Fantastic audience for The Great British Bake Off. It is NOT a Saturday night show though. By all means move it to BBC1 but they should keep it on weekdays, it would just look silly and out of place on a Saturday night, and would not "kill off" The X Factor.

The people who are saying GBBO shouldn't be on BBC1 are not simply 'ITVistas'. Seriously, what's wrong with its original slot? Someone mentioned it before, if every single show on BBC2 which rates well is moved to BBC1, then it just becomes a nursery.

It should not be used to "kill off" The X-Factor. Using it to aim for that goal is detrimental to the Bake Off. The X-Factor is what it is. It will reach the end of its natural life in its own time. The BBC already has a mammoth to equal The X-Factor. Merlin also offered a genuine alternative to the X-Factor which, hopefully, Atlantis will provide to.

If the Bake Off goes to BBC1 then it should be regarded as the important programme that it is. If it went on Saturdays then January - March would be the perfect place for it, EXCEPT that Six Nations will interrupt it. It should be the crown piece of the schedule, not used to childishly try and kill off ITV opposition.

Don't think ITV have much to worry about in regards to X Factor, Break the Safe & Casualty are hardly going to dent it.

A new series of You've Been Framed? At least they are using new programming as a lead-in to X Factor. I'm interested to see how it turns out.

Meanwhile, my access has gone, again.

I really hate this system where the access relies on cookies, so if you log out, you're out (and my computer was cleaned up for some reason...).

BBC1 is the BBC's flagship channel. The main event if you like. There is nothing wrong with BBC2 becoming a "nursery" because it gives shows on BBC2 a much better chance to break in. On BBC1 if it fails it's axed. Because ratings on 2 are traditionally lower, a show can be nurtured and allowed to find its audience. Once the audience is found and the show succeeds, then it should be promoted to centre stage.

GBBO airing after SCD would mean it would get the best slot possible on a Saturday night. It would have the biggest lead in possible for any bbc1 show. And would probably get 7million+, thus boosting bbc1 to a major victory on saturday nights. If in the process it dents XFactor, thats a bonus. XFactor has it easy most of the time so let's see how it fares against some proper competition.

On another point, very surprised by the poor scheduling for Stepping Out. 6:30pm start, starting half-way through Pointless, means its defo going to flop now. So bbc1 needn't worry about this becoming a dance hit. The following week, bbc1 will easily be able to show the SCD Launch against it and finish Stepping Out off for good anyway.

You misjudge the British public. You've Been Framed is still capable of getting 3+ million. It starts at 6pm. When the News is on. Before the news is That Puppet Game Show.

Those who watch Pointless at 6.15pm must be those who REALLY want to watch it. If you're a casual viewer looking for LE on a Saturday and you've started watching YBF, you are unlikely to turn over to watch a celebrity quiz if there is a celebrity dancing show on next! Don't write off Stepping Out yet. I really do think that the BBC should have put Indy 4 on at 6.00pm this week. They missed an opportunity there.

And, if GBBO aired after Strictly, where would they air the multi-million pound Atlantis?

Do you propse this:?

6.15 Strictly
7.40 GBBO
8.40 Atlantis
9.25 Casualty
10.15 The Lottery Draws
10.25 BBC News
10.40 Match of the Day

And the only people saying it should be promoted to BBC1 are idiots like yourself more concerned with putting a small dint in The X Factor's ratings than what is best for the Great British Bake Off.

Really it would be in BBC2's interests to be as independent of BBC1 as possible, with only sport switching between the two as suitable.


As for BBC1's latest Saturday schedule - just dull and below standard. ITV's isn't much more exciting but they should win the night - even without The X Factor. Stepping Out will probably be in the territory where it's neither a hit or a flop - though can't see Through the Keyhole with Keith Lemon doing anything spectacular at all. They'd be better off just repeating Celebrity Juice in the slot which I think returns a couple of days earlier on ITV2.

Stepping Out's chances of becoming a 5million+ hit are all but over now. With a 18:30 start, partly up against bbc1's most popular game show, there is very little chance of it approaching 5million and I think it will struggle for even 4m. It could've been a big threat if it had been shown at 8pm following an XFactor lead-in but thats not happening. It's chances of becoming the next SCD are now very slim due to this poor scheduling.

Quite a lot of iffy scheduling across itv that week. Two new shows such as Pat and Cabbage AND The Guilty one after the other sounds like a recipe for disaster. Also Whitechapel being shown after a new game show could knock its ratings a lot. If it was up to me, Id have shown Doc martin on Wednesday where you know its loyal audience would follow, and then show new programs on Monday following the Coro St. boosting lead in.

What's wrong with Atlantis, a much more suitable show for Saturday nights, getting that slot? You say X Factor has it easy, well so does Strictly yet you'd start screaming and panicking if that show faced anything of note (incidentally it looks like Catchphrase may be going pre-X Factor on Saturdays, if you were wondering).

As for Stepping Out, I wouldn't say it'll definitely flop. The slot surprised me a bit, 6.30pm does seem a bit early. However the XF lead-out will still be helpful, and the show seems to have promise on paper. Pointless is hardly some ratings juggernaut and skews old so they won't be worried about that, and after Pointless it faces I Love My Country. Hardly stiff competition. I'm thinking a 4.0-4.5m launch for Stepping Out. The Strictly preview the next week will hurt it but if the first show goes well then maybe not so much.

Was it actually ever intended to be the next SCD?

ITV have got a big week coming up it seems with a wash of news programmes starting, kicking off the Autumn programming. All of which look really good. The Sunday night combination of Corrie, X Factor and Vera presents a huge night for them, although BBC will hold up well with pensioner fodder Roadshow and Countryfile. Doc Martin could potentially have its best rated series,( taking over from 2011 series), with easy opposition and increased interest in the brand.

I also think Through The Keyhole, even though placed following X Factor will not nessasarily have a big audience, but will skew young.

I wonder how Whitechapel will do, since BBC launched a rip-off version, should easy top it? Interesting times ahead.

Think this post is going a bit too far.
By all means BBC can schedule competitive complimentary programming for example Merlin vs X-Factor. However I don't really think there are any circumstances under which the BBC should be attempting to "kill off" a commercial networks programming.

Atlantis unfortunately is going to flop hard after a good launch. Ive not heard particularly great things about it, and we've seen time and time again this year bbc1 dramas start well but then drop off. The same is probably going to happen here. It will expose a huge part of bbc1's autumn schedule and Id prefer to see an established returning show shown after SCD.

Simply brilliant for the Bake Off - a massive, massive hit and though I'm usually happy to see things promoted to One, I really think BBC2 deserves to keep this. With shares falling it needs all the ratings help it can get. It's nice to see some numerical success for a channel that to me offers the most interesting, diverse and engaging schedules on British TV.


I'm going to resist the temptation to point this out to those folk who assured me that ITV were now playing all their Saturday evening entertainment at 7pm, that it was clearly the best slot for family entertainment, that TXF would definitely air there too, and that moving BGT there was in no way intended to kill, hurt or maim some rival talent contest this spring...

Oops.

Ripper Street is hardly a "Whitechapel" rip off. Have you seen both shows? I have. They are worlds apart. Both great shows though, but both different.

ITV launching so many new shows at once rfeminds me of the 1980's. You would always have ITV launching tons of new shows the first weekend of September. They would own September! The BBC used to launch the majority of theirs (bar Sunday night schedules) at the end of September, beginning of October. They would usually gain ITV's viewers as by then ITV had "run out" of a lot of their new stuff! Those were the days. Are we about to see the re-emergence of this pattern?

This is the world of Samuel we're talking about here, everything on ITV is meant to launch huge.

Atlantis hasn't had it's press screening yet. It will appeal to those who are looking for a genuine new alternative to XF and to those who enjoyed Merlin. Why are you keen to write it off? I estimate a 4.2 million launch figure which will be quite respectable for a show like this. With final figures of around 5.5 - 6 million. There is no reason to assume it to be a flop. I am genuinely looking forward to it.

I don't think so, ITV seem to have a whole raft of news shows reaching up until Xmas, as do BBC.

Atlantis will be a major major disappointment. Get your hopes up if you want to but a few of the crew working on the show have not said the best things about it. This is going to be another Hunted/White Queen - big hype but not equalled in the ratings or reviews.

Well that can only be a good thing! Bet we still get loads saying "There was nowt on last night" though!

this

This is Samuel, save your indignation:sleep:

Why is Atlantis going to flop? It sounds pretty promising to me and I don't think there are any reviews out at all for it yet. I think it will do well, possibly as well as Merlin. The lead-in alone should stand it in good stead.


Hahaha. Yeah, I did think they'd put TXF at 7pm this year but clearly not. With Catchphrase seemingly going before the live shows I can't see those starting any earlier than 7.45pm either (although I hope they won't run as late as last year) so I was wrong there.

I think the BGT scheduling was definitely in part down to what you've said, although the fact it was following Takeaway which had been at 7pm long before The Voice turned up was also a factor. I also think there may have been a bit of bitterness at how late they had to schedule TXF last Autumn in order to avoid Strictly, and so wanted a bit of revenge and to claim the earlier slot.

The Voice's audience actually rose despite the clash with BGT, and BGT got a huge +1 audience, so I hardly think they were trying to damage the other...

Can you provide evidence of the "crew not said the best things about it" claims? I don't get my hopes up. I just watch what I like. Regardless of what channel it's on. I am looking forward to Atlantis. I see no reason why it shouldn't be a hugely enjoyable series of bonkers hocus pocus and escapism.