Children’s writers feature prominently in the Christmas and New Year schedules. If not completely Pottered out, you can end one year and start the next with J K Rowling, who is profiled on Channel 5 on December 31 (7pm, repeat) and on BBC1‘s new Omnibus on January 1 (5.40pm). Or you can look into the mind of J M Barrie (BBC2, December 23, 8.10pm). And BBC Knowledge has practically given the season over to children’s literature, repeating the series on children’s writers, An Awfully Big Adventure, (from December 24, 8pm), plus a profile of Philip Pullman (December 28, 8.20pm).

There are plenty of chances to reflect on the problematic relationship between literature and film. BBC1 has an adaptation of Conan Doyle’s The Lost World (Christmas Day, 6.30pm; Boxing Day, 6.45pm), with Bob Hoskins and Peter Falk as the Edwardian explorers walking with dinosaurs.

ITV takes a less literal approach to its sources, in updatings of Othello (December 23, 9pm), with Othello as a black police commissioner, and Micawber (Boxing Day, 9pm; December 30, 9.30pm); David Jason plays Dickens’ character in adventures not recorded in David Copperfield.

Original drama is harder to find. The highlights are on C4, where Kenneth Branagh stars as Shackleton (January 2 and 3, 9pm) in a film made by Charles Sturridge, director of last New Year’s delightful history film Longitude. On the same channel on Christmas Day (7.50pm), the Beckett season continues with Atom Egoyan’s version of Krapp’s Last Tape. John Hurt plays the tragi-comic character reviewing his life (not everyone’s idea of Christmas entertainment).

David Lean didn’t like reading; A Christmas Carol was the only Dickens novel he knew before directing Great Expectations (BBC2, Boxing Day, 6.15pm). All the more surprising, then, that most of his films were adaptations, including Dr Zhivago (BBC2, December 30, 2.30pm) and Bridge on the River Kwai (C4, December 30, 5pm). Even Robert Bolt’s script for Lawrence of Arabia (C4, December 23, 1.35pm) was based on Lawrence’s Seven Pillars of Wisdom.

Christmas being dedicated to children and old movies, there are plenty of the latter for the former. A terrific Roald Dahl adaptation, James and the Giant Peach (1996; BBC1, December 31, 11.30am), heads the list, followed by Toy Story (1995; BBC1, Christmas Day. 4.40pm) - the sequel is on The Disney Channel (Christmas Day, 9am and 9pm) - The Railway Children (1970; C4, Christmas Day, 5.25pm) and Madeline (1998; BBC1, December 27, 2.15pm). Raymond Briggs, creator of The Snowman, is profiled on C4 on Boxing Day (3.30pm); his new animated film, Ivor the Invisible will be shown on Christmas Eve (C4, 4pm).

The BBC’s answer is Second Star to the Left (BBC1, Christmas Eve, 1.20pm), in which Barbara Windsor plays a hamster and Hugh Laurie a rabbit. And, before you switch off, don’t miss this year’s Royal Institution Christmas Lectures (C4, from December 26, 11.30am): Sir John Sulston tells his young audience how genetics is helping to answer the question: “What is life?” Radio has a similar Christmas mix. Stories for children include Norman Hunter’s Incredible Adventures of Professor Branestawm (R4, from December 17, 11.30am), Miriam Margoyles reading Beatrix Potter’s The Tailor of Gloucester (R4, Christmas Eve, 11.30am) and a musical version of Albert Lamorisse’s film The Red Balloon (R4, Boxing Day, 2.15pm). Also on Boxing Day, Lord Bragg presents a special edition of The Routes of English (R4, 11am), about received pronunciation and “talking posh”.

Odd that film and television should devote huge resources to putting literature on screen, while society makes an even greater effort to teach children to read the printed word. Ladybird Books played a part in that, but the series is now under threat. Ladybird, Ladybird (R4, December 28, 11am), tells us why.

A preview of schools’ programmes for the spring term will be published on January 4