The weather may be brisk and chilly outside, but I’m feeling warm and cozy as I think about today’s special installment of Handpicked by Heather. From well-known favorites to hidden gems, all of these selections provide comfort-viewing when you tune in with your WTIU PBS Passport member benefit! So pour a cup of hot cocoa, throw another log on the fire, and cuddle up with your softest blanket to take in these feel-good programs as we head into the longest night of the year.
Not a Passport user yet? No worries—we have treats for you, too! Be sure to read the full blog to find links to holiday programming, along with a few other fun activities sprinkled throughout—all available free on-demand to every WTIU viewer at PBS.org or with the PBS app!
Little Women
Did you know there have been six film adaptations of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel Little Women, plus nearly a dozen TV adaptations? I adore all the versions I’ve seen, but it’s the PBS MASTERPIECE version that I turn to every December. Revisiting the four March sisters—Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy—as they prepare for a Christmas without presents or their father (a Union army chaplain away at war) feels like a reunion with lifelong friends. Set against the backdrop of a country divided, the story follows the sisters on their journey from childhood to adulthood, navigating sibling rivalry, gender roles, and first loves. Maya Hawke is spot-on as the headstrong Jo, while Hollywood leading women Emily Watson and the iconic Angela Lansbury are perfectly cast as the ever-patient Marmee and the less-than-patient Aunt March. Tune in with your PBS Passport member benefit to see MASTERPIECE's tender treatment of this classic story that is sure to warm your heart. Then stick with Passport to learn more about the real life inspirations behind the characters and setting when you watch the fascinating documentary Orchard House: Home of Little Women.
The Urban Nutcracker
You have probably seen The Nutcracker before, but you’ve never seen it presented like this! Anthony Williams’ Urban Nutcracker puts a modern spin on the 19th-century fairy tale. Strains of Duke Ellington dovetail with the heartbeat of Tchaikovsky, blending classic ballet, urban tap, hip hop, step, and jazz into something truly special; it’s a celebration of our multi-cultural community! Tune in with your WTIU PBS Passport member benefit to see this new twist on an old favorite. Then go behind the scenes to learn more about the creation of community and youth empowerment through the arts when you watch Beyond the Stage: The Urban Nutcracker, Community, & the Arts, available only with Passport.
Joy: Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir
Starting on Thanksgiving Day, holiday music is the soundtrack for my family until the end of December. From Nat King Cole crooning “The Christmas Song” (aka “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire”) to The Waitresses’ “Christmas Wrapping,” nothing embodies the season in quite the same way as song. All WTIU viewers can enjoy the sounds of the season when they stream the treasured Christmas with The Tabernacle Choir special, returning to PBS for its 21st year. Broadway star Michael Maliakel and beloved British actress Lesley Nicol (who PBS fans will recognize from Downton Abbey) join the iconic Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square in a stunning 90-minute theatrical program. WTIU PBS Passport users can also watch last year’s Season of Light special, 2022’s O Holy Night special, or relive 20 years of Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir, hosted by Tony Award winner Brian Stokes Mitchell.
Clown by Quentin Blake
There was nothing I looked forward to more as a kid than the animated specials that, in those pre-streaming days, could only be seen once a year during the holiday season. It was indeed an event each December when my sister and I would tune to CBS to watch the television classic “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” punctuated by commercials featuring a Norelco razor-riding Santa! In recent years, a new animated special has captured my heart. Based on the children’s book of the same name, Clown tells the story of an abandoned toy clown who goes on a Christmas Eve journey to find a new home for himself and his friends. Master illustrator Quentin Blake has created an irrepressible character, an action-filled plot, and an eloquent story that can be interpreted on several levels—all without the use of a single word, except that of the narrator, voiced by acclaimed actor Helena Bonham Carter. This enchanting and beautifully animated short will delight both the young and young-at-heart!
Angels on Horseback: Midwives in the Mountains
Images of angels come in many variations, especially at this time of year. There are winged cherubs adorning the Christmas tree, snow angels made by children’s oscillating arms and legs, and then there are angels who come guised as mothers, teachers, and all manner of caregivers who give of themselves in service of others. This particular kind of angel recently came to my attention, thanks to Jane, a WTIU member from Bloomington, who told me about the PBS documentary Nurses on Horseback: Midwives in the Mountains. Jane’s own mother was one of these spirited women, who, along her colleague nurses on horseback, brought healthcare to the families of remote communities in eastern Kentucky, starting in the 1920s. Learn more about Mary Breckenridge, the Southern society woman who founded the Frontier Nursing Service, and the trailblazing women who shared her passion for service and community.
Call the Midwife Holiday Specials
Speaking of angelic caregivers, the nuns and nurses of Nonnatus House deliver a healthy dose of holiday cheer this month, and WTIU Passport users can join the festivities! Passport viewers know that fan favorite Call the Midwife is especially beloved for its heartwarming Christmas specials, and right now, four of CTM’s holiday specials are available to PBS viewers exclusively with Passport. Starting with the Season 10 special, you will be transported to 1966 when the circus comes to Poplars. Season 11 witnesses a wedding, Season 12 celebrates an engagement, and Season 13 follows the anticipation of everyone in Poplars and around the world as the Apollo 8 moon mission prepares for its December 1968 launch. To find out what happens at Christmas in 1969, all WTIU viewers can tune in on Christmas Day to see the newest holiday special when it makes its broadcast premiere!
Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street
What would the holiday season be without sweet treats and festive feasts? Recipes that have been handed down over generations are a staple during the holidays for many families—including this delectable recipe for Grandma Phoebe’s fruitcake from the Earth Eats archive at WTIU’s sister station, WFIU. As much as I love our family’s traditional standbys, I also find the holiday season the perfect time to try new recipes. I especially enjoy creating novel variations of classic dishes, which is exactly what Christopher Kimball provides in this Holiday Entertaining episode of Milk Street Television. WTIU PBS Passport users can learn how to prepare an Argentinian-Style Stuffed Pork Loin with Chimichurri (stuffed with an unexpected secret ingredient!) and a buttery French Walnut Tart, Chef Erika’s elevated take on the classic American pecan pie. All WTIU viewers can also see the current season’s Milk Street Holiday episode for even more holiday recipe inspiration!
Scrooge
One of my favorite Christmas songs is the classic Andy Williams’ tune “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” I love the imagery of “parties for hosting, marshmallows for toasting, and caroling out in the snow,” but for years, I was puzzled by the reference to “scary ghost stories.” I’ve always associated ghost stories with Halloween, not Christmas. But then I learned that telling ghost stories during the darkest days of winter is an age-old custom that reached its height in Victorian England, thanks in no small part to the works of Charles Dickens. We know Dickens, of course, for his classic A Christmas Carol, but he actually wrote several Christmas novellas involving ghosts, which apparently spoke to the Victorian fixation on moral standards and virtuous behavior. No other story, though, has proven to be more timeless and influential than A Christmas Carol. Adapted countless times for stage and screen, A Christmas Carol is available to Passport users in the form of the 1935 film Scrooge, starring Seymour Hicks as the world’s most famous miser. All WTIU viewers can experience a reimagining of the classic with WVPB’s locally produced Ebenezer's Night Before Christmas set in 1885 West Virginia.