Back to Christmas 1983 (17th December 1983)

archivetvmusings Christmas Television

For the next fortnight, I’ll be sampling the delights of Christmas television from forty years ago. As before, I will restrict myself to picking programmes that I have in my collection – so tempting treats I don’t have access to will have to, regretfully, be ignored …

BBC1 offers a solid early evening line-up with The Two Ronnies and Bergerac. Some parts of today’s Two Ronnies have dated better than others – for example, it’s doubtful that Ronnie B’s turn as Al Vermont (The Chocolate Coloured Cough Drop) will ever be a highlight of future clipshows.

We’re on firmer ground with the closing drama though – Barker is on fine form as Hercule Poirot in Murder is Served. Patricia Routledge offers support, while it also features one of my favourite Ronnie C. moments (his encounter with the fountain) that I’ve previously Twittered about here.

Holiday Snaps by Nick McCarty is today’s Bergerac offering. It’s the first of three episodes to feature Lee Montague as Inspector Maurice Dupont. Michael Angelis and Jean Boht also appear in this strong early S3 episode.

Over to ITV for the always baffling 3-2-1. Francis Howerd (not to mention Madeline Smith and Caroline Munro) are guesting today, so that’s enough of an incentive to tune in.

That’s followed by Cannon and Ball. Shakin’ Stevens, Jockey Wilson and Sarah Brightman – now that’s a diverse line-up of guests. Unsurprisingly, Jockey take part in a darts sketch (and it’s one that doesn’t require him to learn many lines – he’s simply called upon to react to Bobby’s antics). A brief appearance by a leggy Suzanne Dando, a dance-off between Bobby and Shakey and a nautical skit featuring Michael Knowles are a few of the other highlights.

5 thoughts on “Back to Christmas 1983 (17th December 1983)”

  1. You didn’t print to Radio and TV Times covers. Radio Times went for a Twelve Days of Christmas motif. TV Times did a tasteless picture of Prince Charles, Princess Diana and Prince William. The most tasteless TV Time covers ever.

    I contrast to the previous Christmas where the Radio and TV Times covered the period from Christmas Eve to 7th of January, this year they covered the period from 17th to 30th of December, with the listings for New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day appearing in the following week’s issues.

    I was hoping you’d do a seventies Christmas this year. (Fifty years ago The Goodies and the Beanstalk was broadcast for the first time.)

    I don’t think I watch tv that day. I had a part time job and it was the busiest week, and I went to a Christmas party that night. This was the last Christmas we didn’t have a video recorder.

    Saturday Superstore’s lineup looks promising. Guests on Play Away included Gabrielle Glaister who played two incarnations of Kate aka Bob in Blackadder, and Matthew Devitt who played the Dog in the Parallel Universe episode of Red Dwarf.

    The Devil Rides Out is one of the few Hammer horror films where Christopher Lee plays the hero.

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    • The problem with picking a year in the 1970’s is that I might struggle to find that many things to watch (in the 1980’s a great deal of television ephemera like quiz shows tend to show up on YouTube, as home taping became more common).

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  2. I recently read Peter Kay’s new (3rd) autobiography and he makes reference to his childhood and his excitement at receiving the Christmas bumper issue of the TV Times / Radio Times each year. For my own childhood, it was always very similar in that the television listings over the festive season were something that you looked forward to more than what you were likely to get on Christmas Day!!!!

    Moving on to the 1983 listings – I must admit I was never a super fan of Cannon & Ball, but Bobby’s death in 2020 encouraged me to start revisiting some of their work and it’s a typical scenario of only appreciating their talent once they are gone (or at least one of them!). The magic is purely in the innocence of their material and Tommy’s straight man routine.

    On another topic of 1983 – the Christmas edition of Blankety Blank this year (presented by Terry Wogan) featured a certain Captain Tom who captured the public’s attention during the first Covid lockdown. I believe he was 63 at the time he appeared as a guest (not sure of the specific date it was televised though!!!!)

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    • I loved the early series of Cannon & Ball at the time but it’s only fairly recently I’ve got round to revisiting them. You can argue that the material’s thin at times, but the interaction between the pair (and the Morecambe & Wise-ish way they take the mickey out of their guests) is always entertaining.

      I’m looking forward to catching the 1983 Christmas Day edition of Blankety Blank – I’ll touch upon that one around this time next week.

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