25 holiday TV offerings to watch: comedies to rom-coms and cozy mysteries

Whether you prefer something naughty, like the animated movie “Grandma Got Ran Over By a Reindeer,” or nice, like classics “The Sound of Music” and “Home Alone,” streamers, cable and broadcast networks offer up festive choices in December.

Highlights this year include music specials with Derek Hough and Jimmy Fallon, the Rockefeller Tree lighting hosted by Reba McEntire, Lacey Chabert’s latest Hallmark Channel movie, NFL games and even cozy mysteries with a Christmas theme.

Here are some highlights through Dec. 25:

Dec. 12

AMC’s annual holiday programming includes a marathon of Will Ferrell’s “Elf” beginning at 6 p.m. It broadcasts back-to-back for eight hours.

Dec. 13

Apple TV streams the beloved favorite “A Charlie Brown Christmas” for free on Dec. 13 and Dec. 14.

In “A Suite Holiday Romance” for Hallmark Channel, Jessy Schram stars a ghostwriter who checks-in to a fancy New York hotel for a job writing a memoir. She meets a handsome Brit (Dominic Sherwood) and the two experience a series of misunderstandings until they realize they’re meant to be.

Dec. 14

HGTV returns to the White House at Christmas for a one-hour special that goes behind the scenes of its decorating transformation at the holidays. It also streams the next day on HBO Max and Discovery+.

On the first night of Hanukkah, Hallmark Channel premieres the new movie “Oy to the World!” When the pipes burst at a local synagogue, a church opens its doors for an interfaith service. Brooke D’Orsay and Jake Epstein play choir directors who were also rivals in high school, who must work together to put on a successful event for all.

Dec. 15

Acorn TV has a two-part Christmas special of “The Madame Blanc Mysteries” airing Dec. 15 and Dec. 22. British actor Sally Lindsay plays antique dealer Jean White, who visits the France museum Maison Sainte-Victoire on Christmas Eve to authenticate an Ormolu box once owned by Marie Antoinette. It’s discovered that the box contains a ticking time bomb and Jean and her team have just 90 minutes to diffuse it.

Dec. 16

“The Nutcracker” ballet is a Christmas classic, and PBS is offering a reimagined version taped at the London Coliseum. Still set to Tchaikovsky’s score, this version centralizes Clara’s story and is set in Edwardian London where a street scene has dancing chimney sweeps and suffragettes. “Great Performances: Nutcracker from English National Ballet” will also be available for streaming on PBS.org and the PBS app.

Dec. 20

Lifetime is jumping on the pickleball popularity bandwagon with the new movie “A Pickleball Christmas.” It stars James Lafferty as a tennis pro whose family’s racquet club is on the brink of closing its doors. He and a tennis instructor take part in a holiday tournament to save the day.

Dec. 21

Tate Donovan and Jillian Murphy star in a new Christmas movie for Great American Family called “Mario Lopez Presents: Chasing Christmas.” In the film, Donovan plays a morning show host and Murphy a designer who team up to make a child’s Christmas wish come true. Lopez’s son Dominic also has a role.

The Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer classic “The Sound of Music” airs on ABC.

Dec. 24

“Home Alone” airs on ABC. The film made Macaulay Culkin a child star for playing a boy whose parents accidentally leave him home when their large family hurries off on a Christmas vacation. He’s left to defend his house against two clumsy burglars.

Dec. 25

Netflix is gifting us with football on Christmas again this year. The Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Commanders game is at 10 a.m., followed by the Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings at 1:30 p.m.