Steve Bennett (I)

Hunderby returns

Sky have apparently not yet made a decision on whether Hunderby should return for another full series, but Dorothy's surely got enough evil in her to go around.

The trio offer a very bleak image of Christmas in their shabby flat, old sports socks hanging from the mantelpiece in lieu of the stockings. The set designer has even made fairy lights seem grim. We start with Ed Easton dancing hilariously badly with excitement at the prospect of Santa's arrival, but his illusions are shattered, before things take an unexpected turn into the horrific, and then into the plain odd. Kath Hughes and James Meehan co-star, and look out, too, for Justin Moorhouse as a very convincing Father Christmas.

Made to look as if it was shot on old film stock, this short has Alex Horne and his band offering their version of a cloying Bing Crosby-style festive special as fake friends holed up in an elegant country home while the snow falls outside. The clunking, stilted exchanges between Horne and the musicians are a delight, while they showcase a couple of Yuletide tracks, most satisfying of which is a deliciously blasphemous reimagining of the Nativity with disgusting images contrasting with the beautiful hymn-like presentation.

The Australian absurdist shuns all the cosy warmth of Christmas to set his film in a stark, clinical laboratory, where he and his staff (Bridget Christie and Kieran Hodgson) are working on Christmas cracker jokes. Generously, Simmons gives a lot of the best moments to Matt King - channeling his Superhans intensity and oddness into the role of Tall Pall, a mysterious humour troubleshooter. Blink and you might miss Mike Wilmot's cameo contributions to this peculiar scenario.

Four years after Limmy's Show ended on the BBC, DIY comedy maestro Brian Limmond is back with more selfies of the sketch comedy world. Holding his own video camera, he offers some advice for those who are spending Christmas alone, unusual diet tips and a sketch heavy with marital tension. Sometimes astute, sometimes juvenile, the quality's inconsistent, but Limmy is an unconventionally compelling performer whose quirky personality shines through.

This one seems like a sketchification of a stand-up routine as the comic mulls what a Muslim Father Christmas would be like or deconstructs the easy-to-mock lyrics of 12 Days Of Christmas. The setting is a shisha cafe which his younger brother and co-owner, played by Guz Khan (aka Guzzy Bear) is trying to make more Christmassy. There's probably more that could be done with the idea, as it seems they only scratch the surface here.

In a stand-out move, Joseph Morpurgo's short is shot as if from the video camera of a bored father being dragged along to his son's Nativity play, by his pushy mum (Cariad Lloyd). Though there are some strong performances, not least from Mike Wozniak, who can get a laugh from a pissed-off stare in the role of a fellow parent, the humour doesn't entirely do justice to the imaginative set-up.

The only real dud of the dozen, Libby Northedge and Nina Smith embraced the dark spirit of David Lynch, though aren't as funny. They seem very pleased with their weirdness, a self-consciousness at odds with other surreal acts who tend to have playful fun with the lack of boundaries. Instead, this seems to be uncomfortable for its own sake. The pair, who have an aggressive, dysfunctional relationship, are charged with getting a church ready for the Christmas Eve service, but mess it up.

A change of tone here, for a short that shelves the cynicism and actually celebrates the spirit of Christmas. Nish Kumar plays an actor who became insufferable last Christmas when he landed the part in a Hollywood film, alienating his friends (Ed Gamble, Tom Neenan and Massive Dad Tessa Coates) at their annual get-together. Twelve months later and he's been kicked off the film - revealed in a bruising meeting with his agent, played by Aisling Bea - and wonders if he can face them again. The pay-off, courtesy of Santa David Trent, might a little corny, but that' Christmas for you...

This is the stand-out of the lot, a heart-warming story based on a simple premise, some great gags, and the warmth of his performance. After a grinch steals Christmas - or, more accurately, the car containing all the presents and accoutrements for the big day - Spencer Jones stays up all night improvising gifts from what he could scavenge from the hardware shop at midnight. His character is basically 'best Dad ever', inventive, playful and prepared to do anything for his family - an optimism that rubs up against his sourpuss sister-in-law. A perfect combination of laugh-out-loud moments, including the final punchline, and a genuine feelgood spirit. More please!