CHANNEL 4 CHRISTMAS TV 1989
Christmas Eve Sunday 24th December 1989
6.00am Early Morning
Hallelujah!
the best of American gospel (Repeat)
6.30am Flight Over Spain Murcia (Repeat)
7.00am Australian Beautiful Gardens (Repeat)
7.30am Box Office Weekly
with Garry Rice & David Roper
8.00am David the Gnome
8.30am Christmas Box
presented by Garry Rice & David Roper
9.00am Dennis
cartoon
9.25am Follow That Star
a profile of Indian superstar Amitabh Bachchan
10.25am Starlight Serenaders
children's cartoon
10.35am The Batman
Chapter 2 (b&w)
10.55am Christmas Fairytale
cat and mouse story from Norway
11.05am Film : Road to Utopia (1946)
starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope (b&w)
12.45pm Air Pirates of the Outback
puppet animation from Australia followed by
The Wall
award winning animation
1.00pm Fish People
documentary about people in Britain who keep fish
2.00pm Anne of Green Gables
starring Megan Follows (Repeat)
3.50pm Star of Bethlehem
Lotte Reigniger's silhouette film in colour
4.10pm Cinderella Ballet
Dancers from the Lyon Opera Ballet
5.55pm News Summary and Weather
6.00pm American Football
introduced by Mick Luckhurst
7.00pm Desert Orchid : Living with the Legend
documentary about the famous racehorse
8.00pm To Hell with the Devil
documenatary about the American rock band Stryper
9.00pm One Hour with Jonathan Ross
10.00pm American Football
11.30pm Film : Julia (1977)
starring Jane Fonda, Vanessa Redgrave, Jason Robards, Maximilian Schell
1.40am Film : Monkey Business (1931)
starring the Marx Brothers (b&w)
Christmas Day Monday 25th December 1989
6.00am The Channel Four Daily
The Creation
a recording of Joseph Haydn's Creation
7.00am Dennis
cartoon
7.25am Aladdin
an animated feature
8.45am Countdown Masters
8.55am Dai Mouse
read by David Jason
9.10am Poetry Book
poems read by Paul Scofield, Alan Bennett, Derek Jacobi and others
9.25am Sesame Street
Big Bird attempts to uncover a secret in this special edition shown annually in the US
10.30am The Adventures of Tintin
Shooting Star
10.35am The Batman
Chapter 3 (b&w)
11.00am Silent Mouse
the true story of the Christmas carol Silent Night (Repeat)
12.00 The Greatest (little) Show on Earth
documentary about Australia's Flying Fruit Fly Circus, a troupe of 40 performing children
1.00pm George and Rosemary
cartoon
1.10pm Olivier Tribute, Film : Pride and Prejudice (1940)
starring Laurence Olivier, Greer Garson, Edmund Gwenn
3.25pm Birthday
Dame Judi Dench with the poetry of The Rev Alan Ecclestone
3.40pm An Evening For Armenia
opera and ballet stars in a gala in aid of the British Red Cross Armenian Eathquake appeal
at the Royal Opera House (Repeat)
5.10pm The Queen
5.25pm News Summary and Weather
5.30pm Film : The Snowman (1982)
6.00pm The Little Sweep
a short opera
7.00pm Circus of the Sun
8.00pm Brookside
8.30pm Cheers Home is the Sailor (Repeat)
9.00pm Olivier Tribute , Film : Richard III (1954)
starring Laurence Olivier, Ralph Richardson, Claire Bloom, John Gielgud
11.55pm La Nativité du Seigneur
Messiaen's organ masterpiece celebrates the glory of Christmas
1.00am The Prince's Trust 88 Rock Gala (Repeat)
2.35am Closedown
Boxing Day Tuesday 26th December 1989
6.00am The Channel Four Daily : Early Morning
Hallelujah!
The Bob Jones Show - the best of American gospel (Repeat)
6.30am Christmas Box (Repeat)
7.00am Dennis
cartoon
7.26am The Gnomes' Great Adventure
feature length adventure
8.51am Countdown Masters
9.00am Channel 4 Racing : The Morning Line
preview of the Boxing Day horse racing
9.25am Sesame Street
with special guests Billy Joel & Marlee Maitlin
10.25am The Adventures of Tintin
Shooting Star
10.35am The Batman
Chapter 4 (b&w)
10.55am Film : Road to Singapore (1940)
starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour (b&w)
12.30pm Channel 4 Racing
from Kempton Park 12.45, 1.15, 1.45, 2.20 & 2.50 races
3.15pm Film : The Red Shoes (1948)
starring Moira Shearer, Marius Goring
5.40pm News Summary and Weather
5.45pm Swan Lake Royal Festival Ballet
8.00pm Matters of Taste
documentary about Elizabeth David
9.00pm The Fabulous Singlettes
an outrageous Australian group recreate the songs of the Supremes and others
10.00pm Short and Curlies : Unusual Ground Floor Conversion
short British film
10.15pm Rotten Apples
comedy set in a police station in a border town in N.Ireland
11.15pm Olivier Tribute : Film : The Prince and The Showgirl (1957)
starring Laurence Olivier, Marilyn Monroe, Sybil Thorndike
1.25am Film : At the Circus (1939)
starring the Marx Brothers (b&w)
3.00am Closedown