Unusual bank holiday scheduling

[Larry the Loafer]

Gone are the days where bank holidays guaranteed something remotely special on TV. You might get a film if you're lucky. But there's one tradition I've never really understood, and that's where BBC One and ITV half their evening news output to make room for half an hour of what I could kindly call "filler". Usually a repeat of In For a Penny or YBF on ITV, and yesterday saw us treated to Garden Rescue on BBC One.

I've never really understood this. Not least because anyone who has the bank holiday off would've probably been home by 6pm anyway. Do they just anticipate less news on these days and have to fill an extra half hour? That's the only excuse I can think of for squeezing in half an hour of not-very-special telly on a Bank Holiday evening.

[Stuart]

The two main channels probably missed an opportunity on Monday as the weather was so bad that many stayed at home. But of course they weren't to know that when planning the schedule months ago.

Linear channels can be useful in resolving family disputes about what to watch, but these day many people live alone so choose something themselves from the plethora of films and box sets available.

[James Martin]

Bank Holiday scheduling isn't what it used to be. You used to get some great films or special programmes.

Let's take BBC One on May Day 1993: you'd have some children's programmes instead of the breakfast show, that would be followed by a family film over lunchtime. Lunchtime Neighbours & Eldorado, then a massive epic to take us to teatime and the Neighbours encore. Then the Children's Royal Variety Performance, a comedy film, and then Barry Manilow in concert.

Then let's take yesterday... apart from a film in primetime and shorter news, you wouldn't believe it was a Bank Holiday. The daytime schedule is the usual porridge. You know they're phoning it in when there's not even a sight of Mrs. Brown's Boys! :lol:

Sources: May Day 1993 | May Day 2021

[CameronYoung]

What were ITV showing in daytime? I noticed the Chase yesterday started at 5.25, not 5.

[iloveTV1]

What were ITV showing in daytime? I noticed the Chase yesterday started at 5.25, not 5.

To be fair to them they showed The Secret Life of Pets yesterday afternoon.

[TRWBUK]

Is it not more of a case of giving the staff some extra time off? I'm not sure exactly how many staff it takes to produce a full news bulletin but I'd assume less people are required if there are fewer, shorter bulletins. It's the same in most offices (pre-COVID anyway)...they have fewer staff in on a bank holiday.

[kernow]

Quite recently (either last year or the year before), ITV were regularly showing full length national and regional bulletins on bank holidays, including a full hour at 6pm.

This wasn't just a one-off. It happened on several occasions over a few months.

[Brekkie]

And to think we used to complain about the Bank Holiday Bond films.

What was baffling with the BBC1 schedule this weekend was they had a half decent 90 minute British film from the Horrible Histories team in Bill airing at 3pm on Sunday which would have probably done quite well in the 6.30-8pm slot last night.

TBF they had a decent film in Sully last night at 8.30pm, but one oddity of Bank Holiday Scheduling which dates back to the 90s News at Ten debate is despite Bank Holidays offering the opportunity to screen post-watershed films in the 9pm slot by pushing the 10pm news back that ITV and the BBC rarely take it.

[CameronYoung]

What were ITV showing in daytime? I noticed the Chase yesterday started at 5.25, not 5.

To be fair to them they showed The Secret Life of Pets yesterday afternoon.

Ah, I figured they either showed a film or Midsummer Murders (which it seems they like to put on at 2pm on a Sunday or Bank Holiday).

Quite recently (either last year or the year before), ITV were regularly showing full length national and regional bulletins on bank holidays, including a full hour at 6pm.

This wasn't just a one-off. It happened on several occasions over a few months.

I wonder if with covid they've siezed the opportunity to cut some costs by shortening the bank holiday bulletins? I'll be honest, I was mildly surprised (pleasantly surprised I should say) when the local news went back to 2 presenters around the new year - I thought they'd scrap it for good even after restrictions ease.

[paul_hadley]

I was quite surprised both BBC1 and ITV made efforts to change their schedules for once on a Bank Holiday with The Secret Life Of Pets and Sully respectively.

[Hybrid]

Apart from this year, the last time BBC One did anything remotely special for the May Bank Holiday was in 2013 when they aired a Planet Earth documentary (16:00), Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave (17:30) and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (20:30).

[Steve Williams]

Let's take BBC One on May Day 1993: you'd have some children's programmes instead of the breakfast show, that would be followed by a family film over lunchtime. Lunchtime Neighbours & Eldorado, then a massive epic to take us to teatime and the Neighbours encore. Then the Children's Royal Variety Performance, a comedy film, and then Barry Manilow in concert.

Then let's take yesterday... apart from a film in primetime and shorter news, you wouldn't believe it was a Bank Holiday. The daytime schedule is the usual porridge. You know they're phoning it in when there's not even a sight of Mrs. Brown's Boys! :lol:

New and British content between 9am and 6pm on 3rd May 1993, minus news - half an hour (and that's a burned off Eldorado)
New and British content between 9am and 6pm on 3rd May 2021, minus news - five hours (and that's in a pandemic)

I've never understood why showing a load of new British programmes is "lazy" but shoving on a film for its umpteenth screening isn't.

[CameronYoung]

New and British content between 9am and 6pm on 3rd May 1993, minus news - half an hour (and that's a burned off Eldorado)
New and British content between 9am and 6pm on 3rd May 2021, minus news - five hours (and that's in a pandemic)

Was the new and british content shown yesterday part of a wider series that had already aired, or would have aired yesterday if it wasn't a bank holiday? That is where the allegation lies.

[XIII]

I think the rose tinted spectacles are on again!

[Steve Williams]

Was the new and british content shown yesterday part of a wider series that had already aired, or would have aired yesterday if it wasn't a bank holiday? That is where the allegation lies.

If I'm watching a series every day, why annoy viewers by taking it off for a day? You can see the million complaints on social media when they take Loose Women off for the racing. And that's besides the fact many of these programmes have a life of their own on iPlayer, where the viewers don't follow the BBC1 schedule, so don't know why it's isn't on there.