[Score]

I think the soaps did worse only being 30 mins. It wasn't worth the effort to fit them into people's schedules.

Corrie was completely uneventful needn't have bothered, Emmerdale average. That said EastEnders was completely over the top.

I think this is a fair point and it does seem the episodes were basically just there so they could be on the day without anything actually happening.

The way things are going though I reckon it’s more likely they’ll disappear from Christmas Day entirely than go back to an hour. I’m not particularly convinced ITV need them there and they do better on other days anyway.

I suspect they only kept half an hour each to avoid putting cast and producers’ noses out of joint but if they’re not going to put effort into 30 minutes then it’s not worth keeping them there.

Does sound like EastEnders was completely over the top (as ever) and beyond a bit of a festive bump I can’t imagine it’ll lead to any long term ratings boost. Corrie will probably be back ahead within a week.

[JLav25]

Not sure about that. The 1% Club did well and The Masked Singer was ahead of both soaps as well (albeit only marginally ahead of Corrie). I’d say it did enough to get another spin next year and if anything Emmerdale did badly enough to be removed from Christmas Day entirely.

Given that entertainment did better than the soaps (and is cheaper than drama) it might make sense to double down next year and use something like Deal or No Deal in an early evening slot alongside Masked/1% Club.

Deal isn't a bad shout. Seem to remember at the height of its initial popularity they aired two eps on Christmas Day (3:10 and 7:30ish) and both rated fairly well

[Brekkie]

Glad Ghosts did relatively well - the best specialise seen this year (after an underwhelming final series). Thought the ITV soaps would have done better with shorter episodes but clearly not the case. The EE rating didn't match the hype either.

Catching up with Strictly now - think they were new titles at last. I get why they don't put full series on the iPlayer but a boxset of previous Christmas specials might make sense.

[tellyblues]

Were the ITV soaps both originally hour long but split as they were and something actually happens in the following episodes?

[AJB39]

BBC1 had 9 of the Top 10 rated shows for Christmas Day:

www.bbc.co.uk 


According to Jake Kanter the total audience for The King's speech was 5.9m across BBC1, BBC2 and ITV:

twitter.com 

The King’s Speech was always likely to be down this year. Last years one was his first and it came in the aftermath of Queen Elizabeth’s death which added extra interest to it.

[London Lite]

If you watch the Belgian King's Speech which are more regular than the one a year outing for Charles III, they're usually bland fixed shot recordings with the King in his office, so Charles's speech was more on a par with what he does.

(The King of Belgium does have to record two versions for French and Flemish audiences).

[NI92]

Maybe I am easily pleased but I enjoyed the BBC output yesterday watched Strictly, Doctor Who and EastEnders and thoroughly enjoyed them all. Also really enjoyed 1% Club and Masked Singer on ITV

[VMPhil]

I thought both BBC One and ITV had a good offering this Christmas Day.

[London Lite]

BBC One and Two were pretty strong in peak on Christmas Day. Two dedicated the evening schedule to Morecambe & Wise and later Caroline Aherne, while One had a decent EastEnders for once.

[Brekkie]

Maybe I am easily pleased but I enjoyed the BBC output yesterday watched Strictly, Doctor Who and EastEnders and thoroughly enjoyed them all. Also really enjoyed 1% Club and Masked Singer on ITV

Was wondering actually what people's TV routines were on the day. We had it on early evening but it was very much on and not paid attention too. When I got home later evening I did watch Ghosts (excellent), a bit of EE (not as good as fans think it is), the Masked Singer (nonsense, but enjoyable nonsense) and 1% Club (which I wasn't paying the attention it needs). Caught up on Strictly tonight which is very much Christmas by numbers now but it suits that early evening slot.

Ghosts and Mogs Christmas my personal highlights. Tabby McTat lost the battle of the Christmas cats - but only by a whisker!

Biggest disappointment if you can class it as Christmas TV would be the Chicken Run sequel- just none of the charm of the original. Will next years Wallace and Gromit be the first without Peter Sallis?