The pick of the Christmas season

Christmas Carols

Virgin Media One Sat 21 December 5.55am, VM3 Monday, 23 December, 9.30 am

Singing superstar Alfie Boe leads the congregation of St Elisabeth’s Church in Greater Manchester in a traditional Christmas Eve carol service, with Nadine Coyle, and Alexander O’Neal.

Renovation Nation

Virgin Media One Sat 21 December, 11.30 am

An old orchard within the grounds of The Daughters of Charity Disability Services in Limerick is the target for the first renovation.

IN CONCERT: CHRISTMAS IN VIENNA 2017

EWTN Saturday, 21 December, 9.30 pm

A beautiful and inspiring Christmas concert from Vienna concert features a vast assembly of international vocalists.

THE EWTN FAMILY CHRISTMAS SPECIAL

EWTN Saturday, December 21 (night), 2 am

Fr Joseph Mary Wolfe and the EWTN Chapel Choir gift EWTN viewers with a special Christmas Concert.

Mass on the 4th Sunday of Advent

RTÉ One TV & RTÉ Radio 1 Extra / LW252, Sunday, December 22, 11 am

A live simulcast Mass, with a celebration of the Society of St Vincent de Paul.

Songs of Praise

BBC1, Sunday, December 22, 1.15 pm

This year’s ‘Big Sing’ comes from the Assembly Hall in Belfast.

The Donkey Who Wasn’t There

RTÉ Radio 1 Sun 22 December 7.30 pm

In this festive programme, Jane Little goes in search of the Christmas donkey and its real-life descendants today.

IN CONCERT: BACH’S CHRISTMAS ORATORIO (COLLEGIUM VOCALE GENT)

EWTN Sunday, December 22, 8 pm

Recorded live at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, the Collegium Vocale Gent presents Bach’s famous cantatas, originally written by the composer for performance from Christmas to the Epiphany.

A Christmas Carol

BBC1, Sunday, December 22, 9pm, continuing Monday, Tuesday, 9 pm

Episode 1 of three-part drama from Dickens’ classic story.

The Greatest Story Ever Told

BBC2, Monday, December 23, 9.35 am

(1965) From his lowly but venerated birth through his adult years as a teacher roving the Holy Land, Jesus attracts admirers and enemies unlike any man before. With Max Von Sydow as Jesus.

IN CONCERT: SING NOEL! A CHRISTMAS CONCERT

EWTN, Monday, December 23, 10 am

From Ottawa, Canada, the Thirteen Strings Candlelight Orchestra and the Seventeen Voyces choir perform Fantasia on Christmas Carols and the Christmas Oratorio; French Noels sung by the Children’s Choir from the Ecole Secondaire De la Salle.

The Christmas Letter

RTÉ1, Monday, December 23, 6.30 pm (also Christmas Day 12.30 pm)

This heart-warming and touching tale tells how eight-year-old Henry’s efforts to spread Christmas cheer bring much-needed joy into the life of a lonely old lady.

NEW! LIFE ON THE ROCK – MFVA CHRISTMAS SHOW

EWTN, Monday, December 23, 8.30 pm

Join the Franciscan Friars of the Eternal Word for a special Christmas celebration!

IN CONCERT-JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH: CHRISTMAS CANTATAS

EWTN, Monday, December 23, 9.30 pm

Recorded at the Church of St Roch in Paris, France, experience the classical majesty of famed composer Johann Sebastian Bach’s Christmas Cantatas as performed by the Collegium Vocale Gent.

Pilgrimage: The Road to Rome

BBC2, Christmas Eve, 7 am

Eight celebrities of differing faiths and beliefs strap on backpacks and have 15 days to tackle 1,000km of the ancient Via Francigena pilgrimage, from the Italian Alps to Rome. The three episodes together. Repeat.

Carols from Kings
BBC2, Christmas Eve, 5.50pm and Christmas Day, 8.40 am

Traditional Christmas celebrations from the candlelit Chapel of King’s College, Cambridge. The world famous choir is directed for the first time by former King’s College organ scholar Daniel Hyde.

Angela’s Christmas

RTÉ1, Christmas Eve, 6.20 pm

Set in Ireland in the early 1900s, Angela’s Christmas is a funny, heart-warming and poignant story about the power of family and the innocent desire of a child to ensure everyone is safe, warm and loved at Christmas time.

Carols from Kilkenny Castle

RTÉ1, Christmas Eve, 9.20pm (also Christmas Day 7.35 am)

Mary Kennedy presents a star-studded, festive  celebration from Kilkenny Castle, with  Colm Wilkinson, Ronan Tynan, Claudia Boyle, Róisín O and her new band Thanks Brother, Jack L and Hudson Taylo.

Midnight Mass

RTÉ1 and RTÉ Radio 1. Christmas Eve 11 pm

Midnight Mass live from the Cathedral of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven & St Nicholas, Galway, will be broadcast via Eurovision The Principal Celebrant for Christmas Eve is the Most Reverend Brendan Kelly, Bishop of Galway & Kilmacduagh.

Midnight Mass

BBC1, Christmas Eve, 11.40 pm

Rev. Dr Andrew Bishop leads Midnight Mass from Croydon Minster. The choir sings Mozart’s Great Credo Mass in C and leads the congregation in well-loved carols.

The Christmas Leap of Faith

RTÉ Radio 1, Christmas Day, 8 am

The Leap of Faith presents ‘Spirits of Christmas: Past, Present and Future’.  From Dickensian nostalgia to tales of our times and hopes for the years ahead.  A festive gathering of guests join Michael Comyn for conversation, music and readings.

Mass on Christmas Day

RTÉ1 & RTÉ Radio 1 Extra/ Longwave 252, Christmas Day, 10 am

Live Eurovision Mass from the Church of the Sacred Heart, in Lugano, in the Italian-speaking canton of Switzerland, with commentary and translation by Fr Thomas McCarthy OP.

Christmas Morning from St Joseph’s Catholic Church, Bradford

BBC1, Christmas Day, 10 am

A joyful celebration of Christmas live from St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Bradford, led by the Rev. Christopher Angel and featuring Bradford Catholic Youth Choir.

Urbi et Orbi

RTÉ1, Christmas Day, 11 am (also EWTN)

Pope Francis’ Christmas Message – from St Peter’s Basilica, Rome, with commentary and translation by Fr Thomas McCarthy OP.

The Archbishops’ Christmas Message

RTÉ1, Christmas Day, 12.15 pm

The Roman Catholic and Anglican Primates of All Ireland, Archbishop Eamonn, Martin and Archbishop Richard Clarke, offer a seasonal message of faith, hope and charity, which, this year, focuses on our shared responsibility for the environment and our climate.

IN CONCERT: THE KING’S SINGERS – CHRISTMAS

EWTN, Christmas Day, 2 pm

One of the world’s most celebrated ensembles performs traditional Christmas classics such as Stille Nacht, Veni Veni Emmanuel and many others. No streaming.

NEW! THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA’S CHRISTMAS CONCERT

EWTN, Christmas Day, 7pm, also St Stephen’s Day, 7 am

The annual Christmas concert presented by the Catholic University of America, featuring a brilliant blend of angelic voices and the wonderful sounds of the Christmas Season.

On Christmas Night

BBC1, Christmas Day, 11.50 pm

A popular face of 2019 retells the story of the first Christmas from Luke’s Gospel, when angels proclaimed the news of Jesus’s birth to shepherds. Acclaimed boys’ choir Libera perform the Basque carol Sing Lullaby.

Tom Jones and Beverly Knight’s Gospel Christmas

BBC4, Christmas Day (night), 1.40 am

Sir Tom Jones and Beverley Knight present a special evening of music and spiritual cheer, featuring performances from choirs and a house band from the British gospel scene.

KEEP CHRIST IN CHRISTMAS, A CATHOLICS COME HOME SPECIAL PRESENTATION

EWTN, St Stephen’s Day, 11.30 am

A tour behind the scenes of the making of Santa’s Priority, a Christmas evangomercial and discover what a small group of Catholics are doing to combat the secular war on Christmas and to glorify Jesus, the reason for the season.

Tommy Fleming: A Voice of Hope 2

Virgin Media One, St Stephen’s Day, 11 pm

Tommy Fleming treats viewers to a concert from the holy pilgrimage site Knock Basilica in the West of Ireland.

CARLOW CHOIR PRESENTS, THE: JOY TO THE WORLD

EWTN Friday, December 27, 7 pm

Enjoy the sounds of the season in this delightful Christmas program from The Carlow Choir.

Life & Soul Christmas Special

RTÉ1, RTÉ Radio 1 Extra and LW 252, Sunday, December 29, 11 am

Francis Brennan, Katie Taylor and Ireland hockey star Elena Tice areamong  Aine ONeill and Colm Flynn’s guests for this seasonal episode that celebrates Christianity as a living and lived faith. Also, the legacy of the late Jean Vanier of L’Arche in Cork

IN CONCERT: THE GREAT ORGAN OF NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL

EWTN Monday, 30 December 6 am

The majesty of the great organ at Notre Dame Cathedral is showcased by organist Olivier Latry in this historic concert recorded prior to the catastrophic fire.

*Schedules may be subject to change and regional variations