How to watch ‘It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown’ this year

According to Linus, “On Halloween night, the Great Pumpkin rises from his pumpkin patch and flies through the air with his bag of toys for all the children.” For more than half a century, families have gathered around the television to watch the Peanuts gang debate whether or not the Great Pumpkin actually exists, only for poor Linus to fall asleep in the pumpkin patch, never to learn the truth.

But if you hope to continue the tradition of watching “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” with your family this year, you’ll need to have a subscription to a particular streaming service.

After 20 years of airing on ABC, Apple TV+ acquired the rights to “It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown” (along with “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” and “A Charlie Brown Christmas“) in 2020.

Following initial backlash over the streaming-only availability, Apple TV+ agreed to allow PBS to air the specials in 2020 and 2021. However, that does not seem to be the case this year.

PBS Kids responded to a tweet asking about the program.

“Regretfully, PBS does not have the rights to distribute the Peanuts specials this year,” @PBSKIDS replied. “We’ll all have to watch for the Great Pumpkin in a different pumpkin patch this Halloween.”

So, unless something changes, or you have the special on DVD, VHS or another recorded format that you can play, you’ll need to be subscribed to Apple TV+ to catch “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” this Halloween season. There is currently a seven-day free trial for the streaming service. After the trial, the price is $4.99 a month.

The Peanuts special is available on demand on Apple TV+ all month long.