The Witness for the Prosecution (BBC1, 9pm)

IN spite of ITV claiming Hercule Poirot, the BBC continues to claim the lion's share of Agatha Christie adaptations with

Miss Marple and the more recent adventures of Tommy and Tuppence and last year's haunting Christmas cracker of And Then There Were None.

This year it's Christie's classic short story The Witness for the Prosecution which brings together an early festive gift of acting talent.

"And Then There Were None made a huge impact last year, garnering great reviews and audiences of over eight million," says executive producer Karen Thrussell. "We're thrilled to be reunited with Sarah Phelps as she takes on another iconic title, an incendiary courtroom drama that will keep you guessing right to the very end."

The BBC broadcast a version way back in 1949; a US show made it to TV in 1953, the same year it was first produced as a stage play. Perhaps the most famous adaptation came in 1957 when it was turned into a movie by legendary director Billy Wilder, who cast Charles Laughton, Marlene Dietrich and Tyrone Power (in his final completed part) in the lead roles.

Then, in 1982, another TV drama followed, this time featuring an all-star cast that included Ralph Richardson, Deborah Kerr, Diana Rigg, Donald Pleasence and Wendy Hiller. It was recently announced that Ben Affleck will direct and star in a future take on the tale.

Filming for the latest production based on the story took place in Liverpool this summer and sees Toby Jones, Andrea Riseborough, Kim Cattrall and David Haig taking lead roles.

"With the long terrible shadow of the Great War falling across the rackety, feral 1920s, The Witness For The Prosecution is a compelling story of deceit, desire, murder, money and morality, innocence and guilt, heartbreak and – most painful and dangerous of all – love," says Phelps. "At the centre of this dark and tangled net is the astonishing character of Romaine, a noir heroine for all our times."

Romaine is an enigmatic chorus girl and the partner of Leonard Vole, a young chancer who has been accused of the brutal murder of the enormously wealthy Emily French. She's been found in her handsome 1920s London residence and, having left her fortune to Vole, he certainly had a motive to kill her. Vole is convinced that Romaine can prove his innocence, but he is in for a terrible surprise...

Revolting Rhymes (BBC1, 6.30pm)

IN a year of celebration for Roald Dahl the BBC has breathed new life into his1982 poetry collection Revolting Rhymes. Brilliantly using Quentin Blake's original illustrations as its inspiration. This two-part animation throws together the age-old fairy tales Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs, gives them a mischievous twist and comes up with something that the entire family will love. Dominic West, David Walliams, Rob Brydon and Tamsin Greig are among the vocal cast.

The Big Fat Quiz of the Year 2016 (Channel 4, 9pm)

RICHARD Ayoade, Rob Delaney, Mel Giedroyc, Sarah Millican, David Mitchell and Romesh Ranganathan battle it out as Jimmy Carr hosts the annual comedy quiz to determine which of his guests has their finger firmly on the pulse of modern life. The host receives help from the likes of Jon Snow, Charles Dance, the children of Mitchell Brook Primary School, a host of celebrity question-setters and some surprise guests as they take in everything from the US presidential election to Boaty McBoatface.

The Entire Universe (BBC2, 9.30pm)

PROFESSOR Brian Cox and Eric Idle star in this comedy musical telling the story of the creation of all things in just one hour. Physicist Brian arrives at a TV studio with the impression he is going to be giving a lecture on the birth of the universe, only to find that Eric has reinvented it as an all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza with Noel Fielding, Warwick Davis, Hannah Waddingham and Robin Ince on hand to tell the story of the cosmos, with guest appearances by astronaut Tim Peake and Professor Stephen Hawking.

Viv Hardwick