Previewing Hallmark Channel’s Countdown to Christmas 2016, Part 1

A few days ago, I shared some perfect period dramas to enjoy for the Halloween weekend. Today I’m switching gears and diving into the tinsel. Impossible though it seems, our favorite Christmas festivities are just around the corner. It won’t be long before we can indulge in favored holiday pastimes without feeling guilty. For me, one of those activities is blaring Christmas music at unreasonable decibels. Something I don’t allow myself until Thanksgiving weekend. Another of these festive joys is the annual Countdown to Christmas campaign Hallmark Channel launches.

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For those of us ready for a sprinkling of tinsel and all its trimmings, Hallmark is happy to oblige. They kick off their 2016 holiday programming this weekend (yes, on October 29th) with A Wish For Christmas. This will launch what is a season of all-new originals numbering twenty films. These include both Hallmark Channel programs, and movies from the Hallmark Movie and Mysteries series on their sister network. Today, we’re taking a look at this weekend’s premiere and the original films that will premiere throughout the month of November.

The list features familiar Hallmark faces and romantic-comedies, Christmas cheer and even a time-travelling romance. Enjoy this look at the upcoming (and all new!) November programming. Note: these release dates may change, so keep an eye on local listings for any changes.

Previewing Hallmark Channel’s Countdown to Christmas, Part 1

Listed by Premiere Dates

1. A Wish for Christmas

Premieres on Hallmark Channel October 29, 2016

Starring Lacey Chabert (of Mean Girls fame), the story follows Sara, a woman normally content to sit on the sidelines until her marketing idea is stolen.

2. Mistletoe Promise

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 5, 2016

Based on the novel by Richard Paul Evans about two people who share a mutual disdain for the Christmas holiday. The film features Jaime King from Hart of Dixie and one of my favorite leading men, Luke MacFarlane (The Memory Book).

3. Love Always, Santa

Premieres on Hallmark Movie Channel November 6, 2016

Love Always, Santa follows a single mother struggling with the loss of her husband who is given a second chance. Following the letters her daughter wrote to Santa, she just may rediscover the joy of life… and love.

4. Every Christmas Has a Story

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 12, 2016

With Lori Loughlin (from Hallmark’s When Calls the Heart) leading the way, this is about a jaded TV personality who is assigned a story in the most Christmas-y town in America.

5. Christmas Cookies

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 13, 2016

A familiar story (big-city executive visits a small town to shutter its life blood, a cookie manufacturing plant), this one stars True Blood alum Wes Brown and Jill Wagner.

6. Finding Father Christmas

Premieres on Hallmark Movie Channel November 13, 2016

Hearties fans will be happy to see Erin Krakow headline his drama. She plays a woman with painful scars who’s searching for the family she has never had in the aftermath of her mother’s death.

7. My Christmas Dream

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 19, 2016

Hallmark favorite Danica McKellar returns in this title. She plays a department store employee competing for a promotion that would take her to Paris. Before she can achieve this, she meets a single father who might change these dreams. Deidre Hall and David Hayden-Jones also star.

8. A December Bride

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 20, 2016

Based on the novel by Denise Hunter (whose book A Convenient Groom was  previously adapted for Hallmark), this romcom sounds darling. It’s about a woman who attends her ex-fiancé’s wedding with the man responsible for the match. Daniel Lissing (When Calls the Heart) stars alongside Jessica Lowndes.

9. Operation Christmas

Premieres on Hallmark Movie Channel November 20, 2016

This sweet film is one I’m quite excited about as it seems like it’s primed to pay homage to the military. Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica) and Marc Blucas (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) play a single mom and soldier, respectively.

10. Broadcasting Christmas

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 27, 2016

Rival TV personalities compete for a spot to co-host a popular talk show with its respected host. Melissa Joan Hart and Dean Cain co-star.

11. Christmas in Homestead

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 24, 2016

An actress shoots a film in Small Town USA, during which time, a surprising romance blossoms with a single father. One of my favorites, Michael Rady (from Emily Owens, M.D.) stars in this film.

RELATED | 15 Hallmark Channel Christmas Original Movies to Watch

12. Christmas List

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 25, 2016

The basic idea for this one is about a woman whose boyfriend goes MIA just when she’s made perfect Christmas plans. Alicia Witt and Gabriel Hogen (Christmas at Cartwrights) reunite for this one.

13. A Heavenly Christmas

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 26, 2016

A Hall of Fame production, this one features Kristin Davis, Eric McCormack, and Shirley MacLaine. It tells the story of a woman who has recently died and her first assignment as an angel.

14. Journey Back to Christmas

Premieres on Hallmark Channel November 27, 2016

Candace Cameron Bure stars in this, a romance that deals in time-travel. The story will introduce us to a WWII nurse who is transported to contemporary times where complications arise when she meets and falls in love with a man from 2016.

15. I’ll be Home for Christmas

Premieres on Hallmark Movie Channel November 27, 2016

A successful DA’s past stirs up emotional turmoil during the holiday when her estranged father returns. James Brolin and Mena Suvari star in I’ll Be Home for Christmas, which sounds to be a great drama.

Which of these are you most anticipating? Comment down below with your favorites. I’d love to know which of these you’ve already marked as
“must watch” on your calendars. And before I sign off, keep an eye out for the second part of this list. It will arrive here at the end of November and will preview December’s originals.

Photos: Hallmark

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