December on SBS VICELAND is all about Billy Connolly, sci-fi and Quizmas fun

Plus, the Mario Bros. kick off super-fun Saturdays, we play in a toy store after hours and laugh in the new year with a Taskmaster special. So many pressies for you, this December on SBS VICELAND.

‘Billy Connolly’s Great American Trail’ premieres Tuesday 27 December on SBS VICELAND. Source: Wonder TV

Augmented

Jim Ewing rock climbing in the Cayman Islands, with a robotic limb. Source: Matthew Orr/STAT

At only 17 years of age, Hugh Herr had his legs amputated. Frustrated with the clumsy prosthetics he was given, Herr determined to design better ones, which would allow him to return to rock climbing and other outdoor adventures. Now, Herr is a biophysicist on a mission to create brain-controlled robotic limbs, turning his near-death experience into life-changing technology. Teaming up with injured climber Jim Ewing and a surgeon at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Herr is testing a radical new way of performing amputations that allows prosthetic limbs to move and feel like the real thing.

This incredible story airs on International Day of People with Disability.

Augmented premieres at 9.55pm, Saturday 3 December on SBS VICELAND.

Sci-fi Wednesdays…

1984 – Wednesday 7 December, 9.25pm

Fun fact: This film adaptation of George Orwell’s novel 1984 was released in 1984. Revel in the creeps as John Hurt brings to life Winston Smith while the inscrutable Richard Burton plays O’Brien. (No catch-up available.)

What Happened to Monday – Wednesday 14 December, 8.30pm

Starring Glenn Close, Noomi Rapace and Willem Dafoe, this 2017 film sets a set of septuplets the challenge of avoiding notice by the government, as their very being breaks the rules of the day: one child per family due to overpopulation. When one of their own goes missing, they must also avoid the infighting which threatens to undo them all. Catch up at SBS On Demand after it goes to air.

2001: A Space Odyssey – Wednesday 21 December, 8.30pm

This 1968 classic by Stanley Kubrick is one to watch if you’ve missed it all this time. Any pop culture references to HAL 9000 you may’ve heard over the years will suddenly make sense. Catch up at SBS On Demand after it goes to air.

Looper – Wednesday 28 December, 8.30pm

Starring Emily Blunt, Bruce Willis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, we’re in 2074 in this 2012 Rian Johnson film. While we’re decades into the future, the mob still exists, and when there’s a hit out on someone, they’re sent into the past where hired gun Joe is waiting for them. But when the mob wants to close the loop, things turn hairy for Joe. Catch up at SBS On Demand is only available for 7 days, so be very quick!

Billy Connolly takes over Tuesday nights…

Billy Connolly: Made In Scotland – Tuesday 13 and 20 December, 8.30pm

In this two-part special, we discover what made Billy Connolly the welder into Billy Connolly the comedian who changed the face of British comedy forever. His peers have called him the Beatles of comedy; the leader of the Scottish Zion Baptist Church dubbed him ‘manure mouth’. Whatever your thoughts, we all want to know him. Enriched by interviews with prominent personalities, including Ross Noble, Tracey Ullman, Eddie Izzard and Val McDermid, the special showcases Connolly’s far reach and unique and personal approach to comedy, all these decades on. He also returns to Scotland and discovers that knitted woolly swimmers were not a figment of his vivid childhood imagination.

Two-part series Billy Connolly Made In Scotland premieres at 8.30pm, Tuesday 13 December on SBS VICELAND, concluding on Tuesday 20 December.

 

Billy Connolly’s Great American Trail – from Tuesday 27 December, 8.30pm

In this three-part series, Connolly traces famous Scots across America. From New York to Nashville, he follows their migratory trail, discovering pilgrims and the parents of presidents. He visits Ellis Island, the site of Woodstock and the Grand Ole Opry, among other iconic landmarks, meeting a diverse range of Americans both on and far off the beaten track. With his vibrant curiosity and insightful perspective on the heritage of immigration that makes up today’s US population, this is a super fun educational trip.

Billy Connolly’s Great American Trail premieres at 8.30pm, Tuesday 27 December on SBS VICELAND, continuing weekly. Catch-up is available at SBS On Demand, but only for 30 days. Watch the trailer now:

Super-fun Saturdays…

Speaking of super fun, these three programs will spark up your Saturday nights (and make the perfect excuse to avoid any parties you’d prefer not to attend. We promise not to tell anyone!)

Super Mario Bros. – Saturday 17 December, 8.30pm

This 1993 live-action film, from the wildly popular 1980s video game, stars Brooklyn plumbers, brothers Mario (Bob Hoskins) and Luigi (John Leguizamo), who travel to another dimension to rescue Princess Daisy (Samantha Mathis) from evil dictator, King Koopa (Dennis Hopper). Can they also prevent Koopa from world domination? (Catch up at SBS On Demand after it goes to air.) Watch the trailer now:

One Night In Hamleys Christmas Special – Saturday 24 December, 8.30pm

Fulfilling their childhood fantasies, British comedians Romesh Ranganathan, Rob Beckett and Tom Allen get to hang out unsupervised in famous UK toy shop, Hamleys. In an all-nighter of their dreams, they raid the shelves, invent silly games and let loose with Nerf guns. (Catch up at SBS On Demand after it goes to air.) 

 

Taskmaster’s New Year Treat – Saturday 31 December, 8.30pm

Nicola Couglan in ‘Taskmaster’s New Year Treat’. Source: Avalon Television

In its first ever festive special, Taskmaster host Greg Davies and his Little Assistant Alex Horne welcome guests including John Hannah, Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Nicola Coughlan and Shirley Ballas for some ludicrous challenges, as per usual. This is one unique new year’s treat to wrap up 2022, laughs guaranteed. Catch up at SBS On Demand is only available for 30 days, so be quick! Watch the trailer now:

Quizmas Jeopardy! all-day marathon

Christmas Day never was so satisfying: a whole day of Jeopardy! Yes. How many answers can you guess while over-indulging all day? Beginning at 9.30am, 42 episodes will air back to back, till 3am on Boxing Day. That is one enticing marathon.

Jeopardy! Quizmas marathon runs from 9.30am, Sunday 25 December till 3am Monday 26 December, screening 42 episodes.

 

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