Christmas is officially upon us – and if the turkey trimming sandwiches and festive music wasn’t convincing enough, there are enough Christmas films to last you a lifetime.

From The Princess Switch and Love Actually to Elf and It’s A Wonderful Life, we are literally drowning in them.

It was millennial fav The Holiday that made headlines this week as it was reported that the Christmas film very almost didn’t star Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz.

Yes, really. While the two actresses were reportedly the first choice, one A-lister almost took on the role Iris due to Kate Winslet’s filming conflicts.

Who was the A-lister that almost stepped into Iris Simpkins’ shoes? Martine McCutcheon.

That’s right – the Queen of Christmas films was almost in The Holiday.

Martine McCutcheon. Getty Images.

While talking about her iconic role as Natalie in Love Actually, Martine McCutcheon revealed to Hello! that she was actually on hold to play Iris in The Holiday.

‘Not many people know this, but I was actually on hold to do The Holiday because Kate Winslet was tied up with a film and she didn’t know if she could do The Holiday in time. And the studio let her go so she could do. But Michelle Guish, who was the casting director, said to me a couple of days before filming was due to star, “Martine, pack your bags, get ready. You’re probably going to be starring opposite Jack Black in The Holiday.”‘

She continued: ‘But Kate did it. She did an amazing job and I am a huge fan of her.’

Well, this is the Christmas film news that we weren’t expecting!

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