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This year Matt Baker is at Bamburgh Castle hoping to create a festive party for his fellow presenters at the end of the show. Matt discovers what life is like behind the scenes in a castle at Christmas and meets the conservators for whom Christmas is a time to take stock of the silver, the priceless paintings and the antique furnishings. He meets owner Francis Armstrong as they decorate the Kings hall and finds out about the everyday challenges of being the owner of a castle. As he prepares the castle for the party he meets with local wreath maker Robert O’Rourke and then heads into Bamburgh village to meet Local chef Richard Sim who is supplying some tasty local seafood dishes.

Tom Heap is looking into the difficulties bell ringing groups face when recruiting new members. Tom meets up with Colin Wheeler who leads the bell ringers at All Saints Church in Rothbury who explains the problem and then tries to teach Tom the art of bell ringing. But there is a solution to this problem and it comes from our towns and cities. So will the bells still be able to ring out for Christmas Day?  

John Craven visits the Holy island of Lindesfarne and discovers how some of our earliest Christmases were celebrated. John then heads to meet the team responsible for brewing the mead that the island is famous for. He discovers the process, gets involved in bottling some of this year’s batch. He then heads back to Bamburgh, Mead in hand, to catch up with the rest of the presenters for the big feast.

Anita Rani travels to Alnwick to discover the secret of the perfect Christmas pudding. She meets Susan Green, who produces award winning puddings at her Farm in Northumberland. Susan uses a family recipe passed down through generations and a special ingredient to give it that extra Christmas kick, Alnwick Rum. Anita learns, step by step, how to put together a pudding that will steal the show at the party later. Susan was originally given the recipe by her mother, Dorothy, but since filming Dorothy has sadly passed away. After discussing it with the family, we would like to dedicate this Christmas story to Dorothy Helen Philipson. 

Ellie is down at Greystone’s Farm in the Cotswolds this festive season to help out the volunteers and earn herself a mince pie. For most people, Christmas is a time to relax and unwind, but down on the farm its full steam ahead… Ellie meets Will Masefield, Cotswold Community Wildlife Officer, to help restore the river banks and build some barn owl boxes. She also gets crafty out in the field, with her top tips for your garden birds this festive season… and her beautiful creations are easier to make than you’d think! 

Adam Henson is at the beautiful Belsay Hall to meet with local shepherdess, Ashley Stamper. With her two working dogs, and little pup Mo, Ashley tends the sheep here on the flat grassland when she isn’t out on the rugged Otterburn Ranges. Ashley also takes Adam to the local church to find out how Shepherds and their dogs would have spent Christmas day in years gone by, and as the carol says, they finish the day by fire light, watching their flock by night.

Anita heads to the Northumbrian/Cumbrian border to meet jewellery maker Alexandra Jackson on a forage with a difference. Alex sources the majority of the natural materials for her jewellery from the landscape around her home. Anita joins her looking for seasonal plants including holly, pine cones, and bright red Hawthorn berries to take home to her workshop. It’s here Alex shows Anita how she transforms what she’s found into pieces of art. With a process called Electro-forming Anita and Alex produce a beautiful festive centre-piece for the table at Bamburgh castle.

As the day comes to an end all the presenters arrive at the Castle for the big festive finale. With the table loaded with local traditional fare, Anita’s pudding and John’s Lindisfarne mead. The presenters and guests get into the festive spirit celebrating Christmas and as the night draws in they sing us out with a hearty version of `Deck the Halls.’

Merry Christmas!