The Good Ship Murder Christmas Special 2025 – All The Details You Need!

Last Updated on April 22, 2026

Hello to all fellow mystery lovers! I’m delighted to share that The Good Ship Murder is sailing back into our screens just in time for the festive season.

The show’s 2025 Christmas special has been confirmed, and if you enjoyed the earlier mysteries aboard that doomed (in a good way!) cruise ship, you’ll want to mark your diary.

If you’re new to the show, here’s the gist: The Good Ship Murder is a cozy mystery series set largely on board a luxury Mediterranean cruise ship.

The lead character, Jack Grayling, is a former detective who’s reinvented himself as a cabaret singer on cruise-ship voyages.

Naturally, he can’t quite escape his old life, and when murders begin happening on board, Jack pairs up with Kate Woods, the ship’s First Officer, to untangle webs of crime.

What makes the show so enjoyable is the mix: sun-drenched Mediterranean glamour, cabaret shows, cruise-ship drama, and good old-fashioned murder mysteries.

Each episode ends with Jack singing in the ship’s lounge, which gives things a light, almost charming tone, even when the bodies start piling up!

The Good Ship Murder Christmas Special — What We Know So Far

Here’s everything confirmed about the upcoming festive episode.

The special will air on Saturday 27 December 2025 at 9:00pm on Channel 5 (UK).

The plot is set around a holiday cruise, but with murder looming. The official synopsis teases a passenger named Donna, who claims to have a life-changing illness; she boards the ship with her friend Bernie.

As the festive voyage begins, Donna charms another passenger, Gary, and in search of a “Christmas miracle,” heads to a remote monastery.

There she meets a mysterious man of the cloth (Rodriguez) and an enigmatic nun (Thomasina). Things take a dark turn when Bernie is found dead.

No one onboard is above suspicion, and as the crew digs deeper, “the truth” threatens to upend everything they thought they knew.

Meanwhile — and this sounds promising — Jack has recently been sacked from the ship and is lying low, performing in a less-than-glamorous dive bar.

The monastery murder, however, brings Kate back into the picture. With help from the crew (including Jamil), there may be a chance to rekindle something between Jack and Kate.

And, yes, Jack might even share a Christmas song with everyone aboard!!

Who Can We Expect To See?

The returning favorites Jack (Shayne Ward) and Kate (Catherine Tyldesley) are, of course, back for the Christmas special.

The wider cast is confirmed to include Zak Douglas, Geoffrey Breton, Ross Adams, Kiza Deen, James Barriscale and Yuna Shin, promising a solid core of talent aboard the ship.

On the guest-star front, viewers can look forward to performances from Lesley Dunlop, Joelle Dyson, Luis Soto, Gary Lucy, Rebecca Harland, Greta Holland, and Michelle Holmes.

Altogether, the line-up suggests the festive atmosphere will be well served by a rich mix of familiar faces and new ones.

At the same time, the presence of so many potential suspects hints at a tangled mystery waiting to be unraveled.

Fans of cozy crime who appreciate a blend of light-hearted charm and a serious whodunnit should find this instalment very appealing, and I cannot wait!

What About The Next Season?

Good news, the Christmas special is not a one-off treat. The show has been confirmed to return for a new season in 2026, which gives fans something to look forward to once the festive episode has aired.

There is no firm start date yet, although the way season two was released, with weekly episodes beginning early in the year (January 10th), suggests that the next run may follow a similar pattern.

If the festive outing mixes romance, crime, and a few seasonal songs, and the new season builds on that with fresh mysteries out at sea, I find myself very happy to see where the series goes next.

Let’s Set Sail

If you fancy a little festive mystery with your mince pies this year, the 2025 Christmas special of The Good Ship Murder is just the ticket.

A snowless holiday trip across the Mediterranean, a remote monastery, romance in the air, and a murder to solve.

I’ll definitely be tuning in to Channel 5 on 27 December, in the UK, to see whether Jack and Kate work together again, whether justice is served, and whether there’ll be a final “chestnut-roasting” cabaret number at the end.

Hope you’ll join me, and for US fans, check Britbox for an air date because it will be on!