As the evenings draw in, Sky Arts is today announcing a packed line-up of shows for the Christmas period. Showcasing everything from our favourite festive carols and musicals to Christmas literature and nativity artworks, there's something for everyone to enjoy.
Phil Edgar-Jones, Director, Sky Arts, commented :
We love Christmas at Sky Arts and this year we're bringing some Christmas cheer direct to your telly for free. With our favourite carols, a soup on of swing, Christmas stories and paintings unpacked, and the one and only Noddy Holder sitting for a special festive portrait, iiiit's Christmas! We can't guarantee snow but we can promise warmth, nostalgia and a stocking full of fun.
Upcoming programmes include:
The Nation's Favourite Christmas Carols (1x90): Join us at the London Coliseum for a special concert with the English National Opera's Chorus and Orchestra as they make their way through Britain's favourite Christmas carols, as voted by the public. They'll be helped along the way by some famous faces who will reflect on their own personal favourites, as well as some of the ENO's brightest and best singing talent.
Portrait Artist of the Year Christmas Special (1x60): Six celebrities take on a festive challenge to paint one of three well-known sitters with a little help from some wise mystery guests. While there's celebration in the air, as always, the art is created under the watchful eyes of our discerning judges - award-winning artist Tai Shan Schierenberg, independent curator Kathleen Soriano and art historian Kate Bryan. Sitters include Slade's Noddy Holder, interior designer Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen and singer Mica Paris.
The Mystery of the Nativity (1x60): A new film delving into the mystery of one of the most famous stories ever told. With so many details missing from the story, artists through the ages have been free to imagine extraordinary visions with extraordinary meanings which will be decoded by art critic Waldemar Januszczak.
Christmas in Ireland (w/t, 1x90): Imelda May welcomes friends and family to a uniquely Irish musical night celebrating all the madness of Christmas from traditional music to new sounds and voices. Held in the Pepper Canister Church, Imelda will be joined onstage by some special guests to showcase generations of Irish culture and music.
Sky Arts Book Club Christmas Special (1x90): A bumper Christmas Special where Elizabeth Day and Andi Oliver are joined by author Maggie O'Farrell, broadcasters Jane Garvey and Fi Glover, artist and fashion designer Osman Yousefzada and queen of the kitchen disco, Sophie Ellis-Bextor.
Wonderland Christmas Special (1x60): Combining biography, literary extracts and quotations, this Wonderland special explores children's authors and the pain behind their well-known Christmas stories. Featured authors include Charles Dickens, J.R.R Tolkien, Kenneth Grahame, Rudyard Kipling and CS Lewis.
Classic FM Live (1x120): The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Chief Conductor Kirill Karabits perform some of the world's most popular film themes from The Royal Albert Hall including 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List and Chariots of Fire.
A Swingin' Christmas With The Len Phillips Swing Orchestra (1x90): The 17-piece Len Phillips Swing Orchestra puts on a dazzling live performance of much-loved Christmas classics including Let It Snow, Silent Night, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas and Jingle Bells.
Sky Arts is available on Freeview Channel 11 and NOW.
Notes to Editors
For more information please contact:
Lucy Butterfield
Lucy.Butterfield@sky.uk
07815646886
Ellis Ritchie
Ellis.Ritchie@sky.uk
07935771760
TX dates and times are TBC, but all content above will air in Weeks 51 (17th - 23rd December) and 52 (24th - 30th December).
About Sky Arts
Sky Arts exists to bring more art to more people across the UK. In 2020, with the creative industries under serious threat, we threw open our doors to make the channel free for everyone to watch. We've redoubled our mission to increase access to the arts and we're committed to getting everyone involved as the industry moves from strength to strength. The fact is, we need the arts like never before, and Sky Arts brings them straight to your living room.
We have something for everyone, championing creative talent by showcasing the best in music, theatre, dance, literature, opera and visual art. From Glyndebourne to Grime and Nina Simone to Noel Gallagher, we've got your passions covered. Millions of viewers tune in to hit returning series such as Portrait Artist of the Year and British cultural institution The South Bank Show, but our acclaimed new programmes might take you anywhere from Wordsworth's favourite landscapes to headbanging at Download Festival.
Collaboration is at the heart of what we do. Sky Arts is the headline sponsor of National Theatre Live in the UK and we work with cultural partners across the country including the English National Opera, Bristol Old Vic, Tate, Creative UK and the Crafts Council to name but a few.
You can watch Sky Arts for free on Freeview channel 11 and Freesat channel 147. If you've got Sky or a Now TV entertainment pass, you can also watch over 2,000 hours of shows exclusively on demand.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
13/05/2026
New Adobe Premiere Color Grading Mode Accelerated on NVIDIA GPUs
Joel Pennington May 13, 2026
0 Comments
New NVIDIA RTX-accelerated features streamlin...
13/05/2026
Grass Valley announced that dB Broadcast has delivered new IP-based outside broadcast (OB) trucks for Cloudbass, featuring Grass Valley LDX 100 Series cameras a...
13/05/2026
Ikegami will exhibit the latest additions to its wide range of broadcast production cameras, control units, viewfinders and monitors on stand 5D3-1 at Broadcast...
13/05/2026
FISE, working with the founding members of the XR Sports Alliance (XRSA), Accedo, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and HBS, have collaborated to develop an immersive...
13/05/2026
Canon Unveils New EOS R6 V Full-Frame EOS Camera and RF20-50mm F4 L IS USM PZ Bu...
13/05/2026
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Honors Beth Morrison and Moses Pendleton at Comme...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Creative software developer Foundry today announced the latest developments on Nuke Stage. A purpose-built application for end-to-end virtual production and in-...
13/05/2026
A definitive portrait of one of Ireland's most influential musicians
New TV documentary airs Monday 18 May on RT One and RT Player at 9.35pm
Watch the...
13/05/2026
Agentic AI is changing the way users get work done. Following the success of OpenClaw, the community is embracing new open source agentic frameworks. The latest...
13/05/2026
Reinforcement-learning agents - AI systems that learn by trial and error - can c...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
As the evenings draw in, Sky Arts is today announcing a packed line-up of shows for the Christmas period. Showcasing everything from our favourite festive carols and musicals to Christmas literature and nativity artworks, there's something for everyone to enjoy.
