a benefit concert, an hour at the bbc, a christmas special with her largest influence, and a wicked event that got an emmy nomination.
the short answer
four matter. one love manchester in 2017, broadcast live worldwide. ariana grande at the bbc in 2018, an hour of live performance for the sweetener campaign. mariah carey's magical christmas special in 2020. and wicked: one wonderful night in 2025, which was nominated for a primetime emmy.
one love manchester, 2017
not really a television special, and it is on this list because it was broadcast as one. organised in under two weeks, headlined by her, watched by an enormous global audience live. the full account is here and this page is not the place for it.
ariana grande at the bbc, 2018
the most underrated item in her filmography. an hour of live performance and conversation, made for the sweetener campaign, with a full band and no production spectacle in the way.
mariah carey's magical christmas special, 2020
she appeared alongside jennifer hudson and carey on oh santa!, which is a considerable thing to be asked to do — carey is the influence she names above everybody, and singing alongside somebody in that register invites exactly the comparison nobody would choose to invite.
it also sits neatly against the fact that she owns one of the very few christmas standards written this century. every december the two of them are on the same chart.
wicked: one wonderful night, 2025
a television event built around wicked: for good, and the one that earned an award nomination — outstanding variety special at the 2026 primetime emmys. it did not win, and it is on the juried awards table for that reason.
the one that is not a special
excuse me, i love you, the 2020 netflix concert film, is a film rather than a broadcast special and has its own page. it is the only full-length concert document she has released.
the screen section has where to watch each of these, which varies considerably — two of them are easy to find and two are not.
what is missing from the list
a documentary. there is no authorised biographical film, no long-form interview series and no behind-the-music treatment of any era, in fifteen years — which for an artist at this level is close to unheard of and is noted on the concert film page as well.
the practical consequence is that the specials above carry more weight than they otherwise would. ariana grande at the bbc is the closest thing to a document of what an era sounded like performed, because nothing else fills that role.
questions people ask
what tv specials has ariana grande done?
one love manchester in 2017, ariana grande at the bbc in 2018, mariah carey's magical christmas special in 2020, and wicked: one wonderful night in 2025.
what is ariana grande at the bbc?
an hour of live performance and conversation from 2018, made for the sweetener campaign, with a full band and no production spectacle.
did any of them win an award?
wicked: one wonderful night was nominated for outstanding variety special at the 2026 primetime emmys. it did not win.
did ariana grande sing with mariah carey?
yes, on oh santa! with jennifer hudson, for carey's 2020 christmas special.
is excuse me, i love you a special?
it is a netflix concert film rather than a broadcast special, and it is the only full-length concert document she has released.