Freeview news

Christmas Stockings Are Full of TV Treats from Freeview in December

02 December 2011

As you wind down for some Christmas leisure time, there’s plenty to keep you stimulated, entertained and laughing out loud in December on Freeview; and it’s all for free. Acclaimed US comedy series Happy Endings makes its Australian debut on Seven at 8.30 on Thursdays. Starring 24’s Elisha Cuthbert, the show follows an altar-bound couple who break up on their wedding day and their friends are forced to take sides in the split.
The laughs keep coming on ABC2 with the Aussie Comedy Week, a compendium of the best ABC comedy programming, starting on Christmas evening and running for six nights including Tony Martin’s A Quiet Word With series and Chris Lilley’s Angry Boys and Summer Heights High.
GO! will serve up season eight of cult favourite Curb Your Enthusiasm as well as the first series of Hard Times of RG Berger. And all the comic drudgery from the crew from Dunder Mifflin can be found at The Office on Eleven.
Bursting back on to our screens this summer is family favourite It’s a Knockout, which makes its return on Ten. Get ready for the most outrageous People’s Olympics with an impressive collection of sumo suits, inflatable bats, and water slides, this iconic show has been revamped for the 21st century and is back to brighten up the Summer.
There’s plenty to choose from if reality is what you’re after this festive season with season 11 of I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here on GO!, Escape to the Country on 7Two and World’s Strictest Parents on Seven. Meanwhile, the Verminators follows a team of ‘Special Forces’ pest-busters on their mission to eradicate infestations, exterminating everything from rats and roaches to killer bees on 7Mate.
Of course, summer wouldn’t be summer without the cricket. Nine brings you exclusive coverage of the Boxing Day Test between Australia and India at the MCG. There is plenty more sport action on Freeview, with Ten hosting the Kellogg’s Nutri Grain Iron Man Challenge and the UEFA Champion League Hour continuing on SBSTWO.
It’s a big month for first-run factual and documentary programming, kicking off with Scarlet Road on SBS ONE, an extraordinary story about sex worker Rachel Wotton and her clients with disability. Filmed over a three year period, Scarlet Road follows Rachel in her relationship with two of her clients as she reveals the therapeutic aspects of human touch and sexual intimacy.
Continuing in December is ABC1’s eight-part Australian series Who’s Been Sleeping In My House? which explores the incredible stories that lie between the bricks and mortar of our homes. Archaeologist Adam Ford, using the tools of his trade – public records and a good spade – literally digs the dirt and reveals the rich past of some of Australia’s most intriguing homes.
SBS TWO debuts Brick City, a five-part award-winning documentary series that captures the daily drama of a community striving to become a better, safer, stronger place to live. Against great odds, Newark’s citizens and its Mayor, Cory A. Booker, fight to raise the city out of nearly a half century of violence, poverty and corruption.
The Sunday Best series of documentaries continues on ABC2 including a program on the late underground comedian Bill Hicks.
If you enjoy angling, Monster Fish on 7Mate will be unlike any fishing expedition you’ve ever seen, with fresh water fish conservationist Zeb Hogan at the helm.
Dr Norman Swan and his team return for season two of Tonic on ABC News 24. This health show takes no prisoners in its quest for the truth when it comes to our bodies and the things we pay people to do to them.
Ten has given Hughesy, Charlie and Carrie more time to deliver you the news of the day in their own unique way on the expanded The Project (formerly The 7pm Project).
If you’re looking for some serious drama to balance the frivolity of the holidays, the Doctor Who Christmas Special will entertain adults and kids alike. Those keen for something edgier will enjoy the continuing series The Killing and American Horror Story both on Eleven.
Police drama is the order of the day on Eleven with the second series of hit Aussie drama Rush. Or you can return to the gritty streets of Sun Hill as British cop drama The Bill comes to 7Two.
The kids will have plenty to keep them entertained over the holidays too with ABC3 revealing two whizz-bang new hosts unearthed in a nation-wide Me on 3 search to celebrate the channel’s second birthday.
Adjust text size: A A A