Sky reveals some of their festive highlights for Christmas 2023.
In a special for the season, Sky Max will air The Heist Before Christmas. Twelve-year-old Mikey Collins, who’s dirt-poor and hates Christmas, finds two Santa Clauses in the woods. One has just pulled off a bank heist (James Nesbitt) and is on the run with the cash, the other Santa (Timothy Spall) claims to have fallen out of his sleigh. Mikey has no time for this second guy – he’s well past believing any of the Jingle Bells, spirit-of-the-season rubbish, even if his little brother Sean insists on treating the old man like a superstar.
Instead, Mikey’s determined to get his hands on the bank-robber’s cash, convinced that this is the answer to giving his family the Christmas they all crave. But as Mikey risks everything for the loot, he comes to realise that maybe the spirit of Christmas is alive after all…
While in A Very Brassic Christmas, also to air on Sky Max,the plan is to kick back, relax and enjoy life to the max. But then comes the inevitable. A call from Dr Chris saying his aunt is in crisis and needs looking after and a robbery at Tyler’s school ruining his nativity. Vinnie, Erin Tommo, Cardi, Carol Ashely and JJ must now bring on their A-Game and help save Christmas the Brassic way.
Bring on a heist at a winter wonderland, a fight with a man called Dick Dolphin, babysitting Chris’s Aunt and the best Nativity ever staged. This extra special Brassic Christmas episode co-stars Imelda Staunton as Aunt Edie and Greg Davies as Dick Dolphin. Nobody does Christmas like the Brassic gang.
Chris Ramsey and Paul Chowdry, alongside engineer Zoe Laughlin, will scientifically assess stunts from the much-loved Christmas action film, Die Hard inThe Unofficial Science of Die Hard. From rooftop escapes to walking over shattered glass, Chris and Paul will put stunts to the test to discover how to tackle them in real life. Along the way, the pair will set out to answer the biggest question of all: is Die Hard a Christmas film?
And because Christmas is the time for giving, this December Sky Max also brings The Unofficial Science of Indiana Jones which will see Greg James and Maisie Adam team up to take on family favourite, Indiana Jones. Join the pair as they learn how to dodge poisonous darts, outrun giant boulders, and survive fireballs. Whilst both duos explore the stunts of the films, Alex Brooker returns to explore the sets and meet iconic cast members to hear their favourite memories.
On Sky Arts, Mica Paris A Gospel Christmas is a heartwarming and soul-stirring gospel concert bringing the community together in the spirit of Christmas. Set in St Alfege Church in Greenwich, the concert – directed by music industry legend Chris Cowey of The Tube (Tyne Tees TV/Channel 4) and Top of the Pops (BBC/BBC One) fame – features the extraordinary talent of renowned musical artist Mica Paris, accompanied by a powerful choir of ten gifted gospel singers and a dynamic four-piece band. The carefully curated repertoire blends timeless gospel classics with contemporary festive favourites, such as I’ll Be Home for Christmas, Amazing Grace and Oh Holy Night, all infused with the soulful and passionate renditions that Mica Paris is known for.
There are also specials of A League of Their Own, Never Mind The Buzzcocks and Rob & Rom. A host of festive films will be available on Sky Cinema such as Elf and Arthur Christmas as well as Christmas classics including Love Actually and The Holiday.
Sky Comedy is Smothered once more. Will they? Won’t they? Should they? Shouldn’t they? A not so typical rom-com starring Danielle Vitalis and Jon Pointing in a tale of two worlds colliding, where romance blossoms but the pressures of modern dating linger. Sammy (Vitalis) is a fiercely independent young woman who is done with dating apps, sick of immature men, and here for a good time. Tom (Pointing) has never been inclined to swipe left or right; he’s a settled man with a warm heart but carries his fair share of baggage.
On a night out, the two strangers meet, and end up singing out their drunken souls in a karaoke booth. Then the inevitable happens. (They hook up). What seems like a great idea at the time, the strangers agree to have a no strings attached affair for three weeks – but on the condition that they never speak again. Sounds simple, right? However, what was supposed to be a few weeks of great sex, pasta in bed and first names only, the sparks flying around them cannot be ignored. But Sammy soon makes a shocking discovery that there is another woman in Tom’s life…his six-year-old daughter Ellie.
For stand-up laughs Sky Comedy will air Leo Reich: Literally Who Cares?! Hot. Young. Cool. Fresh. Ripped. Hilarious. Groundbreaking. Avant-garde. These are just some of the words that comedian and writer Leo Reich uses to describe himself.
In his first TV comedy special, this self-diagnosed important young mind faces the swirling uncertainty of our collective future, asking the big questions, such as: “Is this helping?”, “Am I hot?”, and “No offense guys but literally what is going on?” Treading the line between hilarious stand-up and humourless performance art. This special blends songs, anecdotes, and anxious non sequiturs in a valiant attempt to raise awareness about important social and political causes… or something.
And if its a bit of wildlife on the Christmas list Sky Nature has Whale with Steve Backshall. In this brand-new series, Steve will free dive with iconic whales and their dolphin cousins, getting closer than ever before to these ancient mariners, witnessing new and rarely seen behaviours.
In immersive stunning blue chip natural history sequences, we’ll see mighty sperm whales, caring humpback whales, intelligent killer whales and ingenious bottlenose dolphins, exploring their complex social relationships, revealing their surprising hunting techniques, and discovering that just like us, many whales have close family units.
As a naturalist, conservationist and Sky Ocean Hero Ambassador, Steve will team up with world-leading scientists to confront the uncomfortable and urgent truths of overfishing and pollution, along the way uncovering how whales and dolphins are adapting to changing oceans in unexpected ways. Joining whale advocates across the globe who are already achieving great conservation successes, Steve will discover why whales are essential for the health of our oceans, what we can do to ensure their survival and ensure the most remarkable conservation story of all.
