Is British TV really bad?

[WhereisallthequalityTV]

We live abroad and every Christmas we subscribe to FilmOn to watch some British TV and make us feel less homesick! (However bad it is, it’s always better than TV where we live!)

This year, though, it seems especially bad.

Is it me, or is it just the same handful of people presenting every show? People that the BBC inexplicably thinks the average British viewer will find interesting and charismatic. Eg Gregg Wallace.

Just seen a trailer for a couple of travel type shows with Romesh Ranganathan, Sara Pascoe and that French bloke from First Dates or whatever it was called. Who really wants to see these people doing these things? Two are panel show comedians, one is... I don’t even know, a sommelier? They don’t have anything especially interesting to say about anything.

It’s just an example but every show that comes on makes me think What a pile of utter shite.

Is there anything good on?

I've found it really good this Christmas. If you can get Christmas radio times next year (think you can download it) you'd see good stuff recommended. Also Telly Addicts on this website

I think Christmas TV is always rubbish.

Generally I don't watch any live TV. I record all sorts of things to watch when I can. Some of those are pretty old. (Heartbeat anyone?)

I like all the making programmes - bake off, sewing bee, pottery throw down etc.
I like gentle murder mysteries, so Vera. Midsommer murders etc.

I like non violent and easy watching drama like Call the Midwife, Death in Paradise

Comedy - HIGNFY, Taskmaster,
Quiz - University Challenge - love the Christmas alumni version of this.

Really cannot watch most of the reality TV that seems to be saturday nights - Strictly, Michael Macintyre's the Wheel, anything with Ant and Dec, X factor, The Voice etc etc.

Oh yes Martin Clunes in Manhunt, compelling excellent TV

and I like some of the unusual travel presenters.
Susan Calman did a lovely set about travelling round Scotland. Made me want to follow in her footsteps.
Ramesh gives an alternative view on most places

Things I've enjoyed in the last few years
A very British scandal
The mezzotint
Behind her eyes
Around the world in 80 days
The great British dig
Detectorists
Motherland
Call the midwife
Strictly
Lucy worsley - Christmas carols/any of her programmes
Royle family Christmas episodes
Worzel gummidge
24 hours in police custody
Killer in my village
Nativity 1-4
Faking it
Gogglebox
Friday night dinner
Pandemonium
Four lives
The secret garden
Bake off
Gardeners world
Our victorian christmas
The turn of the screw
The cockfields
Susan Hill ghost story
Roald and Beatrice
Rick stein cornwall
The amazing mr blunden (new and old version
The girl before
Musical family christmas with the kanneh- masons
All creatures great and small
Inside no 9
Wordsworth and coleridge road trip
Mortimer and Whitehouse gone fishing
Travelman
Dancing the nutcracker (Royal ballet production and rehearsals

Oh and Malory towers. Might be british/canadian

God, how could I forget Mortimer and Whitehouse Gone Fishing?! It's glorious.

Dancing the Nutcracker was excellent too. And Our Victorian Christmas
reminded me – all the Back in Time For... shows are really good.

Yes they are

Think it was A Merry Tudor Christmas with Lucy Worsley I watched actually. I somehow hadn't registered The Coventry Carol before I watched it but it was haunting hearing the origins of it

I tend to like the dramas and the pottery/sewing/baking/woodwork shows.

Although Call the Midwife is starting to grate on me now, its all a bit over explained I feel and the Dr explaining basic things to his nurse/midwife wife just so the dappy audience can pick up on it is rather annoying!

So, all in all British TV isn't rubbish for me, but it depends what you like.

@Snow1n

I tend to like the dramas and the pottery/sewing/baking/woodwork shows.

Although Call the Midwife is starting to grate on me now, its all a bit over explained I feel and the Dr explaining basic things to his nurse/midwife wife just so the dappy audience can pick up on it is rather annoying!

Agree about bloody Dr Turner

@tobee

They've had the same people presenting everything for decades though. The current flavour of the month.

Not wanting to be horrible about Jill Dando, coz it was down to the bbc employing her, but at one time she did Crimewatch, the news and Holiday. Which was a bit jarring.

Yes, at one point Tony Slattery was on everything

There’s def less being made because of covid but I think british tv is up there with the best in the world generally especially the dramas we make.
The streaming giants have recently changed this dynamic of course.
I have lived in major European countries where there is actually very little original content at all beyond news and game shows. Other than channel 4 I don’t think we import that much at all on the main channels.

There was one it was quite good, will report back when I remember it

Aarrgh that was supposed to br a reply to BillyLurk re ghost story

Just remembered that Extraordinary Escapes with sandi toksvig and Along for the Ride with David o docherty were good

Few years on and telly is so bad that I refused to buy the annual subscription to British telly and disconnected all accounts connected to British TV. So now I watch Swedish telly instead