What to watch on PBS over the holidays
Curl up this holiday season with your favorites from PBS. From special music to delicious food, there's something for everyone in this festive lineup. Check out this holiday programming below or on the PBS App.
Stories from the Stage | Giving Thanks
Favorite stories about Thanksgiving, the holiday that has us giving thanks. Lani's cooking mistake becomes a family secret; Melanée tests her adulthood through the ultimate challenge: the Thanksgiving turkey; and Matthew gathers his courage to stand up to his girlfriend’s tough as nails dad. Three stories, three interpretations of GIVING THANKS.
Add to Your WatchlistExplore Holiday Concerts & Performances
Celebrate & Sing! Glory to the Newborn King!
This spectacular Christmas concert of secular and sacred music is under the direction of Steven R. Jobman and performed by the church’s renowned 150-voice Sanctuary Choir, orchestra and Organist/Artist-in-Residence, Bradley Hunter Welch. The program also features handbells, bagpipes, jazz ensemble and soloists. Watch the full concert here.
Add to Your WatchlistNature | Santa's Wild Home
Get an intimate look at the wildlife of Lapland. This region in northern Finland is the fabled home of Santa Claus and actual home to reindeer, great gray owls, wolverines, eagles, wolves, musk oxen, brown bears and more. Passport members can watch Santa's Wild Home here.
Add to Your Watchlits
A Chef's Life Holiday Special
Having spent most of her adult life in the kitchens of highly-lauded restaurants, Vivian has rarely celebrated the holidays during busy Decembers. This year, she and her husband Ben Knight are determined to give their toddler twins a traditional holiday experience, cooking, laughing, and yes, crying their way through Southern traditions new and old. In this holiday special, Vivian discovers that mistletoe is traditionally shot out of a pecan tree, experiences her first hog killing, and leads a tacky Christmas sweater night with the restaurant staff at Chef and the Farmer. Passport members can watch the full special here.
Add to Your WatchlistSeason of Light: Christmas with The Tabernacle Choir
The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square join award winning artists Lea Salonga and Sir David Suchet for Season of Light: Christmas with The Tabernacle Choir, a festive and uplifting Christmas special. Filmed with a live audience, this concert will illuminate your holiday experience with timeless carols, treasured Christmas songs and a story of heroic service. Season of Light: Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir, premieres December 12, 2023 at 8/7c.
Add to Your WatchlistElla Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
In collaboration with the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation, the American Pops Orchestra presents an evening celebrating the entire iconic album of holiday classics. This 60-minute performance stars host and vocalist Vanessa Williams with appearances by Dee Dee Bridgewater, Norm Lewis, Carmen Ruby Floyd, Nova Payton, Dave Detwiler and Morgan James. Passport members can watch the full special here.
Add to Your WatchlistChristmas at Belmont 2021
Christmas at Belmont 2021 features Belmont University students performing holiday favorites in the new Fisher Center for the Performing Arts in Nashville. This celebration of the season includes holiday favorites and classic songs. Passport members can watch it here.
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Mary Berry's Highland Christmas
Mary Berry's Highland Christmas
Much loved home cook Dame Mary Berry travels to her mother’s homeland, Scotland, for a magical winter break. Inspired by her own family holidays, she cooks up an array of sumptuous dishes. She’s joined by friends Andy Murray, Iain Stirling and Emeli Sandé to cook indulgent Christmas dishes that can be enjoyed anytime over the holidays. Check out the special December 18 on PBS.
Add to Your WatchlistA Very GOSPEL Holiday
Gospel, coming in January from Henry Louis Gates, Jr., is an exploration of gospel music, the dominant form of African-American religious expression. The documentary is packed with music, and includes a companion special, GOSPEL LIVE!, that showcases the biggest names in gospel music together with the biggest stars from the world of pop, R&B and beyond. Enjoy this Spotify playlist of what's to come!
Add to Your WatchlistLucy Worsley's 12 Days of Tudor Christmas
Join Lucy Worsley on a 12-day extravaganza as she discovers that much of what we enjoy in contemporary Christmas — from carols to gift-giving, feasting and drinking — was just as popular 500 years ago, with some surprising Tudor twists. Passport members can watch the special here, or check it out on PBS on December 20.
Add to Your WatchlistThe Nutcracker and the Mouse King
Conceived by John Mauceri, this new work is a re-imagination of Tchaikovsky’s holiday favorite, "The Nutcracker." Based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s 1816 book, Alan Cumming recounts the origin story of how a prince got put into a nutcracker. Unlike the ballet, we also learn what happens when the young girl grows up, having saved the prince, and what they are doing today.
Passport members can watch it here now, or you can check it out December 23 on PBS.
Nature | Penguins: Meet the Family
A celebration of one of Earth’s most iconic and beloved birds, featuring all 18 species of penguins for the first time, from New Zealand, Cape Town, the Galapagos Islands and Antarctica. Passport members can watch Penguins: Meet the Family here.
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Call the Midwife Holiday Specials
In the 2023 Special, Sister Monica Joan is convinced this could be her last Yuletide and decides she’ll not live to see man walk on the moon. The Nonnatus Family decide something must be done to try and lighten her state of mind. Check out the new holiday special on December 25 at 8/7c.
While you wait, catch up with classic Holiday Specials from Call the Midwife as we count down the days until the Dec. 25 premiere of the newest Holiday Special!
Add to Your WatchlistUnited in Song 2022: Ringing in the New Year Together
Join host Chita Rivera for a concert taped at Philadelphia’s Independence Hall. Featuring Delbert Anderson, Jencarlos Canela, Judy Collins, Midori, Sandi Patty, Lea Salonga, Paulo Szot, the Washington Ballet, the American Pops Orchestra and more. Check out the concert here.
Add to Your WatchlistMary Berry's Ultimate Christmas
Looking to spend the holidays with friends? Mary Berry shares her ultimate Christmas feast with all the trimmings. Friends and Chefs Angela Hartnett and Monica Galetti join her to share favorite festive recipes from their heritage and Mary and TV host Rylan try and convert some kids to Brussels sprouts. Check out the special on PBS.
