Photos: The CW

It may not even be Halloween yet, but The CW has already announced their upcoming holiday programming slate…and you don’t hear any complaints from me!

In the midst of their regular primetime offerings, The CW will also be airing many festive events and movies, including the animated classic “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,“ the specials “Penn & Teller: Merry Fool Us”, “The Christmas Caroler Challenge”, the annual iHeartRadio Jingle Ball concert, which will be a virtual event given the pandemic, and the all-new musical film documentary, “Silent Night – A Song for the World”, starring Kelly Clarkson, Joss Stone, David Foster, Kathrine McPhee, Randy Jackson, Josh Groban, and many more!

Get a full breakdown of what’s to come below!

Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer | Friday, November 27 at 8-9 p.m.
Based on the hit song that became a worldwide holiday phenomenon, this goofy and heartwarming adventure features young Jake Spankenheimer on the quest of a lifetime to track his missing Grandma down on Christmas Eve to prove that Santa Claus is indeed real. Michele Lee (“Knots Landing”) provides the voice of Jake’s greedy Cousin Mel and recording artist Elmo Shropshire provides the narration. An encore presentation of GRANDMA GOT RUN OVER BY A REINDEER will air on Monday, December 21 (8:00-9:00pm ET).

Photos: Word Entertainment

for KING & COUNTRY just released A Drummer Boy Christmas, their brand-new holiday album!

This is the first ever full-length Christmas album from the top Christian/Pop recording duo, which is comprised of Australian brothers Joel and Luke Smallbone.

It all started on a dreary winter’s night in our American hometown of Nashville, TN. It was the end of 2012, the year the band began. We piled ourselves into an old factory- cellos, brass, bass, guitars and of course, a load of drums. We began to frantically rehearse and prepare for an incumbent Christmas tour that we frankly, due to the fact that we’d yet to release a Christmas album or song, had no right to embark on. Yet, from that shotgun rehearsal (where we naively dreamt up our rendition of ‘Little Drummer Boy’) to today, the beauty, drama, and ultimately the miracle of Christmas has caught our musical imagination and therefore been laced into the DNA of the band.

(L-R) Almost Christmas (Photo: Universal Pictures) | Daddy’s Home 2 (Photo: Paramount Pictures)

Traditions are a large part of the holiday season, and one of the things my family looks forward to is the annual programming event: Freeform’s 25 Days of Christmas! This morning the network revealed their holiday schedule as they countdown the days until Christmas, and it’s filled with holiday cheer!

Unfortunately, there aren’t any original films, episodes or specials on the schedule block, but that’s unsurprising due to the current state of the country — not everyone was able to get projects completed this year, I imagine. That said, Freeform still has a plethora of Christmas movies on the slate, including: “Home Alone,“ “The Santa Clause” trilogy, “Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas,“ “Disney’s A Christmas Carol,” “Miracle on 34th Street” (1994), “Love Actually,“ and much more! We can also expect network premieres of “Almost Christmas,” “Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch” (2018) and “Daddy’s Home 2,“ among others.

You will also find classics, such as “Frosty The Snowman” and “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,“ including a special airing on Christmas Day.

Check out the day-by-night schedule below!

Photos: Warner Records

Calling all Goo Goo Dolls fans! The award-winning rock band is gearing up to release their first-ever holiday album later this month, It’s Christmas All Over. The album will contain a selection of super festive Christmas classics and renditions of modern hits, including a cover of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers “Christmas All Over Again”, which inspired the title of the record.

Co-produced by front-man John Rzeznik, It’s Christmas All Over will also include “Let It Snow”, “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”, a fully-instrumental and jazz-infused medley, two new original songs and a re imagined version of their song “Better Days”, off of 2005’s Let Love In.

It’s Christmas All Over will release on October 30th; pre-order or pre-save wherever music is sold and streamed, including Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music.

Stay merry!

Graphic by LollyChristmas.com

Today officially marks 2 months until Christmas Day!  I can’t believe it’s already that soon!  I wish time could just slow down at this point.  This year has been rough, so I’m sure there are a lot of people out there that are simply not in the Christmas spirit, but for all of you who are just taking in this cheer to bring a little bit of joy to your day…I hope you can slow down and enjoy it.  For those who are having a rough time, I pray that your load is lightened this holiday season.

I pray and wish for joy, peace, and especially *good health* this year. 

The Hallmark and Lifetime have already begun their end-of-the-year holiday programming slates, so make sure you check out what’s to come for Countdown to Christmas, Miracles of Christmas & It’s A Wonderful Lifetime.  There are a lot of great movies that just premiered and many more on the way!

Be well, stay safe and…

Stay merry!

Photo: Interscope Records/Crown Media/Photographer: Jamie Nelson

Gwen Stefani surprised fans when she announced yesterday that she was releasing a brand new holiday song, “Here This Christmas”, which would be part of a special reissued edition of her 2017 album, You Make It Feel Like Christmas.

The festive tune, which is co-written and produced by Grammy®-Award winning recording artist Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic, also serves as the official Countdown to Christmas theme for Hallmark Channel this year!  “Here This Christmas” is available on all music services, including Apple Music, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also listen to it from Stefani’s YouTube page below!

Photo: Peanuts

AppleTV + has officially announced a new partnership with Snoopy!

If watching Charlie Brown holiday specials is part of your seasonal traditions, it’s possible you already own them…but if you don’t, and it’s something you catch on television every year with your family, then you should know that it’s moving networks this holiday season.  In a new deal with WildBrain, Peanuts Worldwide and Lee Mendelson Film Productions, our beloved and classic “Peanuts” specials will be heading to Apple TV+ for new original shows and specials.

Snoopy, Charlie Brown and friends will debut new animated originals on the streaming service as well as the second season of “Snoopy in Space”. The new slate of specials will include focus on Mother’s Day, Earth Day, New Year’s Eve and going back to school, all to be produced by WildBrain’s animation studio. These projects will join the previously announced “The Snoopy Show”; a brand-new “Peanuts” 70th anniversary documentary film from Imagine Documentaries and WildBrain; and the “Peanuts in Space: Secrets of Apollo 10.”

Most of all, Apple TV+ will now include “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,“ “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving”, and of course, “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”  The Halloween special has already begun streaming, and you can expect Thanksgiving to arrive on November 18 (free from November 25-27) while the Christmas special will debut on December 4 (free from December 11-13).

If you don’t already have a subscription, click here for more information on Apple TV+ prices.

(Updated 11/18/20): Good news! Today PBS announced that they had partnered with AppleTV+ to air the The Peanuts holiday specials on the network this year!  In addition to the streaming air-dates listed above, “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” will also air on PBS and PBS KIDS on November 22, 2020 at 7:30 pm local time/6:30 pm CT; “A Charlie Brown Christmas” will air on PBS and PBS KIDS on December 13, 2020 at 7:30 pm local time/6:30 pm CT. (check local listings)

Stay Merry,

Courtesy Photo

Multiple Emmy®-winning lifestyle host, Sandra Lee, will be joining the Lifetime family to help host this year’s It’s A Wonderful Lifetime holiday programming slate! Lee will host and create custom holiday content to help make your season extra-merry while the network premieres several Christmas films throughout the season.

“For decades Sandra has helped time-starved homemakers everywhere make delicious meals, give thoughtful gifts, and create beautiful homes,” said Amy Winter, EVP and Head of Programming, Lifetime and LMN. “As the authority on all things home and lifestyle, Sandra is the foremost trusted go-to source for simple, doable ideas with beautiful, attainable results. She’s the perfect addition to the Lifetime family and will provide incredible ideas with easy tips ensuring It’s a Wonderful Lifetime for all our viewers this year.”

Lee’s hosting involvement is set to launch the week of Thanksgiving; you’ll be able to enjoy her fun holiday “how-to’s”, with ideas ranging from decorating and baking to gift giving and holiday savings. Lee’s appearances will air on broadcast and across Lifetime’s social media platforms.

“I’ve been a lifelong fan of the Lifetime network and watch the movie It’s a Wonderful Life every year so it’s an absolute honor to be included in It’s a Wonderful Lifetime,” said Lee. “Lifetime has always been ahead of the curve and under Amy’s leadership will continue to be in the forefront of creative, forward thinking, viewer-friendly content that delivers for their audience and advertisers. Amy and team are creative, smart, and an absolute pleasure to work with.”

The 2020 It’s A Wonderful Lifetime lineup kicks off this Friday, October 23rd with the premiere of “Christmas On Ice”, starring Abigail Klein and Ryan Cooper, airing at 8pm/7c.

Check out the full lineup here, and watch a promotional video for the programming slate below!

Stay merry!

Note: Lifestylist® is a trademarked term and was used in error when referring to Sandra Lee. Information on Lifestylist® Suzanne Felber and the Lifestylist® Brands can be found at www.lifestylist.com.

Photos and screengrabs: Crown Media

It was a weekend filled with Christmas cheer when Hallmark Channel aired the 2020 Countdown to Christmas Preview Special, hosted by Candace Cameron Bure, on Saturday before premiering the 2020 Miracles of Christmas Preview Special the next night on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.

“USS Christmas” stars, Jen Lilley and Trevor Donovan, took over hosting duties this time around and brought us several sneak peeks of festive and uplifting all-new original stories that are coming to the network this holiday season; they were even joined by Trevor’s three adorable dogs as the opened the envelopes that revealed the titles of each movie.

Check out the breakdown of the movies features in this year’s Miracles of Christmas special, and watch the show for yourself by clicking on the link at the bottom of the page, but hurry, the special won’t be running on the Hallmark website for too long.

Photos and screengrabs: Crown Media

It may be October, but haul out the holly because Christmas has officially hit the Hallmark Channel!

Candace Cameron Bure hosted the annual Countdown to Christmas Preview Special last night where she gave viewers a super sneak peek at some of the movies premiering during the 2020 Countdown to Christmas lineup, and guess what, the holiday programming begins NEXT WEEK! You read that right, Hallmark Channel will kick off their festive slate on Friday, October 23rd with the first premiere, “Jingle Bell Bride” starring Julie Gonzalo and Ronnie Rowe Jr., rolling out on Saturday, October 24th at 8pm/7c!  Candace will also star in a brand-new movie, “If I Only Had Christmas” that premieres during the 7 Night Thanksgiving Event, which she will host as well.

The elegantly decorated location for the special was gorgeous, and Candace looked stunning in her red half-bow dress (get more details on her Festive Fashion here). I also really loved the way she introduced each film by picking up a giant ornament featuring the move title written on the bauble, and then placed it on the tree. So sweet. Check out the movies Candace previewed for us below!