BBC Scotland to bring ‘seasonal cheer’ for Christmas and New Year

A bumper delivery of festive programming across radio and television…

The broadcaster today released highlights of its festive schedules that will serve up top comedy, compelling documentaries, and drama, alongside a helping of nostalgia and rousing musical entertainment.

Louise Thornton, Head of Commissioning at BBC Scotland:

‘Our programme makers have delivered a line-up that’s packed with delights for our audiences. We hope they’ll enjoy the wide range of treats in our schedules across the festivities and join us again in big numbers as we celebrate 2024’s finale and welcome in the New Year.’

Among the festive offerings is a fascinating two-part documentary into the life and career of football legend, Sir Alex Ferguson. Sir Alex features accounts from a host of former players and adversaries, while exploring the origins of his will-to-win. Both episodes are available on BBC iPlayer from Boxing Day and will also air on the BBC Scotland channel on January 1 and 2 and on BBC One later in the month. An accompanying podcast series will also be released on Boxing Day on BBC Sounds.

Amy Irons makes her debut as host for Hogmanay 2024, the shiny entertainment show on BBC One Scotland that takes the audience through the bells with guests including legendary Scottish singer Marti Pellow, traditional folk band Skipinnish, and Scottish country folk artist Rianne Downey. Over on the BBC Scotland channel, comedian and broadcaster Des Clarke will present the Not Quite End of Year Show as the countdown to the bells begins.

Also on Hogmanay, Rikki celebrates an icon of Hogmanays past and a Scottish comedy hero on BBC One Scotland. It’s 100 years since Robert Kerr ‘Rikki’ Fulton was born in the East End of Glasgow and twenty since he passed. Narrated by Ashley Jensen and featuring archive interviews from the man himself, the documentary tells the story of Rikki Fulton’s extraordinary life.

Queen of the New Year is back to bring the big laughs to Hogmanay on BBC One Scotland as Greg Hemphill and Robert Florence are again joined by the best of Scottish comedy talent. The sketch show takes on 2024 – making us smile and reminisce as we speed towards the bells.

There’s also the series finale of comedy Only Child on BBC Scotland. Greg McHugh’s Richard struggles to find the right time to tell Ken, played by Gregor Fisher, his big news as father and son spend a special day together.

The festivities begin reflectively with Christmas Celebration 2024, which airs on BBC One Scotland just before midnight on Christmas Eve. It comes from Holy Trinity Church in St Andrews and includes performances from St Salvator’s Chapel Choir, Senior Organ Scholar Michael Chamberlain, and children from StAMP Children’s Choir.

To mark the 100th anniversary of the story of sprinter Eric Liddell, which inspired the film ‘Chariots of Fire‘, the programme features an interview with his daughter, Patrica Liddell Russell.

In River City Christmas, an unexpected dinner guest brings chaos for Mikey; Caitlin is stunned by Sam’s festive gift; and Mulvaney and Bob come together to bring yuletide peace for Scarlett. The series reaches an unmissable finale in the Hogmanay edition – Harry orchestrates a showdown to finally reveal the rat and Mikey is on tenterhooks at the hospital waiting for Jonathon to wake-up.

Wildlife filmmaker Gordon Buchanan takes an epic journey across the Gobi Desert on one of the world’s most iconic, yet least understood animals – camels. My Epic Camel Adventure with Gordon Buchanan on BBC Two and BBC Scotland chronicles a remarkable adventure which begins in the west of Mongolia.

The BBC Scotland series Craft Christmas at Beechgrove, presented by Jean Johansson, is counting down to the big day with some great ideas for things the family can make, do and eat, to ensure a memorable festive period. And five festive ho-ho-homes are all hoping to be gifted the title of Scotland’s Christmas Home of the Year 2024 in a seasonal special of the popular series on BBC Scotland.

Musical treats from BBC Scotland which are available on the iPlayer across the festivities include Simple Minds: Everything is Possible, the story of how a group of working-class kids became one of the most iconic Scottish bands in history, and Since Yesterday: The Untold Story of Scotland’s Girl Bands, a feature- length documentary highlighting the trailblazing groups who challenged a male-dominated industry.

There’s stand-up comedy across the BBC Scotland festive schedules including solo shows from top drawer comics such as Kevin Bridges, Danny Bhoy and Mark Nelson, and performances from a host of stars in a screening of Scotland Stands Up.

And the Breaking The News team is back on the BBC Scotland channel with their annual review of the last 12 months. Des Clarke, and special guests, Kaye Adams, Iain Stirling, Susie McCabe, and Christopher MacArthur-Boyd take a wry look back at the biggest stories in a festive special that will also air on BBC Radio Scotland.

Radio highlights…