After yesterday’s disappointing offerings, there’s richer pickings available today. We begin with the final episode of Angels – Vicky Smith (Pauline Quirke) is just one of the regulars facing difficult decisions. Is this the end of an era at Heath Green? As the series didn’t return, I’d say yes ….

The always phlegmatic John Peel and David (“Kid”) Jensen are your Top of the Pops hosts today. We kick off with Slade and (what else?) Merry Christmas Everybody (“It’s Christmas!”). Other treats include George Cole and Dennis Waterman performing What Are We Gonna Get ’Er Indoors? Most of it is spoken word, which is probably just as well as Cole’s brief attempts at solo singing are memorable for all the wrong reasons. The Flying Pickets close the show with the Christmas No 1 – Only You.

Originally broadcast on the 11th of December, there’s another chance to see this year’s Sports Review of the Year. Most of it is available on YT (the same channel has other editions of a similar vintage in addition to oodles of other interesting material). This is the imperial era of the programme, with a besuited Des Lynam effortlessly in charge. As everybody knows, it was never the same after they changed the name to Sports Personality of the Year.

Just prior to the Christmas Day episode, today’s offering of Only Fools and Horses (3.7 – Who’s A Pretty Boy?) sees the debut of both Denzil (Paul Barber) and Mike (Kenneth MacDonald). Also appearing is Eva Mottley as Denzil’s wife Corinne (sadly Eva Mottley would die shortly afterwards, with the character not recast but now just existing off-screen). A bearded David Jackson is on good form as the intimidating
Brendan O’Shaughnessy.

It’s just as well that the BBC have come up trumps today as ITV and C4 aren’t offering me too much …