Christmas TV - It's Not Like The Old Days

I see the BBC have assembled their A list, all warbling 'Consider Yourself' to welcome in their Christmas season like it is something important. But in this day and age what is the point? I don't mean to sound all old and fuddy duddy, although I will, but it just can't be replicated. In the words of Morrissey "It's not like the old days anymore." How can it be? Hundreds of channels pumping out programmes twenty four hours a day. 

The BBC ad seems to hark back to a time when there was only three channels and showing you who was coming up meant something. It meant the prospect of all day television. When you could get up, turn on the telly and there would be a film or a cartoon on, not schools programmes or the test card with music, but something entertaining and that would carry on hour after hour and it wasn't even Christmas day yet! But you had to be clever in planning your viewing, timing was essential, plotting what to watch and sadly what you had to miss. Yes younglings this was a time even before the video recorder. The biggest quandary came on Christmas eve night, when the BBC and ITV would both have a big film. More than once, it came down to the toss of a coin. Let's face it who really watches films on terrestrial TV these days? Unless it is something so low profile that you forgot you wanted to see it. 

Then there was Christmas day itself, opening your presents while watching Jimmy Saville handing out toys in some children's ward. And moaning that they got better gifts. A big afternoon film, then settle down for an evening with Morcambe and Wise or whatever the ITV was throwing out. Whatever it was, it would be a Christmas Special, everything was a Christmas Special. Finish the night, if you were lucky, with a horror film on BBC 2. Oh I'm getting teary just thinking about it. All the while we were being guided by the Christmas Radio Times and, its ITV equivalent, TV Times, in those days you had to buy the pair as they only carried their own listings. They were weighty oracles, full of joyous promise and I never really thought Christmas was over until they were thrown away.

I'm not saying it was better then, things have moved on colossally and no one would put up with three channels anymore. And why should they? But the sheer naive novelty levels are something, that can never be replicated, and certainly not by a bunch of BBC celebs singing  Consider Yourself. 

Over