Heart-warming CBeebies Bedtime Stories for Christmas 2023

Two very special festive CBeebies Bedtime Stories feature some of those who can’t be at home with loved ones over Christmas.

• Saturday 23rd December’s story features multiple readers from the UK Armed Forces at their bases in the UK and around the world.

• On Christmas Day, CBeebies stars Justin Fletcher and Dodge The Dog delight children from Manchester Hospital School at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital.

CBeebies Bedtime Stories celebrates the strong connection that binds those who love each other, even when they’re many miles apart, as members of the Armed Forces read ‘The Invisible String’. 

The ambitious shoot intercuts and weaves between nine different readers from many places across the world. It was filmed in locations such as Bahrain, the snowy forests of Estonia, Cyprus and from the deck of the UK’s largest warship, HMS Prince of Wales.

 Reading the heart-warming story are serving members of the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force around the world, as well as soldiers and veterans in the UK at Royal landmarks, the Tower of London and Horse Guards Parade.

Lieutenant Colonel James Shaw, the Brigadier of the Household Division who led the military procession for the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III, is among the parents who read, as is Sergeant Shannon Bennett, who drives military vehicles at her NATO base in Estonia. 

The readers, who are all parents or family members who can’t often be with loved ones at special times of the year such as Christmas, tell the story of The Invisible String, the intangible but unbreakable connections between us. Written by Patrice Karst and illustrated by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff, it will air on Saturday 23rd December (6.50pm, CBeebies and BBC iPlayer).

Sergeant Shannon Bennett, who read her part of The Invisible String from Estonia, where she has been protecting NATO’s eastern flank, knows how hard it is to spend time away from loved ones as she has a three-year-old daughter, Delaney, at home.

 She says: “Christmas can be a bittersweet affair for UK Armed Forces personnel, as many of us spend the festive period deployed thousands of miles away from our loved ones. 

 “On Christmas Day this year, there will be almost 7,000 sailors, soldiers and aviators who will miss the chance of Christmas dinner with family, or a cosy reading session with their children, because they are stationed abroad anywhere from the Falkland Islands to the Indo-Pacific. 

 “That’s why this special CBeebies Bedtime Stories episode will resonate so deeply with people who are serving – because while they are upholding peace and security around the world, they are still missing the simplicity of tucking their children into bed.”

 On Christmas Day, CBeebies’ favourites Justin Fletcher and Dodge The Dog join children from Manchester Hospital School who are patients at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital. 

 Justin reads ‘The Hospital Dog’ by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Sara Ogilvie, a big-hearted tale about a very special, very brave dog, a Dalmatian called Dot who visits children in hospital.

 Viewers will see the smiles and warm reactions of the equally brave patients at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital. 

 Justin ends the story by saying: “A very special Christmas wish to those who can’t be at home this Christmas: this wish is for you!”

 CBeebies producers hope this story brings more joy to children in hospitals all over the UK this Christmas.

 Ruth Sheard-Pearson at Manchester Hospital School says: "Our children absolutely loved their special story time session! Being in hospital means they miss out on a lot of things other children take for granted especially at this time of year, so it was wonderful to see the looks on their faces as they listened wide-eyed to every single word of the story.  

 "The visit from Justin and Dodge also did a brilliant job of raising the profile of reading and encouraging young people to read and celebrate stories - something we encourage all our children to do! It was such a special experience for the children, bringing them moments of joy in what for some of them are extremely difficult times, and is something I know they will treasure forever."

 On Christmas Eve, Justin Fletcher will bring more smiles to children across the UK when he appears as Father Christmas with a new reading of The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore.

 Other celebrity readers who will appear on CBeebies Bedtime Stories from Monday 18 December in the run up to Christmas Day will be announced soon.

 CBeebies Bedtime Story is on daily at 6.50pm (CBeebies and BBC iPlayer).

 https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/2023/heart-warming-cbeebies-bedtime-stories-for-christmas