So our ideal Christmas Day line up looks something like this, apparently!
12-3pm:
Top of the Pops
The Simpsons
Mary Poppins
3pm:
The Queen's Speech
Coronation Street
The Vicar of Dibley
EastEnders
6pm:
Morecambe and Wise
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Only Fools and Horses
Well, not my ideal line up at all - more of a nightmare in the evening actually - but Coronation Street straight after the Queen is an interesting idea. Like everything else simulcast on BBC1, ITV lose out at 3pm - so putting a big ratings winner on straight after could secure more viewers. It also frees up an hour of the evening schedule.
Yeah, or they could put an xmas Coronation St Family Album on. Talking of Corrie, last night on TMF they played Always Look On The Bright Side of Life featuring Percy Sugden, Betty, Gail and others. Anyone any idea when this was filmed? Looks mid-nineties to me.
I believe the Always look on the bright side Corrie video was 1995.
ISTR that in the early 1990s we had 2 episodes of Corrie on Christmas day with one was sandwiching the queen's speech with 15 mins of Corrie either side of it. The 2nd episode was the usual time of 7.30pm (for half an hour).
That would be an interesting idea then. I quite like the idea of soap in the afternoon freeing up an hour, or even 30 minutes at night. Any idea on how it affected the ratings of the time? Did the BBC One still win with the Queen's Speech and I expect Noel's Christmas presents?
Speaking of which, would it not be a good idea for ITV to go down the route of entertainment programmes through the afternoon whilst the BBC play out films?
I quite like how ITV are trying this year with TV Burp at 8pm between Emmerdale and Corrie, though they could have done more with the schedule.
On a TV Burp note, Harry Hill was a guest on today's This Morning, and said that he, non of the writers and production team, and not even Simon Shaps likes the title TV Burp, because of the word Burp. But when they said this, they were challenged to come up with a better name for it, and no one could think of one.
But as Phillip & Fern pointed out, it fits well as it's programmes that are regurgetated (sp?) in small parts, and that they couldn't change it now as they've kept it in the past and it's now more popular than ever.
:-(
A former member
Also STV has lost Two big ITV drama: to show STV programmes instead:
* Double time - New year
* Christmas at the Riviera: - Xmas eve:
and The Queen with Joe Pasquale : return of the love monkey on Thursday 27th By scotsport again AND, Tranny and Susannah E4 out of 5
Even limiting the soaps to 30 minutes each in prime time would help alot - but the trouble is Christmas TV just reflects what's on the rest of the year.
As poor as this year's Christmas Day schedules are, I can honestly say I can't think of what else they could fill them with.
I know they usually dominate Christmas Day onwards but we've now got a situation of people finding out that the christmas presents that they haven't even opened yet will be 20% cheaper on Wednesday!