Voice of Greece welcomes the festive season with carols from across Greece and around the world, holiday greetings from Greek seafarers on the open seas, the Brisbane-based Greek choir Ellinikes Fones, beloved Christmas fairy tales, and distinguished guests—offering a rich holiday program shared with Greeks everywhere.
_ Program Highlights _
From Monday, 22 December, through Thursday, 01 January, “Greek Music Express“—Voice of Greece’s English-language program dedicated to Greek music—presented by Hercules Economou, sets out on a festive musical journey. The program features Christmas and New Year’s Eve songs, ballads, and carols, art songs and pop—joyful and melancholic melodies alike: songs of ornaments and festive lights, Saint Nicholas, and The Little Match Girl. All commentary focuses on the condition of children around the world, highlighting the inequalities, discrimination, and conflicts they face today. (Weekdays at 14:00 Athens time; exceptionally on Thursday, 01 January, at 15:00.)
“The Elves of Tradition” with Maria Koutsimpiri will be broadcasting throughout the Twelve Days of Christmas in a festive spirit, featuring carols and traditional praise songs for Christmas, New Year’s Day, and Epiphany; customs of the Twelve Days drawn from Greek folk tradition; Christmas fairy tales; and stories about elves and mischievous winter spirits. (from 24 December to 6 January).
Throughout the holiday period, the music program “Irregular Notes” with Stelios Ioannidis presents rare recordings from the ERT Archive, alongside beloved Christmas melodies and traditional carols, highlighting the musical memory of the season. (Broadcast dates and times: 22–24 December at 20:00; 25 December at 18:00; 26 December at 17:00; and 01 February 2026 at 17:00, Athens time.)
On 23 December, at 22:00 Athens time, on Christmas Eve, the programme “Human Landscapes” with Victoria Kavouriari welcomes to the Voice of Greece studio Alexis Kostalas. A master of language and expression, Kostalas reflects on a lifetime devoted to culture—sharing memories that range from his childhood in Petralona and his years in the United States, to encounters at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, conversations with Rudolf Nureyev, and the first figure skating broadcast on ERT in 1979—while also looking ahead to the year to come.
On Wednesday, 24 December, at 12:00 Athens time, the program “Faraway Word”s with Natassa Vissarionos celebrates Christmas with the choir Ellinikes Fones from Brisbane, Australia. Guests in the Voice of Greece studio include conductor Christina Xydi-Lignou and musicologist and music producer Georgios Lignos, who speak about the choir and their lives in Australia, while recordings of traditional carols performed by Ellinikes Fones are broadcast.
Later that same day, at 22:00 Athens time, Georgios Filias, Emeritus Professor at the Faculty of Theology of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, is a guest on “Remarkable Personalities” with Stavroula Karali. In an evening dedicated to the central event of Christianity—the Nativity of Christ—Professor Filias explores the true meaning of Christmas, illuminating the timeless message of love, hope, humility, and peace brought into the world by the Divine Birth, while placing it within its historical, political, and social context.
On Christmas Day, 25 December 2025, at 10:00 Athens time, “Fair Winds and Following Seas” with Antonis Karagiannakis offers a special radio journey across Greece, exploring the customs and carols of the Twelve Days of Christmas. The program’s guest, Konstantina Tassopoulou, author of How to Sing the Carols, explains how to go caroling with friends and loved ones—what to wear, which instruments to bring, and how carols are performed in different regions of Greece and Cyprus, from villages and islands to cities.
On Christmas night, at 20:00 Athens time, the festive episode of Ariadni’s Thread with Ariadni-Sofia Kouri features live carols from across Greece, performed by a special all-female ensemble: Erriza (Konstantina Asvesta) and Effie Keramyda on oud, Nadia Mandellou on laouto, Effie Pasiou on violin, Effie Roumelioti on santouri, with guest vocalist Christina Chrysaki—accompanied by the stories behind the melodies.
On Saturday, 27 December, at 12:00 Athens time, “Our Town” with Themis Rodamitis hosts composer, musician, and author Nikos Xanthoulis, who speaks about the long journey of the ancient lyre and the revival of this once-lost musical tradition, performing live on the instrument. Immediately afterward, at 13:00 Athens time, “Historical Walks” with Marilena Katsimi reflects on the deeper meaning of Christmas through historical, theological, and cultural perspectives—focusing on the Nativity of Christ, love, freedom, sacrifice, and peace. The guest is Gregorios Papathomas, Metropolitan of Peristeri. The programme also explores how Christmas is celebrated around the world, highlighting similarities and differences between Orthodox and Catholic traditions, as well as their musical expressions.
On Sunday, 28 December, at 12:00 Athens time, the first part of “Our Town”’s tribute to the magical era of the boîtes airs under the title “When the Boîtes Were Celebrating.” Guests include artists who lived through that era— Vangelis Ntikos, Kostas Chatzis, Giannis Glezos, Themis Andreadis, Michalis Violiaris, Memy Spiratos, Thanassis Gaifyllias, Popi Asteriadi, Xanthippi Karathanasi, among others—recalling a time when every day felt like a celebration, both personal and collective. (The tribute continues on Sunday, 04 January 2026, at 12:00 Athens time.)
On Monday, 29 December, at 22:00 Athens time—and again on Monday, 05 January—”Our Town” journeys into the world of rebetiko—its music, gathering places, and working-class neighbourhoods—guided by leading scholar Panagiotis Kounadis.
On New Year’s Eve, Wednesday, 31 December 2025, at 22:00 Athens time, psycho-pedagogue and professional storyteller Sassa Voulgari is a guest on “Remarkable Personalities” with Stavroula Karali. On this night of transition and anticipation, she leads listeners along a thread of stories, returning them to childhood realms inhabited by fairies, dragons, and mischievous spirits. She reflects on One Thousand and One Nights, Ebenezer Scrooge, and The Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Andersen, and shares one of her own favourite tales.
On New Year’s Day, at 08:00 Athens time, “Fair Winds and Following Seas” with Antonis Karagiannakis travels thousands of miles with Greek seafarers, who speak about the loneliness of the holidays spent aboard ship, far from home, as they sail the world’s seas. In a festive program featuring maritime professionals of all ages, they share memories, greetings, and unforgettable Christmases at sea.
Finally, on Saturday, 03 January 2026, at 12:00 Athens time, “Our Town” presents a special holiday episode titled “As If It Were the Dream of a Festive Day”, unfolding songs and texts in a dreamlike, hopeful atmosphere. Immediately afterwards, at 13:00 (Athens time), the final episode of “Historical Walks”’ Christmas tribute airs, focusing on Christmas as a feast of peace in a world marked by war, conflict, and deep division. The guest of Marilena Katsimi will be Gregorios Papathomas, Metropolitan of Peristeri, the program examines the role of the Church in the contemporary world, the significance of the recent meeting between Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Pope Leo XIV, the historical course of relations between Orthodoxy and Catholicism from the Great Schism to the present, and the possibilities and limits of modern inter-Christian dialogue.
