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Christmas TV 2018

Schedules and programme discussion (November 2018)

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AN
Andrew Founding member
fanoftv posted:
DE88 posted:
fanoftv posted:
Has Christmas TV ever been that great? There are usually quite a few good specials but has there ever been a day of pure entertainment?


Incidentally, this year is 25 years since ITV infamously offered virtually nothing festive on Christmas Day - not even Corrie...

https://www.tvcream.co.uk/telly/christmas-logs/the-1990s-christmas-logs/christmas1993/

Not only did the press laugh at this schedule, but the ITC felt compelled to rap ITV on the knuckles and tell them to try harder the following year - which they certainly did, with Blind Date and Heartbeat as well as the goings-on in Weatherfield, even if they still lost out to Victor Meldrew and Robin Hood.


Oh wow, I never knew about that.
That’s article and the one about 1992 says about the BBC One schedule being great, but items such as extended Eastenders and a 90 minute Only Fools and Horses doesn’t seem greatly entertaining and varied.


Shows how much that era was the golden age of comedy

With Only Fools and Horses, One Foot in the Grave, Birds of a Feather and Keeping Up Appearances all fighting to get the best slots on Christmas Day and some being 'relegated' to the secondary slots on Christmas Eve and Boxing Day
BR
Brekkie
JKDerry posted:
For 2018 with can predict the Christmas Night line up on ITV will be Paul O'Grady For The Love of Dogs, Emmerdale, Coronation Street and Victoria.

Is Victoria still going?
CA
Cando
Brekkie posted:
JKDerry posted:
For 2018 with can predict the Christmas Night line up on ITV will be Paul O'Grady For The Love of Dogs, Emmerdale, Coronation Street and Victoria.

Is Victoria still going?

No Christmas special but a new series is on the way early next year. The Victoria special did poorly last year anyway iirc
CL
Closedown
How important to ITV (and for that matter other commercial stations) is Christmas week itself?

I'd imagine Q4 is the biggest revenue quarter, but I'm not sure the January sales have as much consumer pull as they did, and holiday advertising - which used to saturate the screen in late December and January - is more spread out, I think.
BR
Brekkie
I suspect ad wise the last week has been far more important than Christmas week - that's when Christmas truly arrived in the ad breaks, and that's why I'm a Celeb airs this time of year.

C4 have been the first to release their Christmas highlights, headlined by an Inbetweeners reunion which sadly is a clip show rather than new episode.

https://www.channel4.com/press/news/christmas-2018-highlights
TV
TVfan5321
Channel 5 have announced their first Christmas programme on their website, on the 21st of December, another animal programme: *
:-(
A former member
BUt will there remember to use the idents someone forgot about last year?
FA
fanoftv
TVfan5321 posted:
Channel 5 have announced their first Christmas programme on their website, on the 21st of December, another animal programme: *


http://www.channel5.com/helptheanimals/

A little different from just an animal programme, it’s a telethon for animals - something that I personally thought should have been done years ago.

Quote:
Help the Animals at Christmas, is a star-studded entertainment extravaganza that will be broadcast live on Friday 21st December at 8pm, to help raise awareness and much-needed funds for animals in need of treatment or help.

This will be the first ever UK TV event raising funds and awareness for UK animal welfare, highlighting the work of five amazing British animal charities.
BR
Brekkie
Effectively taking the Text Santa lot which IMO ITV were foolish to drop.
bkman1990, GMc and fanoftv gave kudos
AN
Andrew Founding member
The effort made in the programme to the ratings received ratio between Text Santa and Children in Need were quite something.

If ITV struggled to make an impact on the last Friday before Christmas, Channel 5 certainly will. Still it’s something to add in the Social Responsibility section in the annual report.
JK
JKDerry
Closedown posted:
How important to ITV (and for that matter other commercial stations) is Christmas week itself?

I'd imagine Q4 is the biggest revenue quarter, but I'm not sure the January sales have as much consumer pull as they did, and holiday advertising - which used to saturate the screen in late December and January - is more spread out, I think.

I remember someone saying up to December 23rd is the best time for ITV. December 24th until January 1st are the worst, which is why ITV never bothered to place big shows in their Christmas schedules, as the advertisers were not going to flock to their output.


ITV try to "do" Christmas on the least amount of money they can, so they can be seen to be festive and spend as little on it as possible, as the ad revenue post Christmas is appalling.

Just look at their recent festive line up, really dreadful.
AN
Andrew Founding member
I don’t think Dec 23rd is anywhere near the best day. ITV almost always put out a uneventful schedule on that day.

The best time is obviously now when IAC is on. It’s notable why it’s on now and not closer to Christmas

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