Catherine Tate Christmas Special
I hate to dig up old news, but there seems to be a bit of bovver* over the Catherine Tate Christmas Special. The Spectator’s Coffee House blog had unkind words last week, with a follow-up a couple of days ago. Now, Tory MP Nadine Dorries has written to OFCOM to complain that the show was not the normal description of “family viewing”.
I watched the programme. It was unimpressive, but compared very favourably with the veritable dud that was the To The Manor Born one-off. The programme was exactly what one might expect from Catherine Tate - a randy nurse, an easily entertained couple, and a foul-mouthed granny. What part of the Catherine Tate Show did Ms Dorries think would be suitable for a family audience? It was shown after 10.30pm, after all.
As the BBC have said, part of the comedy of at least one of the sketches is the foul language. The scene itself happened to be too strained and contrived to be remotely funny, but the principle remained. There is nothing special about Christmas Day that prevents the BBC from broadcasting swearing. Indeed, there is nothing special about Christmas Day that extends the watershed by over 90 minutes so “family viewing” can be had long after any child’s bedtime.
The BBC has the right - indeed, the responsibility - to broadcast original programming that is bound to pull in viewers. Quite why people think this should be sacrificed because it’s Christmas Day, I don’t know. Face facts: the programme was on when almost everyone in the country was indoors. It was on at a reasonable time in the very late evening. By all means write to the BBC to tell them that it was rubbish, but there is no reason why it shouldn’t have been broadcast, and no reason at all why OFCOM should be involved.
- - -
*Excuse the pun.
PS: Who can complain at a programme that has friends in such high places?