2003 highlights and lowlights

Highs: The death of TOTP's horrendous "Play School" branding (you've done us proud, Mr Peters), the new Countdown set, ITV1 idents, the set of RI:SE mark two, the lovely new set and graphics on They Think It's All Over.

Lows: The collapse in consistency at BBC News (Gill, Helvetica, Avant Garde and Frutiger all being strewn around thoughtlessly), ITV News's crap set and crap graphics, HIGNFY's crap set and crap closing credits that have barely changed in 13 years.

Surely THE high of the year must be the BBC going Free-To-Air on satellite, including the provision of all regional programs.

And the low point of the year was the announcement that Granada intend to have their tv studios demolished.

Higlights: Many programmes on BBC Two. BBC Parilaiments Election Replay. Iraq War Coverage. Five News relaunch.

Lowlights: ITV1 + ITV2. Peter Sissons & MIcheal Buerk leaving the 10 O Clock News. Changes last week at BBC World.

Highlights: Little Britain, BBC News 24/World relaunch, BBC News Iraq war coverage, The Office second series

Lowlights: ITV 1 and 2

Highlights: None of it. Well perhaps apart from Pages from Ceefax and the test card.

Lowlights: All of it, TV was better in 1981.

James, dear, when did you change your name to match your new initials of SL?

Anyway, everyone knows that television was better in 1950, before all this multi-channel rubbish started.

Highlights: ITV News' Iraq Coverage; Sketch Show; ITV1 and 2 new look; ITV RWC; Foyle's War; ITV Evening News; GMTV Summer; Five News new look

Lows: Five News new music; Fiona Phillips; ITV News Channel red graphics; ITV News at Ten too late; no 2DTV.

No Highs? Not even Kay on Midlands Today on Sky?

Highlights: BBC News 24 Relaunch, The Day Britain Stopped (IT WILL HAPPEN PEOPLE), Getting a higher score on Test the Nation the second time around, Little Britain, Monkey Dust.

Lowlights: Johnny Vaughan, Iain Lee, Junior Eurovision, Senior Eurovision, OAP Eurovision, The Salon.

Oh yes, ooh, this is one of my low points of the year too, don't get me started on this one.... they showed Eminem once, EMINEM? A DANCE ARTIST? Pardonnez-moi Monsieur? I don't think so. I was browsing the Dance section of my local independent record shop today (new and secondhand) and I didn't see ANY Eminem track on any of the Ministry of Sound CDs I was looking at, or indeed on the KISS or Club Mix CDs either....

And what's their fixation on playing Justin Timberlake every third tune in the daytime? Why do they only play the good stuff (i.e. PROPER dance/house/trance music) late at night? That 'Proper Chrimbo' tune shouldn't be on a Dance music channel. That is nowhere NEAR being a dance tune! It's ridiculous. Their daytime menu since 'Continuous Mix' was launched really has gone down the toilet.....

When did that happen, was it while I was on holiday?

Most of them ahve been mentioned already:

Hightlights: BBC News 24 countdown (the rest of the presentaion is an improvement but not great), new Sky News music, The Day Britain Stopped, new VH1 logo and idents, Iraq War coverage, UK losing the Eurovision Song Contest in style, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, BBC1 Skateboarders ident, Teen Big Brother.

Lowlights: new look five news, five getting Robot Wars (I wouldn't have bothered), RI:SE, all the crap shooping channels, BBC1 Tai-Chi ident, BBC losing rights to series 3 of 24, Big Brother 4, The Salon.