Berlin.
Some highlights are shown on TV around Christmas – but also many repetitions. This is the TV program for the festival.
Schoolchildren in Hamburg have just set a world record by stacking a Christmas tree made of 3,425 tin cans on the church square of the Michel. A rogue who is doing ans TV program have to think about Christmas. Because that too is often stocked with canned goods. It’s already clear: broadcasting new productions on the holidays would give them bad ratings – because the whole nation doesn’t sit in front of the television because of the many family celebrations. But the eternal repetitions are also demanded.
Every year again – according to the motto we not only sing the same Christmas carols over and over again, we also like to be sprinkled with our favorite films. Often with ones that remind us of our own childhood. Back then, when you were very different Christmas waited and was allowed to while away the time in front of the television because dad was still busy decorating the tree and mom was busy preparing the goose.
TV program at Christmas: Always the same favorite films belong to the festival
So there would be no Christmas without the DEFA fairy tale classic “Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella”, which runs up and down in the first program on Christmas Eve (1.40 p.m.) and then in all third programmes. No Christmas without “The Little Lord” (The first, December 26, 3:50 p.m.) or the Astrid Lindgren films “Pippi Longstocking” (ZDF, December 24, 10:15 a.m.) and “Michel aus Lönneberga” (ZDF, December 24, 11:55 a.m.), which we can see directly in recapitulate our childhood. No Christmas without the two “Kevin Alone” films (Sat.1, December 24th and 25th, each at 8:15 p.m.), which are also set at Christmas and always bring a bit of anarchy to the all too stiff festive mood.
ARD produces one every year christmas movie basically in stock, which celebrates its premiere during the Advent season (where it still brings in quotas) and then runs on Christmas Eve the following year at the otherwise prime time. This year, December 24th at 8:15 p.m. is showing “When the fifth little light is burning”. In the film, Hennig Baum plays a Santa Claus at an airport who doesn’t get to finish his day because the travelers can’t get away because of a snowstorm.
Fairy Tale Hour at Christmas: These films are shown on TV
The first is also building up a veritable archive stock to enchant children with new ones every Christmas fairy tale movies to be turned around. This year: “Zitterinchen” (December 25, 2:40 p.m.) and “The Goose Princess” (December 26, 2:40 p.m.). However, older fairy tales also run on all three public holiday mornings and afternoons.
The private sector tends to counteract this with cinema classics such as “The Grinch‘ on RTL or ‘Buddy – The Christmas Elf’ on SuperRTL (both December 24, 8:15 p.m.). RTL even goes into series production and shows all three on Boxing Day.Santa Clause“-Films in a row (from 10.15 a.m.).
TV classics for Christmas: From “Sissi” to “Actually… Love”
And of course, in addition to all the Christmas cookies, the cinematic candy should not be missing: Das Erst shortens them Christmas Days on Sunday (from 3.45 p.m.) and Monday (5.30 p.m.) with the “Sissi” films – ZDF stops at night with heartbreak classics such as “Actually…. Love” (December 25, 11:20 p.m.) and “Notting Hill” (December 26, 11:50 p.m.) on the other hand. And the much-discussed Winnetou films are also returning, albeit rather hidden in the morning programme. But in a pack of four: Kabel.1 broadcast them on December 25 from 6:40 a.m.
The ZDF is also on shows: On December 24th with “Christmas Eve with Carmen Nebel” (8.15 p.m.), pre-recorded in front of a cozy fireplace, and on December 25th with “Dalli Dalli – The Christmas Show” (8.15 p.m.). On December 26, RTL is sending Günther Jauch into the race with a “Christmas game special” from “Who wants to be a millionaire?” and ProSieben is broadcasting “The duel around the world – Team Joko versus Team Klaas” (both 20.15 Clock).
There are a few film premieres after all. But they are only gradually being unpacked. On December 25, the first shows the Free TV premiere from Caroline Link’s poignant film When Hitler Stole the Pink Rabbit (8:15 p.m.). At the same time, RTL countered this with the first broadcast of another children’s book adaptation: “The Call of the Wild” based on Jack London – with Harrison Ford as the dog master.
New films at Christmas: The television program for the festival
In-house TV productions are then only available for 2nd day of Christmas, when most of them have already returned from their family trip. Traditionally, ZDF sends its “Dream Ship” (8:15 p.m.) into the distance. Captain Florian Silbereisen is heading for Cocos Island in the Pacific Ocean this time.
In addition to Collien Ulmen-Fernandes and Jan Sosniok, the other actors this time also include Gaby Dohm. What a pity that Sascha Hehn is no longer on board, they still know each other from “The Black Forest Clinic”. But Barbara Wussow also played along. A bit of TV nostalgia comes up.
ARD, on the other hand, shows what is perhaps the strangest “crime scene” of all time. Because in the episode “Mord unter Misteln” the Munich commissioners Udo Wachtveitl and Miroslav Nemec are catapulted into a British mansion in 1922, where they investigate as Chief Inspector Francis Lightmyer and Constable Ivor Partridge. With this, the crime makers come out as “Downton Abbey” fans, but also combine this with a quirky Agatha Christie ambience. Definitely not classic crime fare, but something quite extraordinary.
Another gift: now in the media library, analog only after Christmas
And then some TV stations have found another way of offering new productions for Christmas without spoiling the ratings: by showing them generously on the holidays media library provides, but only later sends analog. The new Nordholm two-parter “The Woman in the Sea” with Heino Ferch as investigator Simon Kessler is already available from Christmas Eve. However, it will not be broadcast regularly until the new year, on January 2nd and 3rd on ZDF.
The first puts its cave rescue two-part series “Riesend – Every hour counts”, which will be broadcast on Wednesday (December 28), at least one day before in the media library. Even after Christmas, things are going strong. Then RTL also shows the second season of “Sisi” with Dominique Devenport and Jannik Schümann, which is currently only available on RTL +. You can then immediately compare the old Romy films with the new soap episodes.
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