Worth Watching: ‘Agatha Raisin,’ ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ and Other Christmas Eve Treats

Matt Roush December 24, 2018, 7:00 am

IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, James Stewart, Donna Reed — Everett Collection

A critical checklist of notable Monday TV:

Agatha Raisin and the Fairies of Fryfam (streaming on Acorn TV): Another movie-length chapter in the delightful mystery series, starring Ashley Jensen as amateur sleuth Amanda, who decamps to a remote idyllic village in hopes of escaping the return of an ex-lover. Pretending to write her “big novel,” Agatha once again finds herself embroiled in a deadly web of passion and jealousy. Not to worry. These yarns are played mostly for laughs.

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Anglophiles can also delight in the BritBox import Click & Collect, a comedy starring Stephen Merchant (Extras) as a dad desperate to score a must-have toy for his daughter on Christmas Eve. The catch: his irritating neighbor (Asim Chaudhry) has tracked it down and purchased it on his credit card, necessitating a 300-mile drive to fetch Sparklehood the Unicorn Princess.

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It’s a Wonderful Life (8/7c, NBC): Once upon a yuletime, you couldn’t turn on the TV without seeing this Frank Capra 1946 classic. Now that NBC holds exclusive rights, it becomes more of an event during the annual holiday screening. There’s rarely a dry eye in the house when a despondent George Bailey (James Stewart) is schooled by kindly angel Clarence (Henry Travers) on just how much he means to the people of Bedford Falls. (The story is iconic enough to have been spoofed most recently on Saturday Night Live’s Christmas episode.)

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More classic film options: Turner Classic Movies presents 1944’s musical masterpiece Meet Me in St. Louis (6/5c), starring Judy Garland and introducing one of the greatest holiday songs ever, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” Followed by Cary Grant as an angel guiding David Niven and Loretta Young in 1947’s The Bishop’s Wife (8/7c) and Reginald Owen as one of the more definitive Scrooges in 1938’s A Christmas Carol (10/9c). And for those who can never get enough of 1983’s A Christmas Story, TBS begins its 24-hour marathon at 8/7c, while TNT’s kicks in at 9/8c.

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Inside Monday TV: Not exactly Christmas-themed, but ABC presents another family option with 1991’s gorgeous animated version of Beauty and the Beast (8/7c), a tale as old as time… Sundance Now becomes the exclusive streamer for the acclaimed six-part adaptation of John Le Carré’s spy thriller The Little Drummer Girl, starring Florence Pugh and Alexander Skarsgård, which aired on AMC in November… If you need to catch up before the fourth season begins on Jan. 23, Netflix begins streaming Season 3 of Syfy’s The Magicians.

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GoldSubmarine
Dec 24, 2018
I watched The Bishop\'s Wife last night, I enjoyed it very much. The cast was superb. Tonight I will likely watch Meet Me in St Louis and A Christmas Carol. I haven\'t seen this version yet.

I already watched It\'s A Wonderful Life too many times, but those who haven\'t it is probably one of the best movies EVER, regardless of the time of year.

I will continue watching classic movies until the new year.
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  GreenElephant
  Dec 24, 2018
  I\'m watching IAWL right now. The last scene before commercial was when George was talking to Harry\'s new wife, Ruth, about a job offer her father is offering her hubby, a position at a glass factory...
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  GoldSubmarine
  Dec 25, 2018
  Such a wonderful (pun intended) movie.
  
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GoldSubmarine
Dec 24, 2018
To staff, when I click Matt Roush his last post is the Timeless one from the weekend. When I click Worth Watching this latest article populates.

I thought these issues were resolved last year.
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  CyanCoathanger
  Dec 24, 2018
  When I just clicked on \"Matt,\" it gave me an older date as the newest \"Worth Watching,\" but when I reloaded the page, it showed today\'s article as the newest one. The same thing happened with the News front page yesterday. Maybe they\'ve fixed it since you posted, or maybe you need to try reloading your pages like I did.
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CyanCoathanger
Dec 24, 2018
I think it will be the Doctor Who marathon for me. This time, it\'s made up of their holiday specials which aren\'t shown all that often due to their odd lengths (like 1 hour and 20 minutes).

I probably should watch Beauty and the Beast (Would you believe I\'ve never seen it?), but I could probably borrow it from the library and watch without commercials.

I hope The Magicians will still be available On Demand! I still haven\'t seen every episode of the 3rd season!
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  RedQuill
  Dec 24, 2018
  Don...I\'ve never borrowed a movie from the Carnegie Library (Pittsburgh)…
  
  Can you...somehow...\"borrow\" it using your PC or iPhone???
  
  Or...would you have to drive to the library => find a parking space => walk in => locate the movie => sign it out => drive home => watch it => drive back => park => walk in to return it???
  
  If the latter...it MAY be MUCH easier to just DVR Beauty and the Beast on ABC...and jump through the commercials with your handy-dandy Fast Forward Button...
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  GoldSubmarine
  Dec 24, 2018
  I have Beauty and the Beast on DVD and VHS. The definitive modern classic. I\'m happy ABC is airing it, probably one of the best animated movies ever. I also love Aladdin .
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  GoldSubmarine
  Dec 24, 2018
  I watched Beauty and The Beast in the theatres back in the early 90\'s. I also watched it on VHS and DVD later on. Well worth your time. I think I watched pretty much every Disney animated movie since Fantasia . I have Disney DVD box sets I received as gifts back when they were first released. Aladdin , Beauty and Mulan were my favorites of the modern era.
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  CyanCoathanger
  Dec 24, 2018
  I don\'t think I\'ve seen a Disney animated film since Beauty and the Beast was out. I used to love them, but I have little interest in many of the newer ones like Pocahontas or Mulan. I would like to see Aladdin and The Lion King someday though.
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  GoldSubmarine
  Dec 24, 2018
  I even watched all of the sequels of Aladdin and Lion King!
  
  Pocahontas and Mulan are also highly recommended.
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  CyanCoathanger
  Dec 24, 2018
  The library is only about a mile from my house, there\'s always a place to park right by the door, I drive by it every time I go to town, and I go there anyway.
  
  That said, I\'ve never looked into their streaming service. I might be able to \"borrow\" the movie online. However, I enjoy all the extras on the DVDs that you don\'t get by watching on cable or streaming things.