Christmas is always a time of year to gather around the TV and relax, usually while digesting an entire day’s worth of calories consumed in one sitting. But these days, we’re no longer tied to the television set when it comes to consuming our visual entertainment, with streaming never more popular. So here’s our pick of 12 things to get you through the festive season that you can watch on Netflix right now…
1. Blackadder’s Christmas Carol
This one-off Christmas special from the beloved historical sitcom written by Richard Curtis and Ben Elton first debuted on the BBC in 1988, and in the near 30 years since has lost none of its punch.
2. Happy Christmas
From Joe Swanberg, the Mumblecore maestro of contemporary American cinema, comes this feature starring Anna Kendrick as a young woman struggling with her hard-partying ways who temporarily moves in with her brother.
3. Arthur Christmas
As Santa Claus’s son, Arthur discovers that his father’s high-tech sleigh has failed to deliver one little girl’s present, and heads off to finish the job. Featuring the voices of James McAvoy, Hugh Laurie, and Jim Broadbent.
4. A Very Murray Christmas
Directed by Sofia Coppola, this Netflix Original holiday special sees funnyman Bill Murray get snowbound in New York when he’s about to perform a one-man Christmas show. Featuring guest appearances from Rashida Jones, Amy Poehler, Miley Cyrus, Maya Rudolph and George Clooney.
5. Nativity!
This British family comedy follows the exploits of a put-upon primary school teacher (Martin Freeman), who is tasked with putting on the annual nativity play, with the help of his new class teaching assistant Mr Poppy.
6. Home Alone
Now 26 years old, the Chris Columbus-directed Christmas classic, written by the late John Hughes, turned Macaulay Culkin into the biggest child star on the planet in the 1990s, and has been delighting generations of families ever since with its manic take on child abandonment and home invasion.
7. Scrooged
This 1988 satirical take on Dickens’ A Christmas Carol sees Bill Murray’s second entry on the list, and was much maligned during its original release. Since then it has become a major cult classic.
8. Jingle all the Way
Any parents who’ve queued for hours to get their hands on the must-have toy of the year will have a soft spot for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 20-year-old family comedy about a father’s struggles to get his hands on a Turbo-Man for his son.
9. The Legend of Frosty the Snowman
A sequel to the 1969 classic, this animated film sees the snowman’s magical hat break free from a locked chest in an attic, where he tries to bring joy to the lives of children in the rule-abiding town of Evergreen.
10. The Royle Family: The Queen of Sheba
With Caroline Aherne having passed away during the year, it’s unlikely we’ll ever get to see a new The Royle Family Christmas special. So sit back and enjoy their finest one ever, which deals with the failing health of Nanna. Have the tissues ready…
11. Die Hard
Arguably the greatest non-Christmas Christmas movie ever made, the brilliant action thriller is considered a near-perfect film in terms of how it is crafted, plotted, and performed.
12. Fireplace for your Home
Well… In case you want to play charades and live in an apartment, you can still conjure the atmosphere of a roaring fire with Netflix’s three one-hour log burning videos.
