Skip to main contentSkip to footer

The Great British Sewing Bee: Celebrity Christmas Special - all you need to know

The Great British Sewing Bee is returning to our screens!

sewing bee xmas special
Megan Bull
TV Writer
Share this:

The Great British Sewing Bee is back and better than ever with a whole new line-up of celebrity contestants. Promising a festive and feel-good episode, this year's competition will see four familiar faces putting their own twist on a pattern for a Christmas apron, as well as transforming children's hand-me-downs into a novelty outfit for a baby – and you won't want to miss the pop star-inspired fancy dress task! 

READ MORE: Christmas Day TV 2022: The best shows to watch on BBC, ITV and more

Here's everything you need to know about The Great British Sewing Bee: Celebrity Christmas Special, from the release date to the celebrity sewers…

WATCH: Get a first look at the Christmas special! 

The Great British Sewing Bee: Celebrity Christmas Special release date

The Great British Sewing Bee: Celebrity Christmas Special will make its debut at 8pm on Thursday 22 December – you can catch it on BBC One. 

MORE: Christmas TV guide 2022: the best shows to watch this festive season

READ: The top 15 Christmas movies of all time

Who is appearing on The Great British Sewing Bee: Celebrity Christmas Special?

This year's competition will be hosted by comedian Sara Pascoe and judged by fashion stars Patrick Grant and Esme Young. As for the contestants, here's the line-up. 

great british sewing bee© Photo: BBC

Comedian Sara Pascoe is hosting the special, while Patrick Grant and Esme Young are on the judging panel

Johannes Radebe

Back in November, Strictly Come Dancing's Johannes Radebe confirmed that he'd joined the celebrity Christmas special – and we can't wait to see him in action! The show's account has already posted a teaser of his time on The Great British Sewing Bee, writing: "Swapping sequins for... well, more sequins, it's @JohannesRadebe!" 

celeb contestants© Photo: BBC

Johannes Radebe, Natalie Cassidy, Rosie Ramsey and Penny Lancaster are this year's celebrity sewers

Natalie Cassidy

EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy will also appear in the one-hour special. While the actress is yet to comment on the news, we reckon she'll do an amazing job! 

Rosie Ramsey

As well as starring in this year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special, you can catch Rosie Ramsey in the Sewing Bee! Announcing the news on social media, the podcast host and author penned: "Catch me and my fellow sewers on this year's The British Sewing Bee Celebrity Christmas Special!!! Had such a lovely time filming this! (Bit stressy NOT GONNA LIE) But, loved it." 

Penny Lancaster

TV star Penny Lancaster is taking part in The Great British Sewing Bee: Celebrity Christmas Special, and she couldn't be more excited. 

Posting a photo of the cast on Instagram, she captioned it: "@britishsewingbee Let it sew, let it sew, let it sew! Join me and my lovely fellow sewers for a festive special of Sewing Bee: @JohannesRadebe, @NatCass1 and @RoseMarinoRamsey. The Great British Sewing Bee: Celebrity Christmas Special with @Sara.

Pascoe, @PatrickGrantism and @Miss_Esme_Young is coming soon. #SewingBee."

Sparking a reaction from her 163k followers, Penny's husband Sir Rod Stewart revealed that he'd be watching this year, as he replied: "Look forward to it!!"

Like this story? Sign up to our What to Watch newsletter to get other stories like this delivered straight to your inbox.