Holiday TV 2014 Guide, Yuletide TV Specials TV for Grownups

11 Christmas Shows You Won t Want to Miss

Put these movies and specials on your holiday list and get in the mood

Northpole Hallmark Channel Nov 27

Santa never looked as good as Robert Wagner does in this charming movie about a lonely little boy who unites with a girl elf to save Santa’s town. Wagner, wife Jill St. John as Mrs. Claus and Tiffany Theissen as a skeptical journalist mom are the reasons for grownups to watch. The young actors give kids and grandkids a reason to watch.

Paper Angels UP Nov 27

Melrose Place fans will be glad to see Josie Bissett (right) at the center of this heartwarmer based on the song and novel by country star Jimmy Wayne. She plays a woman who has just escaped her alcoholic husband and has little hope of providing her children with Christmas cheer. It sounds cliché, but surprises are in store, thanks to a Salvation Army Angel Tree.

A Royal Christmas Hallmark Channel Nov 27

Jane Seymour is the queen of Cordinia, and she is none too happy when her son wants to marry a humble seamstress from Philadelphia. Let’s just say things are more than chilly at the castle when the young couple arrives for Christmas. The young’uns are Lacey Chabert and Stephen Hagan, but tune in to see the former Dr. Quinn as the queen of mean.

CMA Country Christmas ABC Dec 1

Aerosmith front man Steven Tyler teams up with Brad Paisley. More big names: Carrie Underwood, Alan Jackson, Little Big Town and host Jennifer Nettles. There’s a toy drive, too. Country stars know how to do Christmas.

American Masters Bing Crosby Rediscovered PBS Dec 2

What more could we learn about Mr. “White Christmas”? Well, this special promises never-before-seen film footage and fresh interviews with Crosby’s immediate family and his friend Tony Bennett.

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Christmas in Rockefeller Center NBC Dec 3

This traditional NBC special has all the classic Christmas moves: big names, dancing Rockettes and a majestic 85-foot Norway spruce from Pennsylvania that will be lit while we watch and bedeck the 30 Rock plaza for the season.

Renee Fleming s Christmas in New York PBS Dec 4

“The People’s Diva” brings her operatic voice and effortless class to a program that’s filled with music, storytelling and, of course, NYC dressed up for the holidays. Fleming’s daughters and sister join her to sing carols. Other guests include Kurt Elling, Kelli O’Hara, Gregory Porter and Rufus Wainwright.

A Very Grammy Christmas CBS Dec 5

Popular music lovers, this one’s for you. You’ll get celebrity holiday memories and the seasonal songs you love — plus the announcement of nominees for the recording academy’s album of the year. Tim McGraw, Adam Levine and Maroon 5, “Happy” man Pharrell Williams (pictured) and pop’s current “It Girl,” Ariana Grande, will be among the performers.

Debbie Macomber s Mr Miracle Hallmark Channel Dec 6

Macomber, a mega-selling romance novelist (170 million books sold), and the Hallmark Channel, producer of sentimental tales, were made for each other. Their latest collaboration stars Northern Exposure’s Rob Morrow as angel Harry Mills, sent to Earth to help a woman who can't get her life on track after her father’s death. His deadline is Christmas — of course.

Michael Bublé Holiday Special NBC Dec 17

If you’re looking for a Christmas special like the ones from your youth, this is it. The crooner goes old-school — and even remembers Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” as the first record he ever heard. Kismet! Recorded at Radio City Music Hall with a 30-piece orchestra.

An Evergreen Christmas Video on Demand DVD

You can almost smell the pine in this movie. Featuring Naomi Judd (pictured), it’s a tale of a young musician (Charleene Closshey) called back from the big city to her small hometown in Tennessee — where she not-so-happily inherits her daddy’s Christmas tree farm. Complicating matters further, she needs to choose between a longtime admirer and her long-suffering boyfriend.

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