I call it 'Snore & Order' as the missus oftens has a snooze whilst it's on.
I admit to giving different variations on the names of some TV programmes.

For example :

BeastyBenders
Holby Shitty
Bollyoaks
Big Brothel
Britain's Got Immigrants
Doctor Poo
Countrypaedofile


I'm not 12, I just have a bizarre sense of hoo-mur.

So there were no complaints about the violence towards men? I thought Happy Valley was one of a few dramas that had good, strong female characters at its core. Sally doesn't write a female drama or a male drama. She writes about people, male or female. That's why her scripts are so believable.

I wouldnt be too confident that either Granchester or The Great Fire will be hits. The Great Fire will be promoted hugely so will launch well, but it could end up becoming another Titanic because inevitably the special effects just wont be that great compared to what we're used to watching in movies because Itv's budget for it will be restricted. Also it is the same story told over 4 episodes from different characters' viewpoints - which sounds the same as the ill-fated Titanic a couple years ago. I bet it starts well but bleeds viewers throughout its run.

As for Grannychester. This will appeal to the OAPs due to the 1950s setting. However will it be mainstream enough to appeal to the under 50s and therefore achieve a 6million+ audience? Im not sure. The grannies for sure will be a big part of its audience, however if the BBC can air New tricks on Mondays this Autumn, then I suspect this new crime series might be toast on arrival.

Happy Valley can easily return next year - I imagine the focus in the next series will be more on drugs and drug dealers, and Catherine's battle against them. Such a great end to the series and I'm confident it'll have hit a 6m overnight.

Well I havnt seen it but the arguement was that many hit dramas of late were dependent on excessive violence against women to gain ratings also Ripper Street and The Killing.
Interesting discussion followed.

Completely agree wizzywick - well summed up

I will make my own mind up about The Great Fire. Effects don't bother me, I have an imagination!

The BBC should renew Happy Valley for an 8 part second series. I'd probably continue airing it on Tuesday nights but a couple of months earlier, so that it airs in March straight after Death in Paradise. BBC One have been building quite a lot of recent returning Tuesday night dramas:

Death in Paradise
Happy Valley
Last Tango in Halifax
The Syndicate

If they can air a few more new dramas on Tuesday nights, Im sure about 60pct of them will rate well and end up returning due to how dire the competition generally is from the other channels. Drama on Tuesday nights is perfect for BBC One really. We've seen with shows like Silk, that when dramas move away from Tuesday nights to another night [excluding sundays], the ratings can fall up to a million viewers due to the increased competition and reduced lead-in. The Tuesday night slot is a key one for bbc drama.

The variety in daytime on BBC1 is why it works. You get the factual with a mix of shows across the year up to the news. Then you get drama and quizzes after the news.

When I was a kid in the 70s ITV used to have some afternoon drama. Maybe it should try it again.

The thing is, there seems to be strange discussions on these shows from guests who only see things from one angle. Yes, there was violence towards women. Some of it graphic. But why did they not balance it out by mentioning graphic violence towards men when the man tonight was clearly being kicked in his privates time and time again by......a woman?

The forthcoming series of Last Tango is the last. So not really an annual returnable.

Where has it been confirmed the next series of Last Tango in Halifax is the last?

Well if that was the argument the premise is wrong and stupid. Where is the research thats says you get bigger ratings if you have violence against women? Also they might have bothered to look at the ratings for Ripper Street which surely would also disprove the point.

Did someone not quote a source?

Sally Wainwright hinted as such in her blog. She says that the story is nearing its end and if she feels that the ending is satisfying then it would be wrong to milk it.

Yes but he deserved it !!!

I might be wrong, but despite that variety of shows including PSB formats, I bet Homes under the Hammer and Bargain Hunt, I.e the two shows that are on all year round and are the most elderly shows, rate better than anything else in the morning block.

One of those things where what viewers say they want if asked, and what they actually want are two different things. I bet the viewers didn't have a problem with the back to back antiques type shows a few years back, all the complainers only complained based on a listing in Radio Times.

When the ratings continue to be big next series and the BBC offer Wainwright more money and guarantee her more commissions of other dramas she's developing, she will continue writing more series of Last Tango in Halifax. Im sure of it, the BBC will persuade her to do it one way or another.

That is BAD news for the licence fee broadcaster. They should commission a 260 episodes to air over the next 10 years straight away and air it opposite Doc Martin.

Everything should be milked for what they are worth until the ratings drop, when they should be binned off immediately with no notice and never spoke of again

Oh yes, he did indeed! If anything Catherine was too soft on him! I was just trying to work out what the discussions in question were implying. Kirsty was murdered by the psycho because she was a police officer in the wrong place at the wrong time, not because she was a woman. Anna was kidnapped because she was precious to Nevis Gallagher and Kevin was using her to get financial gain, not because she was a woman. I just think it would be good if people commented upon such things on debate shows, they really do need to watch the show first. Do they believe a male police officer getting crushed to death by a car and run over several times is more acceptable?

Then clearly you do writers a disservice. Writers are proud of what they write. Once they've told the story they've told the story. Happy Valley may well be the Tango replacement in Autumn 2015. But Sally will get work writing new series' for either BBCtv or ITV. ITV wanted more Braithewaites but Sally didn't. And because Sally didn't, there wasn't.

Amanda Redman refused to do another series of At Home With the Braithwaites. It was because of Redman that there wasnt another series. Theyd have carried on doing more series, with or without Wainwright's involvement. If the BBC want Last Tango to carry out, it will carry out - with or without Sally Wainwright writing on it. Just like whats happened on Itv with Scott and bailey which Wainwright has quit writing for.

Sally Wainwright owns the copyright to the scripts of Last Halifax. She is the creator, author and owner of the work. The BBC own the broadcast rights to the authors work. They can not legally continue if the author doesn't want them to. Without Wainwright's scripts it wouldn't work anyway. ITV wanted a further series of Braithewaites without Redman. Sally said no. She was the author and owns of the written entity. ITV could not and would not continue without her blessing. They clearly respect writers more than you do. Scott and Bailey is a different kettle of fish. Wainwright is not sole writer so they can continue to make the show without her involvement. If she created it though, they will need to continue paying her royalties.

Put perfectly. If Samuel was ever in charge of BBC1, I'm willing to bet he would fall out with writers, presenters, directors simply because they dared to work for another channel or stopped writing new episodes of a hit drama. The BBC would fail under him.

Programmes would be thrashed to death within an inch of their life, and once they drop in ratings that writer will be cast aside.

Andy was asking about primetime shares the other day. Broadcast magazine do them but for the period 18:00-22:30, not the 19:00-23:00 that we were used to with DS (in the days when they bothered to publish them).

While we await the figures for BGT week which will show quite a different picture, here's how the two previous weeks went, with the 2013 equivalents in brackets:

Primetime shares, overnights, week ending 25 May

BBC One: 25.03% (22.00%)
BBC Two: 8.21% (8.23%)
ITV: 20.48% (20.61%) inc +1
Channel 4: 5.83% (6.14%) inc +1
Channel 5: 4.16% (3.96%) inc +1
Others: 36.29% (39.06%) inc +1

The underperforming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1 and ...Part 2 didn't seem to hurt ITV too much, at least looking at the year-on-year comparison. BBC One however steamed ahead, posting a three-point rise on the same week in 2013. BBC Two bloomed thanks to the Chelsea Flower Show, just as it did last year.

Primetime shares, overnights, week ending 18 May

BBC One: 22.58% (22.38%)
BBC Two: 5.77% (6.68%)
ITV: 21.85% (21.04%) inc +1
Channel 4: 6.51% (5.88%) inc +1
Channel 5: 3.19% (3.95%) inc +1
Others: 40.11% (40.07%) inc +1

The finale of Prey helped ITV in this week to score nearly one point higher than last year.