The countdown to Christmas is in full swing, and that means it's time to kick back and relax – and watch as many festive films as you can manage.

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One Christmas movie that's certainly worth revisiting is Home Alone, which was released back in the 1990s but remains one of the most cherished Christmas comedies of all time, and boasts a brilliant soundtrack stuffed with festive bangers.

Home Alone stars Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister, an eight-year-old child left to defend the family home from two burglars (played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern) after his family accidentally set off on holiday without him.

The franchise was most recently relaunched with the 2021 Disney Plus film Home Sweet Home Alone, which starred This Way Up’s Aisling Bea and Catastrophe’s Rob Delaney, although that latest instalment was reviewed rather less favourably than the original.

Here’s how you can watch the family-friendly festive favourite this Christmas.

Home Alone: Where to watch the Christmas movie online in the UK

Home Alone 2
Home Alone 2. 20th Century Fox

As one of the greatest family films of all time, it is perhaps fitting that Home Alone (and its sequels) are streaming on Disney Plus this Christmas, along with the reboot, Home Sweet Home Alone, which is also available on the streaming platform.

Home Alone is not currently available to stream on other services such as Netflix or NOW TV, but you can rent or buy the Christmas classic on Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, and Sky Store.

When is Home Alone on TV this Christmas?

Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister in Home Alone looking shocked
Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister in Home Alone. Disney

Home Alone is more or less guaranteed at least one airing on terrestrial TV every Christmas – and that's the case once again this year, with the film airing in the UK on Christmas Day itself at 5:30pm on Channel 4.

Meanwhile, the first and most popular of the film's sequel, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, also appears on the festive schedules this year, with ITV1 showing the film at 3pm on Christmas Eve.

Home Alone movies: How many films are there?

Following on from the first movie (released in 1990), there was a 1992 sequel – Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, which saw Kevin... well, you can guess.

Home Alone 3 followed in 1997, though this threequel focused on a new young protagonist – Alex Pruitt (Alex D Linz) – who must battle both the chickenpox and four burglars working for a North Korean terrorist group (yes, really).

Though the Home Alone series hasn't returned to cinemas since, several movie spin-offs have followed – 2002's Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House saw a recast Kevin McCallister (Mike Weinberg) again up against Marv (with French Stewart replacing original actor Daniel Stern), while 2012's Home Alone: The Holiday Heist again focused on a new lead, with Christian Martyn playing 10-year-old Finn Baxter.

Last year, Jojo Rabbit star Archie Yates led the cast of Home Sweet Home Alone, a spin-off film for Disney Plus. He played Max Mercer, a boy who (you guessed it) gets left behind when his family head off on holiday to Japan, and eventually ends up embroiled in all sorts of dramas when a married couple mistakenly think he has stolen a valuable doll from their home.

Home Alone house location: Where was Home Alone filmed?

The exterior scenes for the McCallister house in the original Home Alone were filmed on location at 671 Lincoln Avenue in the North Shore village of Winnetka, Illinois.

The house's main staircase, basement, attic and some of the first floor landing were also used for interior shots, while all other parts of Kevin's home were built on a sound stage to allow more space for crew and equipment.

Rent or buy Home Alone on Amazon Prime Video.

Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what's on tonight.

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