British TV Christmas Schedule Full Of Repeats
It’s a traditional and accepted way to spend all or at least part of Christmas. When the kids (and us childish adults) have opened all their presents, the turkey has been eaten, sprouts thrown in the bin, Gran has had a drink of sherry and is now fast asleep in the armchair, what do we all do? Yes, turn the TV on, the simple way to wind down after an eventful and stressful Christmas day. Unfortunately this year looks like being a bad one for any British television viewers hoping for a bumper new film and programme fest. According to research by the Liberal Democrats, the 3rd political party here in the UK, this year’s schedule is packed to the rafters with repeats. The party claim that the number of re-runs will be up by 42% this year from last, with a third of all shows on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, a repeat.
“This Christmas Day’s TV schedule will leave many people with a real sense of deja-vu,” said Don Foster, the party’s culture spokesman. “We’re not talking about a few traditional favourites that everyone wants to see.”
“This is just a cheap and lazy way of filling up the schedule. After original programming increased last year, it’s a real shame that broadcasters have broken their New Year’s resolution to clamp down on boring Christmas repeats.”
“ITV should be congratulated for getting one thing right,” added Mr Foster. “Giving viewers original programmes for Christmas, not programmes that have been reheated more times than Christmas dinner leftovers.”
There are a few programmes and films I’m interested in seeing this yuletide, but most of them are on the Cable and Satellite channels such as Sky One. Choice is very limited for people with just the terrestrial channels. So are the Lib Dems right? Should the main TV channels try to show less repeats and more original programming, especially over the year’s biggest holiday? What is it like in other countries? And lastly should a political party be researching such a thing or put their money and effort into something with a bit more worth?
Christmas, Lib Dems, Liberal Democrats, Hoilday, Sky One, Terrestrial
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