Christmas TV 2020

But, as many programmes have found out - a vote of confidence by the broadcaster, does not mean it's a vote of confidence by the viewers..

As others have said, it might get good ratings for this and next week, then bomb the week after that (and the current trailer doesn't tell you anything about the show other than it's got celebrities, a migraine inducing set, and McEntyre gurning, grinning and generally shouting a lot) and you are left with a boulder of a show that no-one wants to see right at the end of the afternoon/start of evening point of Christmas night viewing on BBC One.

I'd have hedged my bets and swapped it around with Strictly. Move The Wheel to 4.45 and Strictly to 5.45 until 7. Then if The Wheel is sucessful, you can say it's doing a job of bringing audience to BBC One in the late Christmas Day afternoon, and if it fails - put it out of the full glare of Christmas night viewing expectation.

It's also head to head with the really popuar I'm A Celebrity weekly highlights show tonight.

Reminder that every year there are many drafts of the Christmas schedule before the finals are published, so don't be surprised if things change yet.

The way the process works is that for each weekly schedule there is an exchange where the BBC and ITV schedulers get to see what each other are doing and might adjust accordingly, not wanting to put EastEnders and Coronation Street up against each other for example. Most weeks there are a couple of exchanges before the final and it's all very orderly and straightforward but for the Christmas schedules there can be loads of exhanges and last-minute changes before the published finals, sometimes with all sorts of tricks, bluffing and brinkmanship along the way.

So I'd wait until the finals are published before deciding too much about them.

Yeah IAC should get good ratings tonight.
On last night's episode, when promoting tonight's, Ant and Dec said "not a highlights package in sight". It's apparently going to be full of "unseen moments" from the week. They must have learnt from last Saturday!

The original pilot of Big Show aired on Christmas Day 2015. As Brekkie says, he had a one off chat show in 2014, and in 2013 one of his standup shows was on.

Can't say I'm overly surprised with the whole schedule. WaG at 15:10 seemed an odd pick, but if it was on in the morning, or as speculated, just before Early Man, it would make sense. Personally, I think A Close Shave is a little bit of an odd pick, for me it is the least Christmassy of them, but each to themselves.

Do we know what will be in the schedule after MBB? I'd guess a standup show, news and probably a late film. I wouldn't be surprised if last years Gavin and Stacey special gets a rerun in the 23:30 slot

Vicar Of Dibley is in for 10.35pm. Don’t know which episode though.

If they're basing their whole Christmas campaign around Zog and the Flying Dragons then I'd have thought it warranted a later slot than 2.35pm. I'd have it after the Queen or even after the film, bump the early evening schedule back half an hour and then as I said before I think Blankety Blank with Bradley would work later at night as an antidote to the annual misery fest that is EastEnders (and no plans for any Christmas cheer from them this year) before Mrs Brown's Boys, just stretching out primetime an extra half hour.

I'm guessing ITV is basically The Chase, Emmerdale, Corrie and BGT then, with probably another hour to fill. Would usually be POGDOGs.

According to ukchristmastv.weebly.com


7.00am Good Morning Britain
9.00am Lorraine
10.00am This Morning
12.30pm James Martin's Christmas Day
3.00pm The Queen
3.15pm (TBA)
4.15pm (TBA)
5.00pm The Chase : Celebrity Christmas Special
​ 6.00pm Emmerdale
7.00pm Britain's Got Talent at Christmas
8.00pm Coronation Street
9.00pm Celebrity Who Wants to be a Millionaire

Thanks.

Looking at the C4 schedules looks like The Snowman is getting a morning outing on Christmas Eve and afternoon on Christmas Day, with their new animation Clown on Christmas Eve at 7.30pm, Looks like the Alternative Message may be the closest it's been to 3pm for years, currently scheduled at 2.55pm, followed by C4 News at 3pm.

https://ukchristmastv.weebly.com/channel-4-2020.html

2 and a half hours of James Martin??
Is he cooking a turkey in real time??!

Updated recently. Alternate Christmas Message is now 4:30pm. Clown is now 7pm Christmas Day.

I suspect that the TBAs there will be ITV News (15 mins), You've Been Framed (30 mins), and either Tenable or Tipping Point (60 mins).