Sky just gave customers an early Christmas present – 35 extra TV channels for free

Sky TV customers are in for a treat today – 35 extra channels are yours to watch for free.

This applies to those on the Sky Essential TV plan – the provider's cheapest tier that currently costs £15 per month. An upgrade to Sky Ultimate TV is now available at no extra cost, which includes a host of additional channels and on demand shows.

Channels like Sky Max, Sky Crime, Sky Documentaries, U&Gold, and Comedy Central are not normally included in the Sky Essential TV package, so customers can now watch the likes of The Paper, Brassic, and Mr Bigstuff without spending extra.

There's just one catch – the upgrade only runs until next Thursday, 16 October. But Sky has also reduced the price of making the boost more permanent.

If you like the wealth of new shows and films, you can opt to upgrade to Sky Ultimate TV from the Essential plan for just £3 per month more. That will make your monthly subscription fee just £18 per month.

That includes Netflix and Discovery+ too, which are bundled with the Sky Essential TV plan already. Sky Ultimate TV usually costs £22 per month on a 24 month contract.

Sky Sports and Sky Cinema can then be added for £20 and £10 per month extra each.

What is Sky Essential TV and what do you get?

If you're not already a Sky subscriber, Sky Essential TV is the cheapest way to get the paid service into your home.

As well as a decent selection of Sky channels, including Sky Atlantic, and 90 or so free channels, you get Netflix and Discovery+ – all for £15 per month. That also includes a Sky Stream puck – Sky's own streaming device that delivers all channels and on demand content via the internet.

You can pay extra to boost the picture and audio quality, up to HDR and Dolby Atmos, and there are a number of other TV boosts available too.

The Essential TV package also works with Sky Glass (Gen 2) and Sky Glass Air, so you can opt to add those to your setup, too.