MUMBAI: UK pubcaster The BBC has announced a bumper feast of new programmes and seasonal specials for Christmas.

Leading the line up of drama is an adaptation of Charles Dickens?s ?Great Expectations?, featuring Ray Winstone, Gillian Anderson, David Suchet and Douglas Booth.

In another adaptation, Mary Norton?s classic children?s books will be brought into the 21st century in ?The Borrowers?, starring Stephen Fry, Victoria Wood and Christopher Eccleston.

The story of children?s book ?The Gruffalo?s Child? is told through a magical animation and voiced by Shirley Henderson, Helena Bonham Carter, Rob Brydon, Robbie Coltrane, James Corden, John Hurt and Tom Wilkinson.

There will also be a Doctor Who Christmas Special where the Doctor, played by Matt Smith, will be joined by a stellar cast including Claire Skinner, Bill Bailey, Arabella Weir and Alexander Armstrong.

In comedy two new episodes of ?Absolutely Fabulous? will see Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley reprise their roles as the champagne-swigging Edina Monsoon and Patsy Stone. They will be joined by the original cast of Julia Sawalha as Saffy, June Whitfield as mother and Jane Horrocks as Bubble.

Sir David Jason is back in a comedy role on BBC One for the first time in 20 years leading the cast of The Royal Bodyguard, and Sue Johnston stars in a new Christmas comedy, ?Lapland?.

Leading the laughs on BBC Two this yuletide will be a new four-part comedy adventure series ?The Bleak Old Shop Of Stuff?. Kicking off the series there will be a one-hour Christmas special featuring an impressive cast of Robert Webb, Katherine Parkinson, Stephen Fry, David Mitchell, Celia Imrie, Pauline McLynn and Johnny Vegas.

There will be a Michael McIntyre Christmas Special to look forward to and Christmas editions of Mrs Brown?s Boys, Rev, Outnumbered, John Bishop?s Britain, Have I Got News For You and The Graham Norton Show.

The ?Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special? will bring some seasonal sparkle to the Christmas schedule with five new celebrities donning their sequins and dancing shoes to battle it out for the crown of Strictly Christmas champ.

Spreading a bit of Christmas cheer will be a one-off special edition of Jim?ll Fix It. Presented by Shane Richie the programme will see a whole new generation of children have their dreams fixed for them.

In this year?s ?Top Gear Special?, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May set out to boost the British economy by embarking on a trade mission to India. Equipped with three old British cars and a range of uniquely British products, they set off on an epic road trip across one of the world?s most fascinating and challenging countries.

Aled Jones introduces a very festive Songs of Praise, Big Sing from London?s Royal Albert Hall; meanwhile Carols from King?s tells the Christmas story, assisted by carols from the world-famous Chapel Choir of King?s College, Cambridge.

Heralding the 2012 bicentenary celebrations of Charles Dickens, Dickens on the BBC includes the documentary strand Arena on BBC Four, which opens the door on the vast Dickens onscreen archive that has been generated over a century across the globe. On BBC Two, Sue Perkins exposes the lesser-known reality of the Dickens family Christmas, looking at the marriage of Charles Dickens through the eyes of his wife, Catherine, in Mrs Dickens?s Family Christmas, and Armando Iannucci uses Dickens?s masterpiece David Copperfield to unpick the language and analyse the characters to explore the revolutionary development of Dickens as a storyteller.

BBC Vision director George Entwistle said, "At the heart of our 2011 Christmas offering, we have a number of programmes inspired by the work and life of one of Britain?s greatest writers, Charles Dickens. From a bold adaptation of Great Expectations to a brilliant new comedy The Bleak Old Shop Of Stuff, and high-quality documentaries from Armando Iannucci and Sue Perkins, we have something to keep every member of the family entertained over the festive period.

"With the return to our screens of Absolutely Fabulous and Sir David Jason, with the Royal Bodyguard, it will be truly unmissable television here on the BBC this Christmas.??

MUMBAI: BBC Worldwide is to play host to Death in Paradise stars, Ben Miller and Sara Martins, when they arrive at the television trade event Mipcom to launch the ambitious new eight-part detective series.

BBC Worldwide will introduce the title to international buyers at a special event in Cannes on 4 October.

Also premiering at Mipcom will be a raft of new dramas including the adaptation of Dickens? Great Expectations, crime thriller The Body Farm and supernatural suspense series The Fades.

BBC Worldwide sales and distribution president, MD Steve Macallister said, "BBC Worldwide is having a stellar year with more stand-out drama in our catalogue than ever before. Returning hits including Sherlock (S2) and Misfits (S3) sit alongside some very exciting new titles such as The Body Farm and Great Expectations and, of course, the international thriller Torchwood: Miracle Day.

"We?re continuing to invest in some really high-profile shows and we are particularly proud to be part of the production partnership for Death in Paradise. Red Planet Pictures and Atlantique Productions have produced a superb detective series, the first ever drama collaboration between BBC and France T?l?visions."

Death in Paradise sees quintessential British cop Richard Poole (Miller) posted to the Caribbean island of Sainte Marie where, unsuited to the Caribbean way of life, he struggles with the sun, sea, sand and the local style of policing.

Great Expectations stars Gillian Anderson, Douglas Booth and Ray Winstone.

Already snapped up by broadcasters globally, Torchwood: Miracle Day will be on offer at Mipcom, as will returning series Sherlock (S2), Misfits (S3) and Being Erica (S4).

In children?s drama, Sadie J (S2) is back for the kids with a glossy and fun new series. Joined again by her best friends Kit and DeDe, this series sees 13-year-old Sadie fall in love with hot surfer dude, Taylor Bell, and DeDe questions her good-girl persona.