Your essential Christmas TV guide - RTE, Virgin Media, Christmas specials and more

Christmas Eve

Still can’t get that catchy viral hit ‘The Spark’ by the Cork kids, Kabin Krew, out of your head? Well RTÉ One will be airing the Kabin Krew Christmas Special at 5:15pm to rap us into the festive spirit!

Tommy Fleming’s Christmas Songs for a Winter’s Night will serenade TG4 viewers from 7:15pm. The show was recorded live in the intimate setting of Belleek Castle in Ballina and will offer a relaxing night before the mayhem of Christmas Day.

Of course, Christmas is a time for indulgence so The Great Christmas Bake Off on Channel 4 makes for some perfect festive viewing on Christmas Eve at 8pm. 

And it wouldn’t be Christmas without the Father Ted Christmas Special on RTÉ Two at 7:55pm.

As always, the Christmas specials of all your favourite soaps will kick-off on Christmas Eve. Eastenders (7:50pm) and Fair City (8:30pm) will both be on RTÉ One, while Virgin Media One will air Emmerdale (7pm) and Coronation Street (9pm).

Christmas Day

The long-awaited finale of Gavin & Stacey will air on BBC One on Christmas Day at 9pm. It’s been five years since the last Christmas special of the beloved British sitcom in 2019, and now the show will be tied up in a nice bow for its final ever episode. 

Another festive favourite, Mrs Brown’s Boys Christmas Special will be on RTÉ One at 9pm. The Young Offenders Christmas Special will follow straight after on RTÉ One at 9:30pm. 

Googlebox Ireland’s Christmas Cracker will air on Virgin Media One at 9pm.

The Oscar-nominated film An Cailín Ciúin has its TV premier on Christmas day at 8pm on TG4. But, if you’re looking for something lighter to watch on TG4 on the big day, the station will host a night of traditional Irish music starting at 9:30pm with Geantraí na Nollag.

St Stephen’s Day

Googlebox fans will be happy to know that the show's Christmas special will be on Channel 4 at 10:15pm.

The Outnumbered Christmas Special will air on BBC One at 9:40pm. The hit show is returning after 8 years to see how the Brockman family are coping with the addition of a new grandchild!

One to watch for anyone who is interested in the royal family, Harry & Meghan: Is America Turning Against Them will be on Virgin Media Two at 9pm. 

In a more somber viewing, the documentary A Secret Buried: The Mother and Baby Scandal will be on Virgin Media Two at 10pm which examines the investigation into the mass grave discovered in Tuam, Galway.

In Between

For the time-warp days in between Christmas and New Year's there's plenty of great shows to choose from, like the annual favourite Big Fat Quiz of the Year 2024 on Channel 4 at 9pm on Friday, 27 December. 

Then on Saturday, 28 December, you can catch the final festive edition of The Weakest Link: Party Special on BBC One at 7:30pm. 

What Daire Did Next is a one-off special which follows the young Irish Liverpool fan Daire Gorman who last year got to meet the then-Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp. RTÉ One will show the special on Sunday, 29 December, at 6:30pm where you can see how life has been for Daire since he took the internet by storm last Christmas.

On Monday, 30 December, Callan Kicks The Year 2024 will be on RTÉ One at 9:30pm for what is sure to bring a few laughs!

New Year’s Eve

Patrick Kielty will be celebrating New Year's Eve in style with a star-studded special of The Late Late NYE Show on RTÉ One at 10:20pm. Celebrities such as James Blunt, Olympians Mona McSharry and Sharlene Mawdsley, as well as Paralympian Orla Comerford will join Patrick for the festive feature alongside performers Picture This.

The Mrs Brown's Boys New Year's Special will also air on RTÉ One at 9:15pm for another seasonal special.

Robbie Williams, Rami Malek and Motsi Mabuse will join Graham Norton for The Graham Norton New Year’s Eve Show at 10:25pm on BBC One.

Fáilte 2025 will air at 11:30pm on TG4. Why not ring in the New Year with Dáithí Ó Sé and Doireann Ní Ghlacáin who will present a night filled with traditional Irish music and song in Beflast's Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich.

New Year’s Day

If you’re not ready to let go of Gavin & Stacey just yet, you can catch the documentary which looks back at the creation of the hit series, Gavin & Stacey: A Fond Farewell, on BBC One at 7pm.

For some nostalgic viewing, be sure to watch the Gladiators: Celebrity Special at 6pm on BBC One where the hit 90s show will return to see some new celebrities take on the gladiators. 

Dermot O'Leary, Samantha Barks and Kelly Holmes will join Stephen Mulhern for the Celebrity Catchphrase Christmas Special on Virgin Media One at 8pm.

Then, what is sure to be a hit for the younger ones, catch Billie Eilish: Live at the O2 on TG4 at 12:35am.