How to watch Minions Holiday Special online

(Image credit: Illumination/Universal Pictures)

A night of mischief and adventure is on the cards as those despicable yellow creatures known only as the Minions are back for a festive TV one-off. Read on to find out how to watch the Minions Holiday Special online today, no matter where in the world you are right now.

Fans of the Illuminations films were left disappointed when the full-length feature Minions: The Rise of Gru was postponed from its summer release to next year thanks to the coronavirus pandemic - but now we've got something to make up for it.

Watch Minions Holiday Special online

The Minions Holiday Special will be broadcast live by NBC on Friday, November 27 at 8:30pm PT/ET, before being available on demand via NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Peacock a day later. Full TV and live streaming details are below, and don't forget that you can tune in to your home coverage even if you're abroad - all you need in your stocking is a good VPN.

The 30 minute TV special features four "mini-movie escapades” for your small screen viewing pleasure and arrives just in time for the holidays.

While no plot lines have been revealed, judging by the trailer the special looks set to show Bob, Kevin, and Stuart get a job building toys at Santa’s workshop, join a Scouts camp, and also meet aliens.

As well as featuring familiar faces from the Despicable Me films, there's also the promise of cameos from some of Illumination’s most beloved characters from the movies The Secret Life of Pets and Sing.

Read on as we explain all the ways you can watch the Minions Holiday Special online right now, including some free options.

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How to watch Minions Holiday Special free online in the US

NBC will be airing the Minions Holiday Special, and anyone with the channel as part of their cable package need only head over to the NBC website to watch the animated one-off at 8.30pm ET/PT at no cost.

Alternatively, those without cable have a number of ways they can watch the festivities - including ways to watch Minions Holiday Special free online.

Firstly, there's the option of getting NBC through an over-the-top streaming service. Of the many options, Sling TV will meet many people's needs, as it offers NBC in most major US markets as part of its Sling Blue package. Should you decide to keep it, Sling Blue costs just $30 a month - but you can try Sling FREE first, so watching the show doesn't necessarily have to cost you a penny.

If Sling's not available where you are, then FuboTV is another service that includes NBC in its lineup of channels and also offers a free, though as it's a more fully featured cable replacement service, it'll cost more (from $59.99 a month) if you decide to keep it.

How to watch Minions Holiday Special free on-demand

The will also be available to watch Minions Holiday Special free on demand from Saturday, November 28, thanks to NBC's new streaming service Peacock.

Peacock offers a free tier with lots of great content, but exclusives are usually only available with a Peacock Premium subscription. It's not clear if this is the category the Minions Holiday Special will fall under, but we think it likely. Fortunately, it's super affordable, coming priced from just $4.99 a month - and there's even a FREE 7-day Peacock trial you can check out, essentially meaning you can watch Minions Holiday Special online free!

Despite being relatively new to Santa's sack, Peacock has already got a wide range of apps available and, perhaps best of all, signing up is really easy.

Not in the US? Remember you can access all the same streaming services and content you would at home just by using a quality VPN.

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How to watch Minions Holiday Special online from abroad

If you find yourself stuck abroad in a country where the service you'd normally use to tune in to NBC isn't available, don't worry.

Downloading a VPN will allow you to watch the Minions Holiday Special no matter where you are, simply by changing your IP address to one that's back in your country of residence. Here's how to get started with this essential bit of streaming software.

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Kevin Lynch is a London-born, Dublin-based writer and journalist. The author of Steve Jobs: A Biographic Portrait, Kevin is a regular feature writer for a number of tech sites and the former Technology Editor for the Daily Mirror. He has also served as editor of GuinnessWorldRecords.com and has been a member of the judging panel for the BAFTA British Academy Video Game Awards. Alongside reviewing the latest AV gear, smartphones and computers, Kevin also specialises in music tech and can often be found putting the latest DAWs, MIDI controllers and guitar modellers through their paces. Born within the sound of Bow Bells, Kevin is also a lifelong West Ham fan for his troubles.