Kirstie's Handmade Christmas (Channel 4, 8pm)

PROPERTY expert Kirstie Allsopp is fast becoming one of our TV Christmas traditions thanks to her interest in traditional crafts which has prompted a whole new raft of programmes.

"I think we're quite punchy now about taking ownership of Christmas crafts shows. I think this is our sixth year of having a Christmas show and we've got three episodes this year. So we've got 'getting started', 'mid-way' and 'last-minute' covered. It's slightly themed about what you can do ahead of time, what you can do mid-December, and what you can do last-minute," she says.

Allsopp started out working for such publications as Country Living and Food & Homes Magazine before setting up her own home-finding company in 1996, which concentrated on high-end properties in central and west London.

Fifteen years ago came the dream team of property hunters as Allsop and Phil Spencer hosted Location, Location, Location. Next came Kirstie's Handmade Home before she branched off into festivities and attempts to win annual shows with her cakes and flower arrangements.

"I think it's always interested me, but I never thought I was capable of doing it. So I would buy it. I'd see something that was made with love and care, and I would purchase it. I never really thought I was capable of that. I was a very early advocate of the immaculate Christmas, making a big effort with that kind of stuff. But it was a surprising discovery for me that I was capable of making things myself," says Allsopp.

Now she can't seem to stop. She's even set up an annual event, The Handmade Fair, which is held at Hampton Court and offers visitors an opportunity to learn how to make products as well as buy them from the expert.

She's also a major advocate of "upcycling" where unwanted pieces of furniture are turned into desirable artefacts capable of brightening up any home.

So, what crafting activities does she do away from the cameras?

"Anything with a sewing machine I really like. Anything where you have to count and concentrate, like knitting, is another matter. I really admire people who do that, I really struggle with them."

Tonight she brings together the cleverest crafters in the country under one roof and also looks for inspiration from Switzerland, learning how to make a show-stopping garland, boozy fondue and personalised paper-cut pictures. Home upcycling expert Jay Blades reveals how a bookcase can be transformed into a doll's house or castle – a kid's Christmas present for next to nothing.

Allsopp also launches another round of festive craft competitions, during which makers and bakers attempt to impress with their trees, advent calendars and cakes.

Capital (BBC1, 9pm)

IF you can't get enough of the excellent Toby Jones and Rachael Stirling in Detectorists on BBC4, then this compelling drama should leave you more than satisfied. This week, as the "We Want What You Have" campaign intensifies, the worried residents of Pepys Road demand greater action from the authorities. However, while DI Mill looks for a breakthrough, other forces continue to transform the fortunes of the road's inhabitants. Returning home after her break, Arabella is concerned to find that rather than getting the house in order, Roger has hired the alluring Matya to help with the kids.

Imagine (BBC1, Regions Vary)

DAVID Chipperfield is an acclaimed British architect. The sort of person who would look rather at home on Grand Designs being grilled by Kevin McCloud. Instead he's here talking to Alan Yentob about his work in Berlin, his love of the city and its history and the 11 years spent on the transformation of the Neues Museum. After successes at the Hepworth Gallery, Wakefield, and Turner Contemporary Margate, he is now embarking on his most prestigious project, a new gallery for the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.