The boxset has become a staple Christmas gift for TV and film buffs- here are my favourites,including some shows that never made it to the UK,or were the victim of rubbish scheduling over here, or were aired before we were old enough to appreciate them.Scroll down for non-boxset gift suggestions for Film fans.

Game of Thrones

Like Tolkien, but with zombies, dragons and a ton of sex.HBO have really done themselves proud when it comes to the aesthetics; as usual there's a visually spectacular intro sequence which hints at quite how in-depth the storytelling is in the saga-as with Tolkein there is a whole different world, different tribes and languages to explore.The first series is an adaptation of the first book of the series A song of Ice and Fire. (The whole series isn't due to be finished till 2021) I haven't read the books yet, but people I've spoken to say its a very true adaptation, and certainly for me it was the brilliant characterisation that had me hooked-partly due to fantastic writing and partly down to the skills of a sparkling cast-many of whom are British.'Spot the people who've been in Harry Potter' is quite a good drinking game to play whilst watching.

Buy it for: Fans of Tolkein, fantasy and magical realism. Fans of men on horseback wearing a lot of eyeliner and not much else.

Don't buy it for: Your nan.It gets pretty graphic,both sexually and violently.

(Release date sadly not yet revealed, they'll be missing a trick if it doesn't come out before Christmas.)

Ultraviolet

A lowly channel 4 production from yonks ago that actually kicks ass and tuned into the vampire trend way ahead of its time. Also brought us Idris Elba (The Wire) and Stephen Moyer (now famous for his vampire portrayal in True Blood) so, you know, we owe 'em.Basically its sort of like Spooks meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer.Bloody brilliant.

Buy it for: Vampire fans who want something meatier than the Twilight franchise

Don't buy it for: People who LIKE Twilight

Carnivale

Possibly my all time favourite TV show. Another product of HBO, Carnivale follows a travelling circus in 1930s America.Think bearded ladies, siamese twins and tarot card readers-but this is only what lies on the surface. The real story is about the battle between good and evil, two instruments of which are places on earth in every generation.The plot is quite complex which is probably why it didn't last longer than two seasons-that and its portrayal of a clergyman as, well, Satan, basically.So it didn't rake in the numbers from middle America. It did however develop a cult following who were up in arms when it was dropped, after an absolute cliff hanger of an ending in Season Two. Expect everything you wouldn't expect from an American tv show- subtly addressing social issues of the time, massive backstory and mythology(so complex they had to get the writer to publish papers explaining some of it after the show finished to satiate fans) and brilliant, three dimensional characters. Everyone in it is flawed somehow,and there are few actors who would fit into the stereotypical leading lady or leading man role in Hollywood. There's an older lady who a younger man has an affair with-and there's no botox or fake tits involved. There's the sexiest femme fatale who's about a size 18. The hottestt guy is a cripple. This is one of the most challenging and therefore also the most rewarding shows you'll see.

Buy it for: Vintage fans- the show won awards for the gorgeous costumes.

Don't buy it for: Christians who are likely to take offence easily.

Arrested Development

A lot of people won't get Arrested Development. I'm afraid they're idiots.Whilst you might not appreciate its brilliance in the first couple of episodes,stick with it and you'll soon realise that it packs more laughs a minute than anything else that's hit our screens this millennium. The writing isn't a million miles from the work of Charlie Kaufman of Adapatation/I heart Huckabees/Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind fame. It relies on your knowledge of the characters-in this case a dysfunctional family who used to be wealthy and are now teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. They're held together by the ever sensible son Michael, whilst all the other characters border on sociopathic.Many of the laughs are 'in jokes' so you can't just dip into an episode, you need to watch from the beginning, especially since there are also a lot of pay-offs that are a long time coming-you'll get a punchline maybe three episodes after they started setting up the joke.I'm getting a bit technical here, sorry, but as a writer I am just in frickin' awe of this show.Every time I watch it I spot new jokes,its so incredibly dense and multi-layered.Supposedly there's a film in the making, but we all know how that usually turns out, so just buy the boxset.

Buy it for: Anyone with good taste in comedy

Don't buy it for: People who think Michael McIntyre is like, really funny.

Generation Kill

One of the best anti-war fictional shows I've ever seen-there's no glory here, just lack of equipment, lack of purpose and lots of angry,frustrated young men.It would get pretty heavy if the brilliant writers (also responsible for The Wire) didn't manage to include a ton of unexpected laughs.Also, often the frustrated young men take their tops of and they're pretty ripped and all sweaty and dirty..ahem,anyway-great writing,yes,that's what makes it great.Did I mention one of the dirty sweaty men is True Blood's Alexander Skarsgard?OH YES.

Buy it for: anyones interested in what went on in Iraq

Don't buy it for: anyone who still believes int he glory of war

Deadwood

Another HBO baby which I'm going to make you watch the intro sequence for.Lush,isn't it?It basically sums up the show pretty well-horseys,whores and whisky.More swearing than you've ever heard on TV in your life-like a vintage version of The Thick of It. The guy doing most of the swearing is Ian 'Lovejoy' Mcshane who is a revelation.The man can ACT. The show follows the fortunes of the residents of Deadwood,one of the last communities living in a lawless, self-governing town where people come to pan for gold, drink whisky and gamble.Brilliant characters based on real life, historical figures appear, including Calamity Jane,Wild Bill Hickok and more.Superbly written- so much so that it was cancelled after 2 series-it seems to be a running trend in America that when HBO make something really, really good, it tends to go over the heads of the core TV watchers in the States and so doesn't draw in enough viewers to live for very long.But if the American Idol-watching crowd isn't interested, that's a good enough recommendation for me.

Buy it for: Fans of westerns,fans of vintage-the costume designer went on to be responsible for the clothes in Mad Men.

Don't buy it for: The squeamish or anyone who objects to a lot of swearing.

Firefly

Despite not being as popular as Buffy, I think this is Joss Whedon's best work. It's kind of like a western set in space.Yup.With some paranormal shit thrown in. The writing is brilliantly witty but the whole team-from those responsible for costumes to special effects to casting- manage to create a totally addictive vision of the future.There are some pretty 'star wars' elements- the all governing 'Alliance' are the baddies and the 'browncoats' are the rebels who manage to avoid the authorities by doing small crime around the place. Definitely the series with the most impressive one-liners;they're not all that clever but damn, they're funny. At the centre of the story is the spectacular Summer Glau who at the time was launching her career as the ultimate female action hero.She actually doesn't kick much ass in the series,but in the film that was made after the series was cancelled (think how rare this is-THAT'S how fanatical and demanding the show's fanbase had become)called Serenity, she surely does.You don't have to like sci-fi to like this,its just a really fun show.I actually watched the film first by accident- regularly ranked in the top 5 sic fi films ever-again,this is due to a frighteningly militant cult following- and then discovered there was a series a few years later.Whichever way round you watch them, it'll make up for all the hours you spent watching the last batch of Star Wars movies.

Buy it for: Joss Whedon fans

Don't buy it for: Scientists-they'll go on about how this stuff couldn't really happen in the future blah blah blah

Non-Boxset gifts

For girls: Membership to the Birds Eye View festival organisation The Nest . Running a fantastic programme of events celebrating women on film, female film makers, female directors and generally women in the film industry. Sadly the Birds Eye View film festival next year has actually been cancelled due to funding cuts, so they desperately need our support to keep running the amazing programmes they've run in the past. Here's hoping they bounce back.

For boys: Membership to Prince Charles Cinema - LIFETIME membership for just £50.

For the filmmaker: Lomokino from Lomography- make films the old fashioned way-a must have for retro fans.