MANILA — The ABS-CBN Christmas Special returned to the Araneta Coliseum after three years, with Kapamilya stars in full force on Wednesday night.

Since 2020, ABS-CBN has conducted its annual Christmas special at Studio 10 because of COVID-19 restrictions. But this year, they returned to the Big Dome and brought back the fun, joy, and Christmas spirit to the network's loyal viewers.

The show kicked off around 5 p.m. and lasted for roughly four hours.

Coco Martin led the whole cast of 'Batang Quiapo' minus Lovi Poe who wasn't at the Christmas special. He was joined by Ivana Alawi, Christopher de Leon, Cherry Pie Picache, Joel Lamangan, Susan Africa, Irma Adlawan, and Mccoy de Leon, among others.

Donny Pangilinan and Belle Mariano, together with the whole cast of 'Can't Buy Me Love,' were also there, with their legion of fans screaming and cheering their names.

The powerhouse trio of 'Linlang' led by Kim Chiu, Paulo Avelino, and JM de Guzman also surprised the crowd.

Vice Ganda, Anne Curtis, Vhong Navarro and the whole bunch of 'It's Showtime' brought the house down with their funny antics and performances. Anne even sang ala-Ariana Grande alongside Martin Nievera while belting to 'Save Your Tears'.

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World-class Kapamilya singers are staple talents during the Christmas special with Ogie Alcasid, Regine Velasquez Alcasid, Gary Valenciano, Jona, Angeline Quinto, Morissette, Jed Madela, Nyoy Volante, and several new-gen singers performing.

Leading men like Gerald Anderson, Zanjoe Marudo, Jake Cuenca, Piolo Pascual, and Joshua Garcia also had their moment on stage, while Angelica Panganiban and Kim Chiu joined fellow leading ladies in a number.

Love teams probably had the loudest cheers from the fans. Tandems who entertained the crowd were Donbelle, KDLex, FranSeth, Kaori Oinuma and Jeremiah Lisbo, LoiNie and KimPau.

The Kapamilya network also revealed some of the new shows that fans can look forward to in 2024: the teleserye version of 'Linlang,' a new season of 'Pinoy Big Brother,' 'The Voice Teens,' 'The Bag Man,' 'Pamilya Sagrado,' and the Philippine adaptations of 'What's Wrong with Secretary Kim' and 'It's Okay Not To Be Okay.'

Miss Universe Philippines Michelle Dee also made a surprise appearance.

But the biggest surprise of the night was when Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla performed together after their breakup, singing 'I'll Be There For You', the theme song of the sitcom 'Friends.'

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Backstage, the two were spotted talking to each other, contrary to rumors that their friendship has fallen apart after the much-publicized split.

This year's Christmas celebration coincides with ABS-CBN's 70th anniversary celebration. The show will be aired in two parts this weekend on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, and A2Z.