Man Down Christmas Special (Channel 4, 10pm)

HAVING worked as a drama teacher for 13 years, it’s turned out to be hilariously easy, as a result of drawing on past experience, for stand-up Greg Davies to create his own comedy series and Christmas special.

Asked if the plot was supposed to be autobiographical, Davies says: "I think it's hugely autobiographical, yes, because I was a very unhappy teacher for a long time and I think I've mined that period which felt like a directionless period. I mean obviously I had an awful lot of fun and I hope that's where the fun in this show comes from watching a man disintegrate a little bit as a lot of us do in our lives at some point."

Davies says he does feel passionate about his hapless character Dan and explains: "He's just quite sad; he's quite a sad character really. In every episode he tried to change and he just picks the wrong way of doing it. In every episode he thinks - my life will get better if I do this thing, but you know straight away when he picks it, 'no, that won't make it better'. I think in every episode from the get-go, the audience are told this is going to end badly and it does."

The notable absence from this festive edition is co-star and friend Rik Mayall, who died in June. It's reported that Davies went into talks with Channel 4 to discuss the future of the show following the sad news because it had been intended that Mayall would have had a much more prominent role in any further seasons. But a decision was made to press ahead and Man Down is set to return for a full series next year, with Davies saying: "I'm so delighted that Channel 4 has given me and the team another series. Great news for us, terrible news for the characters."

In tonight's episode, Dan’s looking on the bright side and keeping his fingers crossed that, after a difficult year, he's managed to turn his life around. Of course there's a spanner thrown in the works, though - this time in the shape of his aunt Nesta (Stephanie Cole).

Meanwhile, he and his two faithful friends Jo (Roisin Conaty) and Brian (Mike Wozniak) learn the hard way that life on the farm is definitely not for them.

Lottery Stories: Be Careful What You Wish For (ITV, 9pm)

THE National Lottery is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and has created more than 3,700 millionaires. This one-off programme hears from some of those winners about their experiences since recognising those magic six numbers on their ticket.

Cameras follow the stories of winners who have gone from rags to riches, and then sometimes gone back again.

The papers love a good story about lottery winners, but is going from overdraft to overload really all it's cracked up to be?

The impact on family and friends is revealed as those who have kept their money safe and those who have spent every last penny tell their stories.

Kylie: Kiss Me Once (ITV, 10.40pm)

SHE'S just shy of three decades into her career, but pop princess Kylie Minogue shows no signs of slowing down just yet.

She's recently released her 12th studio album, Kiss Me Once, and given that its contents are something to shout about, ITV has decided to show highlights from the tour in which she's promoting it, the hour or so comes courtesy of her performance at Glasgow's Hydro arena on November 12.

Kylie will no doubt be throwing in all the old 1980s classics like Locomotion and I Should Be So Lucky, while also pleasing younger fans by provoking memories of dance-filled nights with the likes of Spinning Around and Can't Get You Out of My Head.