Unusual bank holiday scheduling

[RDJ]

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.

It used to be for the daytime shows. But that was when GMTV and ITV Daytime were separate entities. Now all ITV Daytime programmes come under the same department, it becomes harder to justify why GMB staff should continue as normal on a Bank Holiday, when the other programmes would get given the day off.

I do agree that Bank Holiday telly isn’t how it used to be. Movies like Grease, then it would be Disney Time on BBC1. Indeed ITV used to put some effort in - the ITV Telethons were broadcast over a Bank Holiday.

Nowadays the effort doesn’t seem to be there now. And indeed why should they, when complaints would just get plastered over Social Media that The Chase isn’t on that day.

[Neil Jones]

I do agree that Bank Holiday telly isn’t how it used to be. Movies like Grease, then it would be Disney Time on BBC1. Indeed ITV used to put some effort in - the ITV Telethons were broadcast over a Bank Holiday.

Nowadays the effort doesn’t seem to be there now. And indeed why should they, when complaints would just get plastered over Social Media that The Chase isn’t on that day.

It could have been worse, we used to have millions of bank holidays throughout the year (not literally, but it felt like it) - about 40 in a year for various saints days, religious observations and whatever else, until somebody decided in the 19th century that was completely ridiculous and dialled it all in to four, later expanded to eight. The story goes that the August one was so people could go and watch cricket but anyway...

[eyeTV]

I expect the broadcasters know better than we do. Maybe ITV & BBC One audiences decline anyway on Bank Holidays and they know that this isn't offset by showing old films. Maybe they have data that suggests its better to keep as close to the normal schedule as normal?

ITV2 had 4 kids films on yesterday so if that's what the audience wanted it was well catered for there.

[iloveTV1]

I do agree that Bank Holiday telly isn’t how it used to be. Movies like Grease, then it would be Disney Time on BBC1. Indeed ITV used to put some effort in - the ITV Telethons were broadcast over a Bank Holiday.

Nowadays the effort doesn’t seem to be there now. And indeed why should they, when complaints would just get plastered over Social Media that The Chase isn’t on that day.

It could have been worse, we used to have millions of bank holidays throughout the year (not literally, but it felt like it) - about 40 in a year for various saints days, religious observations and whatever else, until somebody decided in the 19th century that was completely ridiculous and dialled it all in to four, later expanded to eight. The story goes that the August one was so people could go and watch cricket but anyway...

Wouldn’t mind having 40 bank holidays a year to be fair. Someone should bring back the other 32!

[Brekkie]

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.

Because there is no harm in changing things up on the odd occasion and perhaps giving the viewers a treat, especially those viewers who are stuck inside watching the same thing day in day out. Those complaining can enjoy their shows the other 245 weekdays, and increasingly at the weekend too.

[CameronYoung]

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.

Because there is no harm in changing things up on the odd occasion and perhaps giving the viewers a treat, especially those viewers who are stuck inside watching the same thing day in day out. Those complaining can enjoy their shows the other 245 weekdays, and increasingly at the weekend too.

Or bump the regular schedule onto another channel, like what the BBC do with pointless on covid press conference days

[XIII]

Because there is no harm in changing things up on the odd occasion and perhaps giving the viewers a treat, especially those viewers who are stuck inside watching the same thing day in day out. Those complaining can enjoy their shows the other 245 weekdays, and increasingly at the weekend too.

You do realise we're in 2021 and not the 1980s, the idea of giving the viewer a treat on a single public holiday is so antiquated.

[Loydy]

CBBC did show a Bank Holiday special of Saturday Mash-Up, 'Bank Holiday Mash-Up'

[Steve Williams]

Because there is no harm in changing things up on the odd occasion and perhaps giving the viewers a treat, especially those viewers who are stuck inside watching the same thing day in day out. Those complaining can enjoy their shows the other 245 weekdays, and increasingly at the weekend too.

Throwing off Pointless to show an old film hardly sounds like a "treat" to me.

I think it's wrong to suggest the schedules are any more boring than in the past, to be honest. In the eighties and nineties the schedules were very mundane, you would hardly ever get Corrie or EastEnders moved from its regular slot for live sport or a big event. Nowadays that happens quite frequently.

There was virtually no sport in primetime at all, actually - in the 1986 World Cup both channels showed the second half alone of many matches so they could show all the regular programmes like Wogan and Corrie. For years they were absolutely immovable objects. And Saturday nights would all be the same, with all the big shows running for at least thirteen weeks a year, every year.

[London Lite]

The bank holiday schedules reflect the changes in viewing habits, while there are those of us like me who bar an episode of EE watched VOD services on Monday, there are those who like their regimented schedule of This Morning, Loose Women and other shows which are probably more cost effective to run with a full crew on a BH than giving them the day off.

[XIII]

The bank holiday schedules reflect the changes in viewing habits, while there are those of us like me who bar an episode of EE watched VOD services on Monday, there are those who like their regimented schedule of This Morning, Loose Women and other shows which are probably more cost effective to run with a full crew on a BH than giving them the day off.

Was Loose Women live as I know that in the past, they tended to prerecord the Bank Holiday episodes usually in the week when they were off due to the horse racing.

[Brekkie]

Because there is no harm in changing things up on the odd occasion and perhaps giving the viewers a treat, especially those viewers who are stuck inside watching the same thing day in day out. Those complaining can enjoy their shows the other 245 weekdays, and increasingly at the weekend too.

Throwing off Pointless to show an old film hardly sounds like a "treat" to me.

That old film may be new to many people or an important bit of nostalgic viewing to older viewers, who 90% of the time the BBC arguably cater for.

All of this is with a caveat of course that whenever such discussions come up they are with rose tinted spectacles, and that as much as viewers complain about the same shows being on all the time they also complain when such shows are replaced. No doubt too if changing things up on a bank holiday was a regular thing we'd all be complaining about them always showing Pixar movies, Bond Films and a comedy special every single bank holiday.

For what it's worth I think ITV got it right in daytime yesterday largely having the same shows then squeezing a film in amongst them, and a weeknight film on BBC1 is hardly a regular thing, though I agree with the earlier post there was the gap in the schedule earlier in the evening to do something other than put Garden Rescue on.

[XIII]

That old film may be new to many people or an important bit of nostalgic viewing to older viewers, who 90% of the time the BBC arguably cater for.

The BBC subject to popular belief does not cater solely to older viewers.

[GraphicsMan]

You also have to take into consideration that back in 1980 there were only three or four television channels, no Internet streaming services and limited options other than watching the television. In fact I just about remember Bank Holidays where even shops would be closed or on very limited opening hours.
Fast forward to today and we have a plethora of different resources for entertainment. Including dedicated film channels. Which is most likely part of the reason you don't see as many films on the traditional terrestrial channels as you used to - because the rights to the films are now purchased in bulk agreements with the movie channels.

[James Martin]

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.

As Cameron says, that's not the point. Much of that "new & British" content airs on any other normal Monday. I mean, I see the argument to keep imported soaps on as you don't want to mess up the "blocks" (see Channel 5 where Friday cliffhangers of Home & Away now air on Mondays since Prince Phillip's passing) but beyond that, why shouldn't Bank Holidays be treated as special now? In the 1993 example we see Eldorado shown at lunchtime in the slot usually taken by the encore screnning when normally it went out at 7pm. Granted, it was on Death Row by this point, but still.

Yes, those programmes are on every day but, again, that's the point. People who are normally at work or school during the day won't already be invested in those shows, so they're not going to watch them for one day only. And nothing for the kids, either.