Originally Posted by wizzywick:
“In 1982, the Christmas issue started on Friday 24th December - but also had the Christmas Eve listings in the previous weeks issue too, but I don't think there were any page decorations in the previous issue. It was an odd one that 1982 issue, but it was also the longest Christmas holiday the UK had ever had since all nations had now adopted the bank holidays for all days over the festive period. Friday was Xmas Eve, then Saturday was Xmas Day, Sunday was Christmas Sunday, Monday was Boxing Day, then it was Holiday Tuesday and that lead to New Year's Eve and New Years Day on the Saturday with an additional holiday for all on the Monday 3rd. That had never happened before so I guess that's why they brought the 1982 issue out in the way they did. The only other time the RT started on Xmas Eve was in 1977.”
IIRC, the Christmas 1999 break was longer - Christmas Day was a Saturday and Boxing Day was a Sunday, so the Monday and Tuesday were both Bank Holidays. Wednesday and Thursday were "normal" days before the Friday, which was New Year's Eve and (for 1999 only) was
a Bank Holiday, before the following Monday being a Bank Holiday (as New Year's Day was a Saturday).
And yes, that *is* how the BBC News website looked in 1999.