, stabbed in the back. With a murderer and an eyeball to contend with, matters get more complicated when another cast member is dispatched. Can Sister Boniface unmask the culprit before they kill again? And most importantly, can the Great Slaughter Amateur Dramatics Society give the public the joyous Christmas pantomime they deserve?
Sister Boniface Mysteries Christmas Special 2024: Once Upon a Time, a BritBox Original, premieres in North America on Tuesday, December 17, exclusively on BritBox.
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Sister Boniface Mysteries: Season One DVD
Sister Boniface Mysteries: Season Two DVD
Sister Boniface Mysteries: Season Three DVD
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The Secret Lives of Animals (UK-US)
Narrated by Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey), this new 10-part nature docuseries highlights 77 unique species in 24 countries over three years, revealing stunning, never-before-seen animal behaviors and the remarkable intelligence of the natural world. Each episode delves into pivotal moments in the life cycles of various animals — from birth and leaving home to raising a family, and from finding food to growing old — showcasing their striking intelligence and adaptability. Highlights include an orb-weaving spider constructing a deceptive “self-portrait” puppet to deter predators; a wood mouse that creates its own signposts; and an unexpected relationship between a reticulated humming frog and a burrowing tarantula. The Secret Lives of Animals premieres globally on Wednesday, December 18, exclusively on Apple TV+.
Black Widow: The Murder of David Jackson (UK)
This two-hour true-crime documentary is about a grisly murder that took place on the eve of Valentine’s Day 2021. It was then, following a private birthday celebration in a sleepy beachside resort, that Penny Jackson, a 66-year-old retired accountant, murdered her ex-army officer husband, David — coldheartedly stabbing him on three separate occasions over an 18-minute period, all while on the phone with emergency services. Within hours, recordings of the aftermath of the murder and the shocking confession were shared globally, and the world was gripped by the story. Black Widow: The Murder of David Jackson premieres in the US on Friday, December 20, exclusively on BritBox.
Beyond Paradise Christmas Special 2024 (UK)
In another holiday whodunit, when a man is haunted by the ghost of his dead wife, DI Humphrey Goodman (Kris Marshall, Death in Paradise) and the team investigate. Esther (Zahra Ahmadi, Count Arthur Strong) assumes there must be a rational explanation, but when Humphrey also spots the ghost, it’s clear there’s more to the case than meets the eye. Meanwhile, Kelby (Dylan Llewellyn, Derry Girls) deals with a missing person case when the Virgin Mary disappears from the church, and Martha (Sally Bretton, Not Going Out) struggles to communicate with foster teenager Jaiden. Can the Shipton Abbott police force solve these mysteries?
Beyond Paradise Christmas Special 2024, a BritBox Original, premieres in North America on Wednesday, December 25, exclusively on BritBox.
Doctor Who: Joy to the World (UK)
In this year’s Doctor Who Christmas special, when Joy (Nicola Coughlan, Bridgerton, Derry Girls) checks into a London hotel in 2024, she opens a secret doorway to the Time Hotel — discovering danger, dinosaurs, and the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa, Sex Education, Masters of the Air). But a deadly plan is unfolding across the Earth, just in time for Christmas…
Doctor Who: Joy to the World premieres globally (outside the UK) on Wednesday, December 25, exclusively on Disney+.
Carols from King’s Christmas Special 2024 (UK)
This program is a beloved British celebration of Christmas, filmed amidst the beauty of historic King’s College Chapel in Cambridge. (Video is from 2023)
Carols from King’s Christmas Special 2024 premieres in North America on Thursday, December 26, exclusively on BritBox.
Protection (UK)
Based on the first-hand experiences of a long-serving witness protection officer, this crime thriller starring Siobhan Finneran (Happy Valley, Time, A Confession, Downton Abbey) is about what happens when the witness protection system breaks down.
After witness protection officer Detective Inspector Liz Nyles (Finneran) hears there’s been a shooting at a safe house, she finds herself at the heart of a breach and has a lot of questions to answer, including why another officer, one with whom she was having an affair, was at the crime scene, too. Now personally compromised but determined to fight back, Liz makes it her mission to uncover the true source of corruption within her unit in order to redeem herself and the reputation of her lover and to keep her witnesses safe — even if they don’t always deserve it.
As Liz navigates the morally-gray, clandestine world of witness protection to find the truth, she will be forced to go deep into the heart of the criminal underbelly and beyond, while also becoming more and more torn between caring for her family, her loyalty to her lover, and her duty as a police officer.
The cast includes Katherine Kelly (Mr Bates vs. the Post Office), Barry Ward (Bad Sisters), Andrew Knott (Black Work), Chaneil Kular (Sex Education), Tom Christian (Grace), Ian Pirie (Guilt), and Anthony Flanagan (House of the Dragon), amongst others.
Protection premieres in North America as a six-episode binge on Sunday, December 29, exclusively on BritBox.
Gardeners’ World Winter Special 2024 (UK)
This program, the BBC’s flagship gardening show, is packed with good ideas and tips from experts and timely reminders to get the most of your garden, whatever its size or type. And it’s back with its annual winter special. Gardeners’ World Winter Special 2024 premieres in North America as a four-episode binge on Tuesday, December 31, exclusively on BritBox.
Death in Paradise Christmas Special 2024 (UK)
This year’s feature-length Christmas special brings fans of Death in Paradise quite the gift: a stranger in paradise in the form of DI Mervin Wilson (Don Gilet, EastEnders), who takes over as head of the police team in Saint Marie. A Londoner through and through, DI Wilson has barely arrived and is already trying to leave — making no secret of the fact that he struggles with everything about the Caribbean island. It’s not long before he clashes with Selwyn (Don Warrington, Chasing Shadows) and the other officers. But a baffling crime tests all their sleuthing skills: Two Santa Clauses have been found murdered, with a third being the target of an attempted murder. All three victims were shot at the same time, with the same gun, in completely different locations. But how?
Death in Paradise Christmas Special 2024, a BritBox Original, premieres in North America in December (date tba), exclusively on BritBox.
LOCAL/REGIONAL PREMIERES
Christmas at Longleat (UK)
This hour-long documentary follows the dedicated team of Longleat, one of Britain’s grandest estates, as they prepare for the holiday season. Go behind the scenes as the estate is transformed into a Christmas wonderland in time for the busiest month of the year, which includes stately dinner festivities and one of Europe’s largest lantern festivals. Christmas at Longleat is confirmed for airing on or after Sunday, December 1, on the following public TV stations and state/regional networks: Georgia Public Broadcasting, Idaho Public Television, KCPT, KRSU, KSPS, KVIE, Louisiana Public Broadcasting, Maryland Public Television, PBS Wisconsin, WFYI, WILL, WNED, WOSU, and WPBS.
Midsomer Murders: Season 23 (UK)
This long-running whodunit series, set in the picturesque (fictional) English county of Midsomer, returns to public TV with Season 23’s four two-part stories starring Neil Dudgeon (Messiah) as DCI John Barnaby and Nick Hendrix (The Crown) as Barnaby’s sidekick, DS Jamie Winter, and costarring Fiona Dolman (Heartbeat) as Barnaby’s wife, Sarah, and Annette Badland (Ted Lasso) as pathologist Dr. Fleur Perkins. Midsomer Murders: Season 23 is confirmed for airing on or after Sunday, December 1, on the following public TV stations and state/regional networks: Arkansas PBS, Connecticut Public Television (CPTV), Georgia Public Broadcasting, Idaho Public Television, Iowa PBS, KAET, KAKM, KCPT, KCTS, KERA, KLRN, KLRU, KLVX, KNME, KNPB, KOCE, KPBS, KQEH, KRMA, KRSU, KSPS, KSYS, KTCA, KTWU, KUAT, KUED, KUHT, Louisiana Public Broadcasting, Maryland Public Television, Montana PBS, New Hampshire PBS, NJ PBS (New Jersey), OETA (Oklahoma), Oregon Public Broadcasting, PBS North Carolina, PBS Wisconsin, South Dakota Public Broadcasting, Vermont Public, WABE, WCMU, WCVE, WDSE, WEDU, WETA, WGBH, WGVU, WILL, WJCT, WLIW, WLRN, WLVT, WMHT, WMVS, WNED, WNEO, WNIN, WPBS, WPSU, WPTO, WSBE, WSKG, WTTW, WTVS, WUCF, WUFT, WVIA, WVIZ, WVPT, WXEL, and WXXI.
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Midsomer Murders Series 23 DVD
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NON-PREMIERE PROGRAMS BEING ADDED TO STREAMING SERVICES
Titles in this section begin streaming on the dates shown below on Acorn TV and its digital channels, including Acorn TV on Prime Channels.
Christmas Wedding Runaway (CA)
In this romantic drama, runaway bride Maggie Mason (Sara Mitich, Star Trek: Discovery, White Night) does some soul-searching when she’s trapped in a snowed-in cabin with her grandmother and an old flame at Christmas. Christmas Wedding Runaway begins streaming Monday, December 2.
Saving Christmas Spirit (UK-US)
In this holiday drama, Canadian archeology professor Lucy Stewart (Ashley Newrough, Operation Nutcracker) decides to spend her Christmas break in the Scottish Highlands, where she goes on a quest to find the ruins of an ancient shrine. With the aid of the charming local distillery owner, Duncan (James Robinson, A Merry Scottish Christmas), as her guide, Lucy explores the beauty of the highlands and discovers both history and love. Saving Christmas Spirit begins streaming Monday, December 2.
Canal Boat Diaries: Seasons 3-4 (UK)
This travelogue follows explorer Robbie Cumming as he navigates the intricate network of canals aboard the narrowboat Naughty Lass, revealing the beauty of England’s landscapes, towns, and villages from a unique perspective. Canal Boat Diaries: Seasons 3-4 begins streaming Monday, December 23.
A Dance to the Music of Time (UK)
Adapted from A Dance to the Music of Time, Anthony Powell’s 12-volume novel, this drama follows a group of school friends from the 1920s through the 1960s, as their friendship, adultery, ambition, and failure play out against the backdrop of London’s social, political, and artistic life. A Dance to the Music of Time begins streaming Monday, December 23.
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A Dance to the Music of Time (12 book series) by Anthony Powell
A Dance to the Music of Time DVD
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Titles in this section begin streaming on the dates shown below on BritBox and its digital channels, including BritBox on Prime Channels.
Paddington (UK)
Inspired by the classic “Paddington” books by Michael Bond, this family-friendly fantasy-comedy film follows a young bear (voiced by Ben Whishaw, “James Bond” films) after a deadly earthquake destroys his home in the Peruvian rainforest. In making his way to London to find a new home, the bear, dubbed “Paddington” after the London train station, finds shelter with the family of Henry (Hugh Bonneville, Downton Abbey) and Mary Brown (Sally Hawkins, Jane Eyre). Although Paddington’s amazement at urban living soon endears him to the Browns, someone else has her eye on him: taxidermist Millicent Clyde (Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies), who has designs on the rare bear and his hide. Paddington begins streaming Sunday, December 1.
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“Paddington” books by Michael Bond
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Joan (UK)
Inspired by the life of the UK’s most notorious jewel thief, this crime drama stars Sophie Turner (Game of Thrones) as Joan Hannington, a fiery and uncompromising woman in her twenties who is deeply scarred and vulnerable. She is a devoted mother to her six-year-old daughter, Kelly, but is trapped in a disastrous marriage with a violent criminal named Gary (Nick Blood, Slow Horses). When Gary goes on the run, Joan seizes the opportunity to create a new life for herself and her daughter. Adopting new identities and making new acquaintances along the way, Joan becomes a masterful jewel thief. She embarks on a thrilling, high-stakes journey that challenges her every limit, driven by her desire to care for her daughter and create a secure home for them both. Joan has its US streaming debut on Thursday, December 5, with two episodes dropping each Thursday through December 19, exclusively on BritBox.
The Jetty (UK)
Jenna Coleman (Doctor Who) stars in this four-episode crime thriller as Detective Ember Manning, who must figure out the connection between a fire, a cold case, and an illicit love triangle between a man in his twenties and two underage girls. The Jetty begins streaming Friday, December 13.
Peep Show: Season 7 Christmas and New Year Specials (UK)
In this comedy series’ Season 7 holiday specials, Mark (David Mitchell, Ludwig) invites his parents over for Christmas lunch, but his plans go awry when Jeremy (Robert Webb, Death in Paradise) gets overexcited, and both Dobby (Isy Suttie, Man Down) and Super Hans (Matt King, Something in the Air) arrive unexpectedly. Peep Show: Season 7 Christmas and New Year Specials begin streaming Tuesday, December 24.
Deceit (UK)
This four-episode true-crime drama is based on the controversial honeypot operation carried out by the Metropolitan Police in Southwest London in 1992. After five months’ of investigating, the police have not solved the murder of Rachel Nickell. Following a television appeal, they have Colin Stagg (Sion Daniel Young, Slow Horses) as the prime suspect, and are intent on catching him before he can kill again. Their desperation leads them to engage Professor Paul Britton (Eddie Marsan, The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe), the nation’s most famous criminal profiler, to devise a bold undercover operation that will see an attractive, young female officer, codenamed “Lizzie James” (Niamh Algar, Raised by Wolves), serve as bait in the sting and start a relationship with Stagg. Deceit begins streaming Friday, December 27.
Peep Show: Seasons 1-2 (UK)
This award-winning comedy series stars David Mitchell (Upstart Crow) as Mark Corrigan and Robert Webb (Back) as Jeremy “Jez” Usbourne, dysfunctional and ultimately codependent friends who share a flat in Croydon, South London. While Mark is a pessimistic, socially awkward loan manager who dreams of being an intellectual, Jeremy is a perpetually-unemployed slacker who lives in Mark’s spare room and dreams of becoming a famous musician. Peep Show: Seasons 1-2 begins streaming Saturday, December 28.
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher: Seasons 1-4 (UK)
Set in Victorian-era England, this series’ four feature-length mystery-crime dramas star Paddy Considine (House of the Dragon) as Mr. Whicher. In the first episode, “The Murder at Road Hill House,” a true-crime story based on the book The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher by Kate Summerscale, Whicher is a Scotland Yard detective investigating the murder of a 3-year-old boy in Wiltshire. In the last three telefilms, all fictionalised accounts of Whicher’s career, Whicher is a private investigator after his fall from grace in the Yard. The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher: Seasons 1-4 begin streaming Wednesday, December 18.
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The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher by Kate Summerscale
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Did you miss any of the new shows from previous days, weeks, or months? Check out the British TV Viewing Guide and Archives to find out.
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