When it comes to Christmas TV, for a certain type of viewer, the first Tuesday in December is Christmas Day. Why? Because it’s the day the Christmas Day schedules are finalised by TV companies, ready for the bumper festive television guides to make their way to the printers.
Now we know, and the Christmas editions of Radio Times, What’s On TV et al detailing Christmas TV schedules will be on sale from Saturday, social media has been awash with complaints about the plans. Many centre on ITV’s lacklustre offering which sees them repeating – yes, repeating – episodes of The Chase and the new Bullseye on December 25.
The ire is increased by the company’s Christmas TV morning schedule, which is just like any other day of the year: Lorraine, Good Morning Britain and James Martin. The only thing missing is Loose Women.
The BBC is better, with new programming for much of the day including the premiere of an all-new Wallace and Gromit film, a new episode of Doctor Who and the final time we’ll be following Gavin and Stacey.
It’s not all sweetness as light: many people will have preferred the annual repeat of The Vicar of Dibley over another Mrs Brown’s Boys ‘special’ … the joke has worn thinner than anything Gregg Wallace would quip.
Nostalgia, they say, ain’t what it used to be.
Christmas TV in the days of old
For those of us of a certain age, long enough in the tooth to remember the days of three television channels, having to buy both the Radio Times and TV Times, and the Christmases where we weren’t sure whether strikes would cause a blackout for either BBC or ITV, the opposite is true.
It seems mad now in these days of multichannel, on demand, streaming services but there really was more to watch over the festive period.
When the double issues of the Radio Times and TV Times were published, they were coveted, treasured bibles to the viewers’ spectacle. Not only would the big, thick pages be crammed with televisual treats, but the editors commissioned special photo features bringing together stars from our favourite shows for tableaus.
The 1988 Radio Times holds the record for most copies of a magazine sold in the UK: more than 11 million. Inside, the stars from all manner of BBC programmes took part in spreads devoted to different pantomimes – a marvel of the age.
But those were the days when both ITV and BBC tussled to come out on top in the Christmas Day ratings war, when Only Fools and Horses, Morecambe and Wise, Mike Yarwood and Porridge ruled the airwaves, and soaps only aired on December 25 if it was their regular broadcast day. Heck, even Songs of Praise took centre stage until the 1990s.
Ah yes, the 1990s
Ah, yes, the 1990s.
On January 1, 1993, some of the regional companies that made up ITV changed hands. Familiar onscreen names such as Thames, TVS and TSW disappeared. For London viewers, it was Carlton that came in – the ITV company that David Cameron used to work for. Brash, ballsy and, well, trashy, it soon dominated ITV’s schedules before taking over the network. And it’s been downhill ever since.
Its first Christmas Day Christmas TV schedules had a repeat of the 1984 film The NeverEnding Story, but at least it had premieres for National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and Field of Dreams. The following year their big film was Mary Poppins.
Fast forward to today and both BBC and ITV have had very samey schedules for much of the past decade. For the Beeb, Christmas Day programming has been animated film / Doctor Who / Strictly / EastEnders / Call The Midwife / a sitcom revival, while ITV was Paul O’Grady / Emmerdale / Coronation Street / a drama special or film. Only the order changes round.
Ridiculously samey, no hint of a variation and no desire to do anything different.
And it is the viewer who feels cheated. Christmas TV was meant to be the best of the best, a special treat, with shows that linger long in the memory thanks to constant repeats.
On the same day as the schedule release, A Bluesky user shared a press clipping from 1972 revealing that the IBA had ordered ITV to rethink its Christmas schedules … because they were too entertaining.
If only Ofcom would take a similar approach this year. Only this time they ask the third channel to actually do some entertaining.
It is Christmas after all.