It's Christmas!

It's nothing new, I know, but am I alone in being extremely irritated by schedulers putting Christmas specials on 6 months early? In the last two weeks I have seen:

QI Christmas Special from 2007
Buzzcocks Christmas Special from 2004
ER Christmas Special

and this morning, whilst looking after my ill dog, a Thomas the Tank Engine Christmas episode.

I'm also sure I recently saw an episode of Top Gear from a few years ago that mentioned it was "the festive season."

Now, Dave I can forgive slightly, as they just put things on irrespective of when they originated and when they go out, as they go out several times a year. I can even look past the fact that the ER episode went out at 2am. But what are those impressionable kids going to think when they see Thomas lighting up a Christmas tree? Creates a potentially difficult situation for any parent.

I think that Christmas specials should be saved up for Christmas itself, and not dropped in willy-nilly through the year. We're always complaining about the lack of decent telly on at Christmas - maybe it's because they're showing it all throughout the year!

"Wow how is what is essentially a scale model of a steam engine that has no opposable digits able to light up a Christmas tree?".

Surely any kid that impressionable would be watching television supervised. Watch With Mother if you will.

It is the responsibilty of the parent, not the schedulers, to prevent children from screeching Christmas carols and decking the halls in July.

Erm, not really. Just credit them with a bit of intelligence and tell them it's not really Christmas it's a repeat.

Its Christmas you say?

Hot diggedy-dog!

I suggest you try to avoid QVC on July 25th !

Shurely you mean June 25th?

To ad to the list Dave has just aired the Kumars Christmas special with Anne Robinson, Phil Collins and Roy Wood.

Surely they could save them all up and have a massive Christmas weekend or something at the start of December to kick off the season. Just because they're in that order, can't they just not air the Christmas eps yet?

Which part of "Christmas in July" might require a bit of further explanation?

UKTV Gold are going to show an eddition of Airport from Christmas sometime today!

They've done this for years...I think they repeated the whole 1997 series of SMart on CBBC in the summer of 1998, including the Christmas special. When the episode ended the CBBC presenter said "Merry Christmas! Hang on, it's July"

Especially in the days of digital channels, it's just a case of someone pressing a button and the episode playing, so it's no surprise you get festive episodes in completely the wrong season.

If you think having Christmas shows airing in July is crazy. Then ITV's karakoke show "Who Dares, Sings!" is a recording a Christmas special on 10th August.

Given that most of the programmes cycle endlessly on digital channels, it seems to me that it is logical to put christmas episodes in june, and then again in december. That way you have the maximum period of time possible between showings.

No?