Adverts
From Elf to The Snowman: when Christmas films enter the ad break
Licensed film footage, playful parodies and familiar Christmas stories: five advert connections to turn into your own festive double bill.
15 October 2026 · 7 min read
Film · Music · MemoryA little more Christmas.
The CineClaus Film Blog
The Christmas Edit.
What to watch. The stories behind it. And the Christmas traditions we never quite grow out of.
Watchlists
Boxing Day films: what to watch on the 26th
Not the 2021 film called Boxing Day: the films we would actually put on the day after Christmas, from the afternoon slump to after bedtime.
Find your next good read
A story for your kind of Christmas.
Adverts
Christmas advert songs: who sings them, and which version are you hearing?
The song you recognise and the recording in the advert are not always the same thing. Here are fourteen festive soundtracks, with the right names and useful places to listen.
15 October 2026 · 7 min read
Behind the scenes
Where was The Holiday filmed?
The real Surrey village, the pub you can still book a table at, and the Los Angeles houses. Plus the honest answer on the cottage: it was a set, and it's gone.
15 October 2026 · 7 min read
Adverts
The books behind the Christmas adverts: Mog, The Snowman and the BFG
Follow favourite characters from the bookshelf into the ad break, and untangle the original books, new campaign stories and television adaptations.
15 October 2026 · 7 min read
Guides
Christmas films in concert and on the big screen 2026
Home Alone with a full orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, The Muppet Christmas Carol on a 13-city tour, and It's a Wonderful Life back in cinemas for its 80th. Every UK date we could confirm for 2026, and the ones that aren't announced yet.
15 October 2026 · 5 min read
Behind the scenes
Nativity! cast: where are they now?
Martin Freeman, Marc Wootton, Jason Watkins, Ashley Jensen, Pam Ferris and Alan Carr have barely stopped working since 2009. Here's where each of them went, why we haven't named the Coventry children, and how Debbie Isitt made a Christmas film with no script.
15 October 2026 · 7 min read
Guides
New Christmas films 2026: UK release dates and where to watch
New Christmas films for 2026, from UK cinema outings to Netflix and Prime Video nights, with confirmed dates and the gaps still to check.
15 October 2026 · 6 min read
Adverts
Before John Lewis: the old Christmas adverts Britain grew up with
An OXO family Christmas, a Yellow Pages kiss and a convoy of red trucks: a look back at the adverts that made the breaks part of the festive viewing.
15 October 2026 · 8 min read
Adverts
Why the Coca-Cola trucks still feel like the start of Christmas
From their 1995 debut to later remakes, a history of the Christmas trucks and the small thrill of seeing something familiar arrive.
15 October 2026 · 6 min read
Adverts
Sainsbury's Christmas adverts through the years: from 1914 to Mog and the BFG
Historical drama, a chaotic cat, a stop-motion musical and a school show: five films reveal how many different stories a supermarket Christmas advert can tell.
15 October 2026 · 7 min read
Adverts
Why Christmas adverts feel like tiny Christmas films
A clear wish, a carefully held reveal and a world you want to step inside: the film craft behind five memorable Christmas campaigns.
15 October 2026 · 7 min read
Guides
How to watch Hallmark Christmas films in the UK
Hallmark TV on Prime Video, what is free, and why a US premiere date is not a UK one. Every route checked, and dated.
15 October 2026 · 5 min read
Watchlists
Every A Christmas Carol Film, Ranked
Eleven versions worth your evening, in our order, from the one with the felt to the one with the ghosts that mean it. Plus the new one arriving in November.
15 October 2026 · 6 min read
Adverts
Kevin the Carrot’s movie years: from Scrooge to Home Alone and the Christmas Factory
A film lover’s guide to Aldi’s 2021–2023 Christmas adventures, with the main stories, the separate teasers and the references worth spotting.
15 October 2026 · 6 min read
Watchlists
Short Christmas films: 5 festive stories in about half an hour
Five short Christmas films, from a one-minute 1898 Santa to Aardman's Robin Robin, with running times, UK certificates and where to find them.
13 October 2026 · 4 min read
Watchlists
LGBTQ+ Christmas films: 4 picks, from easy romance to family friction
Four LGBTQ+ Christmas films sorted by mood, from Single All the Way's matchmaking to Happiest Season's tense family visit, with content notes and UK viewing options.
13 October 2026 · 4 min read
Watchlists
90s Christmas films: 7 favourites worth putting back on
Seven Christmas films released between 1990 and 1999, from Home Alone to While You Were Sleeping, with UK certificates and where they were streaming when we checked.
13 October 2026 · 4 min read
Watchlists
Romantic Christmas films: 5 picks for different kinds of date night
Five romantic Christmas films sorted by the evening you want, from The Holiday's home swap to Single All the Way's meddling relatives, with UK certificates.
13 October 2026 · 4 min read
Debate
Die Hard at Christmas: the evidence, scored
Our Christmas-film verdict with the working shown: the scoring rubric, Britain's seasonal searches, the filmmakers' views and the polling.
13 October 2026 · 8 min read
Watchlists
Christmas films set in New York: 4 for a night in the city
Home Alone 2, Elf, the 1947 Miracle on 34th Street and Scrooged: four Christmas films set in New York City, with UK ratings and which to pair.
13 October 2026 · 4 min read
Debate
Is it actually a Christmas film? Ten cases and our current verdicts
Ten familiar Christmas-film arguments, checked against our current catalogue rulings, with Festive Factor and Cosiness explained separately.
13 October 2026 · 7 min read
Watchlists
The best British Christmas films and television favourites
Nineteen films and television favourites, from Arthur Christmas and Nativity! to the Briggs shorts, Dickens adaptations and darker December choices.
13 October 2026 · 7 min read
Behind the scenes
What is Krampusnacht? The folklore behind 5 December
The night before St Nicholas’s Day, its horned companion and the changing tradition, with confirmed dates for Whitby’s 2026 weekend.
13 October 2026 · 5 min read
Watchlists
Black-and-white Christmas films worth your evening
Start with Scrooge, It’s a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street, then choose from five more monochrome favourites.
13 October 2026 · 4 min read
Watchlists
Christmas films with dogs, where the dog actually matters
Six films and specials where the dog changes the story, from The Grinch to The Snowman and the Snowdog, with a clear pet-loss note.
13 October 2026 · 4 min read
Watchlists
Christmas musical films: 7 picks for a festive singalong
From White Christmas and The Muppet Christmas Carol to Jingle Jangle and Spirited: seven Christmas musicals, with age guidance and who each one suits.
13 October 2026 · 5 min read
Watchlists
Christmas films based on books: 6 to read, then watch
Six Christmas films that started as books, from The Snowman to Let It Snow, with UK age guidance and what to look for when you compare them.
13 October 2026 · 5 min read
Music
Christmas hits in Christmas films: 12 songs that bring the scenes back
From "Mele Kalikimaka" in Christmas Vacation to the school concert in Love Actually, these are the Christmas favourites with a second life on screen.
13 October 2026 · 11 min read
Music
The sound of Christmas: film music that brings it all back
From "Somewhere in My Memory" to the sleigh bells of "Troika", a listening guide to the songs and scores that make Christmas feel like Christmas.
13 October 2026 · 11 min read
Behind the scenes
How many Home Alone films are there? All six, in order
Six films in 31 years: three for cinema, two made for American TV and a Disney+ reboot. Here they are in order, with their UK certificates, and the two we'd actually put on in December.
13 October 2026 · 7 min read
Watchlists
Slay Bells: the Christmas horror films worth your December
Not every Christmas film needs a happy ending. Here are the frights worth staying up for, once the kids are safely in bed.
13 October 2026 · 6 min read
Watchlists
Stop-motion Christmas films: 4 handmade picks
The Nightmare Before Christmas, two Aardman half-hours and the 1964 Rudolph special: four handmade Christmas films and specials, with running times and age guidance.
13 October 2026 · 4 min read
From the film shelf · Editor’s pick
Some films earn
their annual appointment.
The Muppet Christmas Carol is one of them. The songs, the warmth, and Michael Caine playing it entirely straight.
Read our film guide : The Muppet Christmas Carol