Christmas is one of the biggest times of the year for television, with terrestrial channels and online streamers stockpiling the very best shows for the time of year where everyone can sit down and enjoy their favourite shows.
However this Christmas Netflix saw its biggest festive hit come from an unlikely source.
A growing trend has started of viewers wishing to imagine a roaring fireplace on their TV screens, and the streamer has answered that call with an hour-long video of a fake Crackling Birchwood fireplace on the site.
It has become so popular, that it beat the new series of the hugely popular Korean drama Squid Game for the top slot in the UK on Boxing Day evening, according to The Guardian.
The episode features footage of wood burning on an open fire on a loop. The programme notes describe it as ‘snapping, crackling birch logs set the mood for a relaxing good time as a beautiful fire comes to life with glowing embers and dancing flames’.
The episode Crackling Birchwood Fireplace, is part of the Fireplace For Your Home Franchise on Netflix, which also offers three other episodes named ‘Crackling Yule Log Fireplace’ and ‘Crackling Fireplace with Music’.
Another variation ‘Classic Crackling Fireplace’ was also the third most watched TV show on Boxing Day. The description for this show, rated U and which came out in 2015, says: ‘enjoy the sights and sounds of a real crackling fire that lends warmth and a festive glow to parties, family gatherings — or a quiet night at home’.
By today, the two fireplace videos had dropped in popularity but remained in the top 10 shows in the UK.
Crackling Birchwood Fireplace, is part of the Fireplace For Your Home Franchise on Netflix
The fireplace streams have become a huge worldwide hit for Netflix, with massive viewing figures each year
The hotly-anticipated season of Squid Game came out on Thursday after three years of wait
The original Fireplace For Your Home came out in 2013 and Netflix has been offering a virtual fire in living rooms across the UK and the world ever since.
There has also been themed variations on the Fireplace For Home, including a Bridgerton version and a campfire version.
At Christmas the popularity for the shows peaks as more viewers choose for the background setting over some of the popular shows the streamer has available over the festive period. Last year two of the fireplace programmes were the second and third watched shows in the UK on Christmas Day.
Crackling Birchwood Fireplace also reached the top spot in Canada this year and was second on the US Netflix Boxing Day chart, with Classic Crackling Fireplace at number five.
The phenomenon has even led to a spoof behind-the-scenes documentary about the making of the fireplace series, featuring a director meticulously selecting the best logs to be in the foreground of the shot.
Meanwhile, three years after the first season of the huge global hit Squid Game, season two was finally released on Netflix on Boxing Day.
The South Korean series’ first outing back in 2021 swiftly became the streaming service’s biggest ever show and racked up a whopping 1.65 billion viewing hours.
Squid Game series one became the streaming service’s biggest ever show and racked up a whopping 1.65 billion viewing hours
It followed the story Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) along with other people down on their luck faced a string of deadly children’s games, with many dying along the way, in a bid to win the £24M prize fund.
However, just a few hours after its release, viewers flooded X with disappointed comments – complaining they ‘didn’t wait three years for this’.
Some critics have also claimed the show has now ‘lost it’s edge’ while others declared it ‘utterly engaging’.
Fans unanimously branded it ‘boring’ and ‘predictable’ – while also moaning it lacked the show’s trademark nail-biting plot.