Where to watch Love Actually this Christmas and is the Hugh Grant rom-com on TV?

12 December 2023 , 19:00

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Hugh Grant and Martine McCutcheon in Love Actually (Image: Publicity Picture)

The year is coming to an end, which can only mean one thing: Christmas. So as the big day draws near, there’s no better time than to wind down with a few festive films.

Each year, many of us kick back with some Christmassy classics to get us in the spirit of the season – films like Home Alone, Elf and Die Hard. But it you prefer your films with a healthy dash of romance, there’s none better than Love Actually.

From revered British writer-director Richard Curtis, the 2003 rom-com follows the love lives of eight different couples in London as told through various loosely interrelated stories, all set during a frantic month in the run up to Christmas. It boasts a huge ensemble cast including Hugh Grant, Keira Knightley, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Colin Firth, Liam Neeson, Bill Nighy and Martine McCutcheon.

READ MORE:TV writer picks 10 of the best Christmas films on Amazon Prime Video

The film was another success for Notting Hill writer Curtis upon its release, grossing almost $250 million worldwide. In the 20 years since, Love Actually has cemented itself as a festive staple and is enjoyed every year as a Christmas comfort film.

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It also regularly features in lists of the best ever Christmas films. Last year, Empire readers voted it the 23rd best Christmas film of all time, while Entertainment Weekly named it sixth behind films like It’s a Wonderful Life and Elf.

So if you’re keen to wind down with Love Actually this Christmas, here’s how you can watch it in the UK.

Is Love Actually on Netflix?

Love Actually is available stream on Netflix, but UK audiences may struggle to watch it this Christmas. That’s because the film is only available on Netflix in the USA.

Love Actually was streaming on Netflix in the UK but it has now left the platform. There are a host of other festive films on Netflix, including How the Grinch Stole Christmas and The Holiday, plus some brand-new blockbusters like Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget, Maestro and Rebel Moon.

But for those of us here in the UK, don’t fear, as there’s still ways to watch Love Actually this Christmas.

Where to watch Love Actually this Christmas and is the Hugh Grant rom-com on TV?

Here in the UK, Love Actually is available to watch on Sky where it is showing on Sky Showcase on Friday, December 22 at 9pm. It will then air on Sky Cinema Christmas on December 23 at 8pm – followed immediately by Elf – and again on Christmas Eve at 5:45pm and Christmas Day at 8pm.

This means that if you want to watch Love Actually over Christmas, you’ll need a subscription to Sky. Savvy shoppers can currently get Sky included in an awesome deal that also includes Netflix and Apple TV+ at no extra cost.

This amazing entertainment bundle includes Sky Stream, Sky TV, and Netflix for £26 a month, with customers also able to claim six months of free Apple TV+. This saves customers more than £143 and gives access to premium Sky channels like Sky Atlantic, Sky Max and Sky Documentaries.

What’s more, it includes the most-talked-about new shows on Netflix and Apple TV+ like the final season of The Crown, Godzilla spin-off Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Slow Horses and Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks’ upcoming WWII epic Masters of the Air. Film fans can add Sky Cinema to this bundle for an extra £11 and also get Paramount+ included at no extra cost, saving more than £125 giving access to loads of blockbuster films and shows like Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, May December, Transformers Rise of the Beasts, Yellowstone, Frasier and South Park.

What’s more, a Sky Cinema membership also comes with two free Vue cinema tickets every month. Those looking to upgrade their broadband can add Sky’s Superfast broadband with 35Mb/s for an extra £13 a month.