BBC have 'pulled out the stops' for Christmas TV

[Ifailed]

...and the best they came come up with is Mrs fucking Brown! A Les Dawson drag act from the 70s - it wasn't funny then and it still isn't now.
Surely they could have done better?

www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-55042114

[kleew1]

@BashfulClam i hope so! Elaine C Smith posted on social media hinting she was filming.

Jamon jamon...

[Holothane]

Doctor who and call the midwife that’s it for me the rest is crap.

[balloonsintrees]

Watch Ghosts, it is amazing.
Apologies if already mentioned upthread!

[Holothane]

Oh yes the black narcissist I’ll buy that on blu ray if I can.

[BashfulClam]

@kleew1therecwas something in the BBC Scotland website with Michelle doing a zoom call saying she was allowed the the hot tub. Colin stayed behind the glass doors to make sure they social distanced...aye I bet he did stay right at the window! I’ll try and find it.

[ZaraCarmichaelshighheels]

I remember a while back when they did a behind the scenes programme about The Vicar of Dibley and Richard Curtis was interviewed, normally when a series has finished permanently the set is broken up but he said that the set has been kept because ‘you never know when the nation may need a hug’ it’s just such a shame so many cast members are no longer with us 😥

[iklboogeymum]

Morcambe and wise, etc. Most of those who enjoyed watching them are either dead or old and its not something the present generation Likes. Comedy has changed.

DS15 would beg to differ. He's a huge fan of comedy of that era - Morecambe & Wise, The Two Ronnies, Porridge etc

I'd target pull my own toenails out with pliers than watch Mrs Brown's Boys but a lot of the rest looks really good given the year we've had.

[MercyBooth]

Re, comedians from years gone by i absolutely love Dave Allen. He really stood out from the rest back in the day because he was daring to send up the Catholic Church. No tired MIL jokes from him. No repeat clause was in his contracts. He absolutely hated repeats. His shows were repeated once and that was it.

[MercyBooth]

Dave Allen sketch about apartheid.

[ChiefClerkDrumknott]

Contrary to most here, I don’t mind Mrs Brown’s Boys, so there 😝

Normally I would clear my schedule for Doctor Who but I don’t like the current doctor, so I may watch it if I can be arsed.

That being said, theres a lot on the list IMO, something for everyone. I can’t stand Strictly or Call The Midwife, but I’m sure those who do will enjoy it.
I’m looking forward to Ghosts, Upstart Crow, Masterchef, Pandemonium, Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing, The Repair Show, Vicar of Dibley (although I bet it will be sad, given how many of the cast have died), the Royal Opera, the Royal Ballet, Carols from King’s and Black Narcisuss (RIP Dame Diana, Queen of Thorns). Not a bad line up at all

[XDownwiththissortofthingX]

The BBC have the cheek to expect payment of a licence fee, when they routinely fill prime time TV slots with utter garbage like Mrs Brown, Vicar of Dibley, Strictly etc.

No doubt Michael bloody McIntyre will be everywhere as well. He's about as funny as a molten lead enema.

[MoonJelly]

@XDownwiththissortofthingX, you do realise, don't you, that you pay a hell of a lot more to keep commercial channels going, with less control? Who do you imagine pays for those endless adverts if not the consumer?

[AuntieStella]

BBC programming has not appealed to me for a while, and there's very little I want to watch this year. Even their new coverage seems watered down. It's disappointing.

I would no longer object to the ending of the licence fee

[Clutterbugsmum]

I don't understand the constant put down off Mrs Brown or Miranda come to that, no I don't like it but I do understand that not everyone has the same sense of humour.

I can't 99% of the cheap TV reality TV to me it's complete and utter shite. But then there is enough people watching it for TV companies to continue to watch it.

[Clutterbugsmum]

I can't STAND 99% of the cheap TV reality TV to me it's complete and utter shite. But then there is enough people watching it for TV companies to continue to watch it.

[XDownwiththissortofthingX]

@MoonJelly

you do realise, don't you, that you pay a hell of a lot more to keep commercial channels going, with less control? Who do you imagine pays for those endless adverts if not the consumer?

I couldn't care less because I don't watch commercial TV either. The crucial difference is ITV, C4, C5 and such don't send me a pseudo-legal letter every month threatening me with fines and visitations regardless of the fact I don't even use their product. The fact the BBC does this, and has the temerity to then pay salaries to the likes of Miranda, Michael McIntyre, Laura Kuenssberg etc just doubles the resentment and disdain I feel for them.

Couldn't care less if the whole thing keeled over and died tomorrow. It's a relic of a bygone age that's well past it's sell-by date.

[Caelano]

Of course there’s a great deal of subjectivity in tastes when it comes to humour. But even so, there are certain characteristics of good comedy - originality, timing, context, character.... It’s entirely possible to recognise great comedy even if it doesn’t appeal to your personal taste.

I’m honestly struggling to see how Mrs Brown in any way meets the definition; it’s tired, very outdated and lazy. Miranda is a one trick pony- posh, faux clueless woman. Rinse and repeat.

[nosswith]

@XDownwiththissortofthingX have to agree about Michael McIntyre, he's becoming the Jimmy Tarbuck of this era. However, not foul mouthed transphobia like Brendan O'Carroll, nor with tax avoiding family.

[Alexafrost]

"Contrary to most here, I don’t mind Mrs Brown’s Boys, so there 😝"

Good for you. A lot of tiresome snobbery around here. I've never watched the show but the endless negative comments have decided me to give it a try.

[Alexafrost]

"Of course there’s a great deal of subjectivity in tastes when it comes to humour. But even so, there are certain characteristics of good comedy - originality, timing, context, character.... It’s entirely possible to recognise great comedy even if it doesn’t appeal to your personal taste."

No, there are no objective standards whatsoever to what people find funny. It's all entirely subjective as you have just proved by not liking too very popular shows/comedians, Mrs Brown's Boys and Miranda.

Unless it really is your position that people are wrong for finding them funny because you know better what's good and bad and what is and isn't funny?

[bellinisurge]

Mrs Brown's Boys is shit. My late mum was Irish. She hated it as unimaginative crap.
Looking forward to the Ghosts Christmas special though.

[Caelano]

Clearly some people will find all sorts of shit funny but it’s absolutely entirely possible to define the characteristics of each type of comedy - satire, dark humour, parody etc- and factors such as timing, characterisation etc which impact on the quality. Just as with other art forms. We don’t all like the same paintings, films or books but it doesn’t mean all paintings, films or books are equal in terms of quality

[bellinisurge]

Yes @Caelano but the point is, this is hardly pulling out all the stops, is it?

[WhatKatyDidNxt]

I’d love to know what things would have looked like if they hadn’t pulled out the stops. What a load of old crap!

[Holothane]

I loathe morcambe and wise not once have I ever laughed at them utter drivel the only reason they got high rating was there was little contest, today they wouldn’t get the rating.