Originally Posted by Jonwo:
“Apart from Sex and the City, South Park and the Tyler Perry shows, cable hasn't been able to produce as many successful comedies compared to network whereas drama has really thrived. USA starting to order pilot in the hope of getting a series by 2013 when they get Modern Family reruns...”
For cable its really an issue of how you define success and how you define comedy. USA for example always defined Monk as a comedy (for awards at least) rather than a drama and I'd think the same classification applies to Psych. And in truth I think that classification fits Psych much more comfortably than it ever did Monk.
When you look at basic cable the only real big hitter comedy wise is South Park (although The Game was doing brilliant numbers for BET). The Tyler Perry shows are relatively popular as far as comedy on cable goes but don't hold their own against the big drama hitters. On premium cable it becomes a little harder to judge (although Sex in the City was never that big in the grand scheme of things in terms of ratings). The real problem cable has in regards to making inroads in drama is that network television still does comedy brilliantly. The only reason cable drama was able to explode in the way it has is because the cable networks did it better than the networks and as a result more and more writers, producers and stars gravitated to cable. After NBC cancelled Southland John Wells (who produces it and produced ER and The West Wing) talked in quite great detail about the huge gulf that has opened up between network and cable drama. That gulf doesn't exist with comedy or in fact is reversed because for all the talk of a 'comedy revival' this year network comedy never actually died which has made establishing cable comedy near impossible. The Tyler Perry shows do a good job of finding traction though because they appeal to a demographic (black audiences) that network television is astonishingly bad at attracting or reflecting.
Originally Posted by Steve Williams:
“I remember the Beeb showing this one Christmas afternoon in the noughties, announcing what an institution it was in America. It's remarkable really how bad Christmas telly is in America, half the time they don't bother and the rest of the time it's a load of sanctimonious guff (the Christmas episodes of 30 Rock are good examples both for the type of thing the show-within-a-show does at Christmas and the rather sentimental episodes themselves). And it's all weeks in advance.”
Yeah those bemoaning how terrible the UK Christmas schedule has become should take a look at what's offered up in the rest of the world particularly America. We have good.
Originally Posted by ftv:
“Re Christmas telly in the US I thought Thanksgiving was the bigger holiday than Christmas and the networks brought out their big guns then (although I think CBS has been showing Wizard of Oz at Christmas since about 1954).”
Its a cultural divide. America's just don't really watch television on Christmas Day. Primarily I suspect this is because they haven't had a national broadcaster (like the BBC) that isn't reliant on advertising revenue. If the BBC were a commercial network Christmas television here would look very different.
I don't know if I'd describe Thanksgiving as the bigger holiday but Thanksgiving television is dominated by football and generally speaking the networks (apart from ABC) don't really schedule anything the day before, of and after it.
Originally Posted by square_eyes:
“I notice the Morse prequel, Endeavour press pack has been released, so must indicate a New Year weekend airing.
Bank Holiday Monday 2nd Jan perhaps most likely after Corrie at 9pm.”
Seems reasonable and nicely avoids the presumed Sherlock scheduling on BBC1 New Years Day as well.
