Top Gear stars follow route of Three Wise Men

Top Gear’s trio of presenters will follow in the tracks of the original three wise men in a Christmas special that sees them drive through Iraq.

They will drive open-top sports cars through southern Turkey and Syria on their way to Bethlehem in the festive challenge.

The show’s stars regularly take part in epic long-distance journeys with previous episodes seeing them race each other across the Arctic, through Vietnam and Bolivia. Other Christmas specials include veteran comic Ronnie Corbett joined by stars including Rob Brydon and James Corden to mark his 80th birthday with a sketch show called The One Ronnie.

Corden’s Gavin And Stacey co-star Ruth Jones also gets her own show . There are returns for two of television’s best-loved families – the Trotters and the Royles – in Rock & Chips and The Royle Family and a Doctor Who special with appearances from Michael Gambon and Welsh singer Katherine Jenkins.