December Television: TV Shows Worth Your Time This Month

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December is unlike any other month in the TV calendar. It starts with the full weight of the festive season bearing down and ends with the year itself closing out. There are work parties, family gatherings, Christmas films on a loop, and then, suddenly, a quiet lull between Christmas and New Year, when time goes slightly strange, and no one really knows what day it is. All of that creates a wildly varied set of TV moods across a single month. Some evenings you want something festive and warm. Some evenings you want to escape the whole thing entirely. And those quiet days between Christmas and New Year are perfect for something genuinely absorbing. I’ve been pulling together what feels right for December specifically. There’s a lot to cover.

Why December Is the Most Varied TV Month

December demands more TV flexibility than any other month. You might be watching alone, with a partner, with children, with elderly relatives, or with friends who have very different tastes. You need options across a wider range of moods than usual. Streaming platforms know this, and December tends to bring a mix of festive specials, year-end prestige releases, and classic comfort content all landing at once.

It’s also awards season in full swing. The Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild nominations drop in December, which means critical attention is at its peak. According to Variety, December streaming numbers spike significantly across the holiday period as people take time off work and gather at home. JustWatch is useful, as always, for finding what’s available across your services and in your region. And Gold Derby tracks the awards conversation in real time if you want to know what’s generating buzz.

Festive Shows That Actually Hold Up

Christmas TV is its own genre, and quality varies enormously. But there are some genuinely brilliant festive shows that go beyond the usual sentimental formula. These are worth seeking out.

Gavin and Stacey on BBC iPlayer is a British sitcom about a long-distance romance between a man from Essex and a woman from Wales. It ran for three series and has produced Christmas specials that have broken viewing records in the UK. It’s warm, funny, and completely charming. One of the best British comedies ever made. More at BBC iPlayer.

The Holiday specials and Christmas episodes of Detectorists on Netflix are quietly perfect. If you followed the recommendation from the May post and watched the series, the Christmas special is a lovely December reward. More at Netflix.

Ghosts, in both its UK version on BBC iPlayer and its US version on Paramount+, runs genuinely funny Christmas episodes. Both are worth seeking out in December. More at BBC iPlayer and Paramount+.

For When You Need to Escape the Festivities

Not everyone loves Christmas. Even people who do love it sometimes need an evening off from the whole thing. These shows are perfect for those moments when you need TV that has absolutely nothing to do with tinsel or goodwill.

Succession on HBO/Max has been recommended across this entire series of posts and returns one final time here. There is nothing festive about Succession. It is cold and sharp and brilliantly dark. Perfect for December evenings when you need a break from warmth. More at HBO.

Beef on Netflix was mentioned in the July post and fits equally well in December. Two strangers locked in an escalating feud. Tense and funny and completely absorbing. Ten episodes. Exactly the right length for the holiday period. More at Netflix.

Industry on HBO/Max was mentioned in the May post, and suits December particularly well. Sharp, cold, ambitious drama set in London banking. A good antidote to festive sentimentality. More at HBO.

The Christmas to New Year Stretch

The days between Christmas and New Year have a very specific quality. Time loosens. Routines dissolve. You’re neither in the busy festive period nor properly in the new year. It’s a liminal few days that are genuinely perfect for getting absorbed in something long and immersive.

Band of Brothers on HBO/Max is a 10-episode miniseries about an American paratrooper company in the Second World War, from D-Day through the end of the conflict. It’s one of the finest things ever made for television. December is when it airs, a tradition for many viewers, and it’s completely justified. More at HBO.

The Sopranos on HBO/Max is another one that suits the Christmas-to-New Year’s gap perfectly. Six seasons about a New Jersey mob boss navigating family and crime. One of the most influential TV dramas ever made. If you’ve never started it, this is the stretch of time to do exactly that. More at HBO.

Breaking Bad on Netflix was mentioned way back in the January post and comes full circle here. Six episodes in, and you will not be putting it down. Perfect for those lost days when you have nowhere to be. More at Netflix.

International Shows For December

December is actually a wonderful month for international TV. European countries produce genuinely beautiful festive and winter content, with some hidden gems worth tracking down.

Rita (Denmark, Netflix) is a Danish drama about an outspoken schoolteacher navigating her complicated personal and professional life. It’s warm, funny, and completely binge-worthy. A lovely December discovery. More at Netflix.

Babylon Berlin (Germany, Netflix) is a lavish period drama set in late-1920s Weimar-era Berlin. It’s stylish and atmospheric, with a real sense of a world on the edge of something dark. Long evenings in December suit it perfectly. Details at Netflix.

A Very Secret Service (France, Netflix) is a comedy set in the French secret service in the 1960s. It’s dry, very funny, and completely charming. Something a little different for December evenings when you want to smile. More at Netflix.

For broader international discovery, Walter Presents always has a strong December selection of European drama curated specifically for the season.

Family Viewing For the Holidays

December means watching TV with people of different ages and tastes. Finding something that works for a mixed group is genuinely hard. These shows manage it.

The Crown on Netflix suits the British Christmas tradition of historical drama on television and works well for mixed-age groups who want something substantial. More at Netflix.

Taskmaster on YouTube is free and endlessly entertaining for people of all ages. Comedians competing in absurd tasks. Very easy to dip into with family members who aren’t sure what they want to watch. Multiple series available on YouTube.

Our Planet on Netflix is visually stunning enough to work as family viewing, even with people who don’t normally watch nature documentaries. David Attenborough narrating beautiful footage of the natural world. Genuinely lovely Christmas viewing. More at Netflix.

Year-End Prestige Releases

December is when streaming platforms drop their most ambitious content to qualify for awards and capture year-end attention. This is genuinely worth following because some of the best TV of the year arrives in December.

Keep a close eye on new releases from HBO, Netflix, and Apple TV+ throughout December. The TV Line premiere calendar tracks these as they’re announced. And The Hollywood Reporter’s year-end coverage always surfaces the titles generating the most serious critical attention.

It’s also worth spending some time in December on the year-end lists that start appearing from critics and publications. The AV Club, Vulture, and The Guardian all produce brilliant best-of-year TV lists that are genuinely useful for finding things you missed across the previous twelve months.

How To Approach December Watching

December needs a plan more than any other month, simply because it is so varied. My approach is to divide it into roughly three parts. Early December for getting absorbed in something new and substantial before the social season peaks. The middle festive stretch for lighter, more flexible content you can watch in company or dip in and out of. And then the Christmas-to-New-Year gap for something genuinely long and immersive that you can give your full attention to.

The best thing about December TV is that it marks the end of a whole year of watching. Looking back across the year at what you’ve seen and what you want to catch up on before January starts again is actually a really satisfying way to end the month. Check your streaming platform’s viewing history. Note what you started and didn’t finish. Make a list for January.

And then the whole thing begins again.

Happy watching. Happy holidays. And happy new year when it comes. See you in January.