Get that festive feline! From Mog’s Christmas to the Doctor Who special, these are the best shows for all the family to enjoy
- Mog’s Christmas is based on the 1976 book of the same name by Judith Kerr
- READ MORE: BBC One to air huge Christmas Day movie after the King’s Speech as festive TV schedule is revealed
Mog the cat causes Christmas chaos in a purr-fect new film
MOG’S CHRISTMAS
Christmas Eve, 7.45pm, Ch4
If ever a voiceover part felt fated, it’s surely Tacy Kneale’s recent role. For Tacy was tasked with providing the on-screen miaows and purrs of a cat that was a much-loved part of her childhood – and thanks to her mother Judith Kerr, many other children’s too.
That cat’s name was Mog, and she inspired the 18 storybooks written by Judith since 1970 that have sold more than four million copies worldwide.
‘The original Mog actually didn’t miaow much, but when she did she meant it,’ Tacy recalls. ‘And she purred a lot.’
Mog’s Christmas, based on the 1976 book of the same name, will air at 7.45pm on Christmas Eve on Channel 4
Half a century on, Mog’s yuletide capers, captured in the 1976 book Mog’s Christmas, have now been adapted into a charming half-hour animation by the team who brought us previous festive offerings The Tiger Who Came To Tea and We’re Going On A Bear Hunt.
The fictional Mog lives with Mr and Mrs Thomas and their children Debbie and Nicky, and her speciality is causing gentle chaos.
It’s no different at Christmas, when Mr Thomas and the children arrive home with an enormous tree. This scares Mog so much she scrambles onto the roof for safety and refuses to come down.
Despite everyone’s fears, Mog has a magical night in the snow before, on Christmas Day, falling down the chimney after hearing talk of breakfast and arriving in the kitchen to the surprise and relief of all the family.
The animated version, painstakingly created over many months and composed of more than 16,000 hand-drawn pictures, has a starry voice cast, with Benedict Cumberbatch and Claire Foy as Mr and Mrs Thomas, and Miriam Margolyes and Maggie Steed as the permanently bewildered visiting aunts.
Former Fast Show comedian Charlie Higson is the voice of the ‘jolly uncle’, and overall narration is provided by Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh, who also feels she was destined for the job.
She raised her children with Judith’s stories and also recently provided the voice of Judith’s mother in the Radio 4 dramatisation of When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, Judith’s semi-autobiographical story of a Jewish family escaping Germany before the Second World War.
‘There’s also a primary school named after Judith near me in London, so I feel very embedded,’ says Adjoa.
The half-hour animation was painstakingly created over many months and is composed of more than 16,000 hand-drawn pictures
Viewers will undoubtedly find themselves delighted by the 70s details drawn out by the animation team, among them the face of veteran sports commentator Des Lynam appearing on a TV screen in a local store. ‘All generations can get things from it,’ says Adjoa.
Charlie Higson adds that Judith also ensured the books worked on different levels. ‘She showed the world through a cat’s-eye view, but we’re also seeing it from the view of small children.’
Judith passed away in 2019 at 95, and Tacy and her brother Matthew are delighted with the way their mother’s work has been brought to life. ‘It’s been done so beautifully, it’s a masterpiece,’ says Matthew.
TABBY McTAT
Christmas Day, 2.35pm, BBC1
The beautiful adaptations of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s work – from The Gruffalo to Stick Man – have become firm Christmas Day family favourites.
Tabby McTat, based on Julia’s history as a busker and her love of cats, tells the tale of Tabby, who loves to sing with his busker friend Fred, but when the two become parted chaos ensues.
As usual, the story is voiced by an all-star cast including Jodie Whittaker and Rob Brydon, who stars as Fred and also sings on The Tabby McTat Song, which is being released as a single for charity.
DOCTOR WHO CHRISTMAS SPECIAL
Christmas Day, 5.55pm, BBC1
Millie Gibson as Ruby Sunday, the new companion of the 15th doctor, played by Ncuti Gatwa
It’s been five years since Doctor Who last made it into the Christmas Day schedules, but with a new Doctor to introduce and Davina McCall making a guest appearance, the time-travelling Tardis dweller is back this year.
The episode, titled The Church On Ruby Road, won’t just see the 15th doctor, Ncuti Gatwa, taking over but we’ll also meet his new companion Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson).
The story focuses on Ruby, who was abandoned on Christmas Eve as a baby, and how she encounters the Doctor, and also introduces a new villain called the Goblin King.
DODGER
Friday 29 December, 10.30am, BBC1 and on iPlayer now
Billy Jenkins as Dodger (left) and Christopher Eccleston as Fagin in the special episode of the drama based on Charles Dickens’s characters before they met Oliver Twist
Dodger (Billy Jenkins), Fagin (Christopher Eccleston) and the gang attempt their most audacious heist yet in this special episode of the BAFTA-winning drama based on Dickens’s characters before they met Oliver Twist.
Aptly called Coronation, it’ll see our charming crooks attempt to steal the Crown Jewels, and special guests include Simon Callow, Toby Stephens and Nicola Coughlan.
Quentin Blake’s Box Of Treasures is narrated by Adrian Lester (pictured)
QUENTIN BLAKE’S BOX OF TREASURES
Friday 29 December, 1.25pm, BBC1 and on iPlayer now
Quentin Blake is the maestro of children’s books – the 91-year-old has illustrated or written more than 500 of them and this collection of six of his animated stories is perfect for Christmas.
Narrated by Adrian Lester, the tales begin with Jack And Nancy, a story about two children who long to visit the exotic lands they’ve heard about and then, one windy day, their wish comes true.
THE FAMOUS FIVE
New Year’s Eve, 11.30am, BBC1 and on iPlayer now
BBC1’s The Famous Five is a modern reimagining of Enid Blyton’s most renowned adventures
Despite the many attempts to ‘cancel’ Enid Blyton, her stories remain firm favourites, and this modern reimagining of her most famous adventures is set to be one of the most talked-about family shows this Christmas.
It’s been created by Nicolas Winding Refn who’s best known for violent films including Drive and Neon Demon and in the first of three episodes, The Curse Of Kirrin Island, we learn how cousins Julian, Dick, Anne, George and Timmy the dog solve the crime of a dead body discovered on a beach.
Does it have anything to do with a ‘curse’ on the nearby island owned by the family?
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