The best Christmas films to watch this holiday season on Netflix UK

This stop-motion animation from Aardman follows the life of Robin, a bird raised by a family of mice. As she grows older, Robin begins to question her past, where she really came from, and if she is even a mouse. (Spoiler: she is not a mouse.) Not content with what she’s been told, Robin begins a journey of self-discovery, in search of the truth.

The heartwarming story of Jernicus (Forest Whitaker) and his early life as a successful toy maker morphs into a whimsy Christmas musical when, with the help of granddaughter Jessica (Madalen Mills), he's able to rediscover the magic of the season with his most secretive invention, after an old friend's betrayal. Cue an adventure that'll turn their lives around.

Stranger Things' David Harbour features as the unconventional Santa Claus, in what is a savagely brutal depiction of ol' Saint Nick. Harbour’s Santa is minding his own business delivering presents, when he suddenly finds himself in the middle of a home invasion and kidnapping. Let the festive violence commence. Not one for the kids, mind.

Sloane (Emma Roberts) is a workaholic who suffers from judgment and pressure from her family to settle down. After a chance meeting with fellow singleton Jackson (Luke Bracey), they pose as a couple for New Year, meeting up at each holiday until the following Christmas comes around. The question is, have they found themselves falling for one another along the way?

This delightful animation is about two very different characters forming an unconventional friendship. Known as the worst postie at the Academy, Jesper (Jason Schwartzman) is sent to the miserable town of Smeerenburg to deliver letters. Klaus (J.K. Simmons) is a reclusive toymaker. When Jesper suggests donating his old ones, Klaus agrees to accompany him on the trip.

Kurt Russell stars in this Netflix original as Santa Claus, who finds himself in a spot of bother when two inquisitive kids, Kate and Teddy, stay up to sneak a glimpse of the man in red one Christmas Eve. With the kids in tow after downing his sleigh, the countdown’s on to repair his vehicle, restore festive spirit, and save Christmas for the whole world.

Andrew (Stephen Merchant) and Dev (Asim Chaudhry) may live next door to each other but they have nothing in common. With Christmas Day looming, Andrew’s wife scorns him for forgetting his daughter’s number one toy request, forcing him to travel nine hours to pick one up. With neighbour Dev offering to tag along, a very British road trip begins.

For a festive flick this one begins morbidly, when Jack (Michael Keaton) is killed in a car crash. A year later, he wakes up to find himself trapped inside the icy embodiment of a snowman his son, Charlie (Joseph Cross), makes at Christmastime. Desperate for a second chance to prove himself to be a good dad, Jack seizes the chance to make amends before it’s too late.

When the Walker family make a wish during a chance encounter with an astrological reader, parents Jess (Jennifer Garner) and Bill (Ed Helms) wake up to find a flippant wish has come true, and they’ve switched bodies with their kids, CC (Emma Myers) and Wyatt (Brady Noon). Now the hapless four must try to exist in each other’s lives until they can reverse the curse.

Peter (Michael Urie) is dreading going home for the holidays because he's single, and doesn’t want to deal with family scrutiny. With best friend Nick (Philemon Chambers) agreeing to accompany him, the pair agree to pretend they are a couple. However, their fool-proof plan takes an unexpected turn when Peter's mum sets her son up on a festive blind date.

Nina Dobrev’s Natalie is unlucky in love but thinks she’s struck the jackpot when matching with an East Coast hottie named Josh. In a desperate attempt to make their online relationship real, she turns up at his home during the holidays… only to discover she’s been catfished and the real Josh, a blissfully unaware man named Tag, is roaming the local neighbourhood. 

What better way to welcome in the holiday season than with the legendary man himself. And no, I’m not referring to Father Christmas but Bill Murray, where he's hosting an evening of entertainment during a blizzard in New York City. Concerned his star-studded guest list won’t show up, he begins to daydream about what singing alongside them would be like…

The follow-up to the 2018 movie starring Kurt Russell as the iconic Santa Claus and Goldie Hawn as Mrs Claus sees Kate (Darby Camp), who has now become a cynical teenager (despite her previous festive adventures). However, fate sees her reunited with the man in red, as a mysterious character attempts to permanently cancel Christmas. 

Successful writer Jake (Justin Hartley) has his glitzy city life turned upside down when his estranged mother passes away. Returning home at Christmas to settle her estate, he meets a kind woman named Rachel. As the pair begin to read a diary they discover, they start to trace back the history of each other’s families.

Wallace & Gromit spinoff fave Shaun the Sheep features in this short film created with Aardman’s signature stop-motion animation. All is well in the lead up to Christmas Day, until little cousin Timmy goes missing. It’s left to Shaun to rescue his tiny relative before he ends up as someone else’s present.

Stacy (Vanessa Hudgens) is invited to compete in a festive baking contest in Belgravia. After a chance encounter with her doppleganger, who happens to be engaged to the country’s prince, her Christmas plans dramatically change when she’s asked to switch places with her for a few days. But how well will each adapt to the other's life?

Ellen (Eliza Taylor) is being prepped as the next CEO of the family business, but her father (Neil Crone) has his reservations. Giving her one final opportunity to prove she’s responsible enough to be the face of the company, he sends her to their hometown to hand deliver a letter to his ex-partner, as she attempts to blend in with the locals without giving away her identity.

On the back of the popular movies, Boss Baby (JP Karliak) voices the character who is just trying to enjoy Christmas, until he accidentally switches places with an elf belonging to Santa himself. One thing leads to another, as Boss Baby finds himself stranded at the North Pole. But can he get home in time for Christmas?

When Charlotte (Heather Graham) convinces her partner Rob (Jason Biggs) to turn up at her old friend Jackie’s (Brandy Norwood) unannounced for the holidays, she sees it as the perfect chance to expose her real life from the perfect one she portrays in her online newsletters. What begins as an act of envy turns into a warm human story of trust and friendship. 

When best-selling author Sophie (Brooke Shields) needs to escape town after her new book flops, she flies to a remote but serene Scottish castle to avoid a developing scandal back in the US. There, she comes up against a particularly grumpy Duke by the name of Myles (Cary Elwes). After a less than welcoming start, the pair gradually warm to one another, as Sophie starts to prefer her life in Scotland to that of her home abroad.