WTVP | Christmas Eve & Day | 2021

1:30 AM

All Is Bright! A Concordia Christmas

The vocal and instrumental musical ensembles of Concordia University Irvine and friends invite you to join us for a festive collection of music that brings light, hope and joy to the season.

2 AM

Crane Candlelight Concert 2020

The Crane Candlelight Concert 2020: Christmas Past, Christmas Present looks a bit different from other years. Filmed during the coronavirus pandemic, a large scale concert with an orchestra and full chorus was not possible. Christmas Past, Christmas Present is a compilation of new socially distanced performances from students and faculty, alongside highlights from years past by the renowned Crane School of Music at the State University of New York at Potsdam. This concert includes traditional Christmas and seasonal hymns from around the world with popular favorites.

5:30 AM

Let's Go Luna!: Luna's Christmas Around The World 

When the Circo gets stuck at the South Pole on Christmas Eve, Leo, Andy and Carmen are convinced that Santa will never find them. With the help of their friend Luna, the kids endeavor to save Christmas, learning about holiday traditions from around the world along the way.

6:30 AM

Wild Kratts: A Creature Christmas

In this one-hour special, it's Christmas time and the Wild Kratts are taking a break from creature adventuring to celebrate. But when the Wild Kratts receive an alert that their favorite creatures are suddenly disappearing around the globe, their holiday party quickly turns into a rescue mission. Our heroes must race against time to thwart their greedy archrivals' most miserly scheme yet! Will they be able to travel to the ends of the earth and return their baby animal friends to their homes in time for the holidays? Find out on Wild Kratts: A Creature Christmas.

8 AM

Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas

Curious George and The Man with the Yellow Hat are having a wonderful time getting ready for Christmas. There's only one dilemma -- neither of them can figure out what to give the other for a present! In the end, both gift-giving predicaments are simply and beautifully resolved, revealing the true spirit of the holiday season.

10:30 AM

The Cat in the Hat Knows A Lot About Christmas!

This adventure finds the Cat in the Hat, Nick and Sally on a journey around the world to help a lost reindeer find his way home to Freezeyourknees Snowland in time for Christmas. On the way, the Thingamajigger breaks down and they depend on a variety of animals --from African bush elephants to bottlenose dolphins and red crabs -- and their remarkable abilities to help them make an amazing journey home.

NOON

The Great British Baking Show #515  | Christmas Masterclass 

Join judges Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood as they detail how to make perfect mince pies, Christmas pudding and Christmas cake, and introduce some tasty treats for the holiday season.

3 PM

Nature Cat: A Nature Carol

In the tradition of the Dickens holiday classic, Nature Cat is visited by the spirits of Nature Past (Daisy), Present (Squeeks) and Future (Hal) on Christmas Eve.

8 PM

All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 

The Western Front. Christmas. 1914. Out of the violence comes a silence, then a song. A German soldier steps into No Man's Land singing Stille Nacht. Thus begins an extraordinary night of camaraderie, music and peace. This award-winning docu-musical theatre production recreates an astounding moment in history when Allied and German soldiers laid down their arms to celebrate the holiday together by trading carols, sharing food and drink, playing soccer and burying the dead. This remarkable story is told through the words of the great WWI poets, official war documents, diary entries and letters written by more than 30 WWI soldiers. The historic documents are woven together with iconic WWI songs and European Christmas carols to create a profound retelling of this extraordinary moment in history.

9:30 PM

The Night Before Christmas Carol

Renowned Dickens scholar and author Dr. Eliot Engel crafts this entertaining study that complements every holiday schedule. Filmed in the spirit of a classic BBC-style presentation, actor David zum Brunnen portrays Charles Dickens and 17 other familiar characters from the ghostly classic, A Christmas Carol.

12 AM

20 Years of Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir

Tony Award winner Brian Stokes Mitchell joins the choir and orchestra for this two-hour 20th anniversary retrospective with performances from Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, Gladys Knight, Angela Lansbury, Hugh Bonneville, Renee Fleming and more.

2 AM 

Christmas 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.

3:00 PM

The Night Before Christmas Carol

Renowned Dickens scholar and author Dr. Eliot Engel crafts this entertaining study that complements every holiday schedule. Filmed in the spirit of a classic BBC-style presentation, actor David zum Brunnen portrays Charles Dickens and 17 other familiar characters from the ghostly classic, A Christmas Carol.

5:30 PM

Arthur's Perfect Christmas

Plans are underway in Elwood City for the best holidays ever as Arthur, D.W., their family and friends make preparations for perfect gifts, perfect parties and perfect family traditions for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and even "Baxter Day" (Buster and his mom's special celebration). The only problem is, just like in real life, perfection is hard to attain, and things start to fall apart.

6:30 AM

Let's Go Luna!: Luna's Christmas Around The World 

When the Circo gets stuck at the South Pole on Christmas eve, Leo, Andy, and Carmen are convinced that Santa will never find them. With the help of their friend Luna, the kids endeavor to save Christmas, learning about holiday traditions from around the world along the way.

7:30 AM

Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas

Curious George and The Man with the Yellow Hat are having a wonderful time getting ready for Christmas. There's only one dilemma -- neither of them can figure out what to give the other for a present! In the end, both gift-giving predicaments are simply and beautifully resolved, revealing the true spirit of the holiday season.

8:30 AM 

Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood | Snowflake Day!

In this 30-minute holiday musical episode, the Neighborhood is celebrating Snowflake Day! Daniel has a very important role as the snowflake in the Neighborhood's Snowflake Day Show and he can't wait to say his lines! The Enchanted Garden is full of excitement and winter cheer as everyone pitches in to make the celebration a true Neighborhood success!

9 AM

Hope College Christmas Vespers 2019

Hope College Christmas Vespers is a holiday tradition for many families from West Michigan and around the country. This program, produced by WGVU Public Media, is a celebration of the true spirit of Christmas and features some of the most beautiful choral and instrumental music of the season. Over 250 student musicians participate in Christmas Vespers in ensembles that include the Hope College Orchestra, Chapel Choir and College Chorus. A tradition at Hope College since 1941, Christmas Vespers is the perfect way to ring in your holiday season.

10 AM

St. Olaf Christmas Festival: A New Song of Grace and Truth 

For many people over several generations, the celebration of the Advent/Christmas /Epiphany season begins with the annual St. Olaf Christmas Festival, a century-old tradition of the college located in Northfield, Minnesota. A New Song of Grace and Truth features a rich repertoire of classic Advent and Christmas compositions, familiar carols, hymns from around the world and contemporary pieces from a diverse range of composers and cultures, offering music that both celebrates the history of the college while also highlighting beautiful works from around the globe.

11 AM

Purdue 87th Anniversary Christmas Show

This one-hour condensed version of the 87th Anniversary Purdue Christmas Show features musical highlights from all five Purdue Musical Organizations ensembles including University Choir, Purdue Bells, Heart & Soul, the Purduettes and the Purdue Varsity Glee Club. The program begins with a behind-the-scenes look at the adjustments made by PMO and Purdue University in accordance with the Protect Purdue pledge in order to create this virtual production called, A Different Kind of Christmas.

NOON

Festival of Lights Parade 2021

Marking 37 years of holiday cheer, the festival begins with the Parade of Lights and continues through the month of December with the Folepi’s Winter Wonderland drive-through display.

12:30 PM

America's Forests with Chuck Leavell: US Capitol 

In search of the perfect Christmas tree for the U.S. Capitol, Chuck Leavell travels to the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and Gunnison National Forests to follow the journey -- from selection and cutting to ornament making and community celebrations -- of what will become the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree as it makes its way from Colorado to Washington DC.

1 PM

Mysteries of the Jesus Prayer

Mysteries of the Jesus Prayer focuses on the ancient and obscure Christian prayer first recited by the Apostles more than 2,000 years ago in the Egyptian desert. Originally passed down verbally from one generation to the next, monks eventually transcribed the sacred words into instruction manuals originally intended only for those dedicated to a life of isolation. During the film, the Very Rev. Dr. John McGuckin and Dr. Norris J. Chumley travel to the caves, monasteries and convents where the faithful still chant this ancient meditation.

2 PM

Fires of Faith

Fires of Faith is a two-hour documentary narrated by London stage actor, Geoffrey Palmer, that explores the events leading up to the publication of the King James Bible. Over 50 translators worked for seven years to complete the 1611 version of the King James Bible. This great effort, instituted by King James I, brought about a bible that became the standard for the world. Fires of Faith will further explore the effect that the bible has had on the English language and on the course of America; its society, its culture and its religions. Fires of Faith was filmed on location in Belgium, Germany, England, France, Switzerland, Italy, Israel and the United States.

4 PM

Rick Steves' European Christmas

From manger scenes and mistletoe to wintry wonderlands, Rick Steves' European Christmas celebrates the Christmas season throughout the European continent. In the special, Rick visits friends and families in England, France, Norway, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy to reveal their customs and practices of the holiday season. He begins his travels in England, where the Christmas pudding is the real centerpiece of a traditional English holiday meal. In Paris, the Eiffel Tower heralds the season with its red, twinkling lights. And in the countryside of Tuscany, villagers stack neat pyramids of wood for great bonfires. The lighting of the fires is a signal to villagers, dressed as shepherds, to come and sing old carols. Rick Steves' European Christmas offers a colorful, musical celebration of Christmas across Europe, where viewers will learn about customs from "the old countries," hear local choirs and discover holiday family traditions.

6 PM

Christmas on the Danube

Christmas on the Danube is a companion to European Christmas Market. It is a true holiday treat that will fill your senses with warmth, touch your heart and provide your mind with geography and history. Traveling the majestic Danube river as it passes through stunning European landscapes, history and culture, Christmas on the Danube visits theses cities along the Danube, which are particularly spectacular at Christmas.

6:30 PM

Spirit of the Season | USAF Band of Mid-America Holiday Special

Join the U.S. Air Force Band of Mid-America for Spirit of the Season and celebrate the 2021 holidays! This festive presentation features the Starlifter rock band, Airlifter Brass Ensemble, Roots in Blue and more. Musical selections range from classical repertoire to modern pop hits, with a program spanning over a century of music. So gather the entire family and settle in for a musical event that's certain to be a delight for all ages!

7 PM

The Lawrence Welk Show | Christmas Reunion 1985 

This is the special that reunited Lawrence and his musical family for the first time following their phenomenal 27 year run on national TV. At the time, no one realized it would also be the last time the musical family would perform together with their beloved boss. The most emotional moment in this heartwarming program is the singing of the traditional Christmas carols, conducted by Lawrence himself.

8 PM

Call The Midwife Holiday Special 2021

Christmas 1966 promises to be a memorable one. The Nonnatus House team are faced with their busiest Christmas Day ever as the Maternity Home is filled with expectant moms and challenging cases. Luckily Mother Mildred is on hand to support the team.

9 PM

Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville | Deborah Allen - Christmas Show

Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville is a weekly 30-minute visit with Nashville Songwriter, Hall of Fame member and Nashville Cat musician, arranger and artist Ray Stevens and hundreds of multi-talented and famous guests. There's music, humor and insightful evergreen conversation that takes the viewer behind the scenes and tells the back stories on the hits, as well as the artists and the writers who brought them to us, plus a special Juke Box Video of Ray's many hits. Taped before a live studio audience, it's a fast moving, fun-filled musical half hour all public television viewers will love!

10 PM

Jazz from Studio 47 | Christmas Jazz

Lights...Camera...Jazz! Taped in the WTVP Studio, this series is hosted and produced by jazz musician and Bradley University Professor Ed Kaizer, and spotlights acts and performers from around the globe.

10:30 PM

Al Walser Christmas Special

The Television Christmas Special with Al Walser features Al in a timeless epic Christmas-Holiday TV special showcasing a truly electrifying performance that transports viewers to a magical place set in heaven. The concert TV special was recorded in front of a diverse live audience in the heart of Hollywood, delivering newly inspired original Christmas songs written by Al Walser. 

11:00 PM

Wheaton College Christmas Festival: Through His Own Redeeming Love

The Wheaton College Christmas Festival: Through His Own Redeeming Love invites viewers to experience the story of the Bible through Nine Lessons and Carols. This traditional Christmas Festival shares the wonder of creation, the sorrow of its brokenness, and the hope of redemption through the birth of Jesus Christ. Alternating between choral and instrumental pieces performed by 250+ talented musicians of the Wheaton College Conservatory of Music ensembles, this production presents a mixture of traditional and contemporary Christmas music. Featuring three Wheaton College Choirs, the Symphonic Band and the Harp Ensemble, this production of Nine Lessons and Carols is unique in its repertoire and deeply moving in its message. You are sure to come away with an illumined view of Christmas as you step into the story of humanity through the eyes of God and His Own Redeeming Love.