Month: December 2025

A Tribute to Stanley Baxter

We pay tribute to the legendary Scottish entertainer, Stanley Baxter, who passed away peacefully on 11December 2025, at the age of 99. For generations, Stanley Baxter’s lavish and ambitious Christmas TV spectaculars were essential festive viewing.

In this tribute, we explore his incredible life, from his roots in Glasgow and his training at the Citizens Theatre to his status as the undisputed master of mimicry and transformation.

In this video, we look at:

  • Early Life & Repertory Theatre: How the shy boy from Townhead became a versatile stage performer.
  • The Stunning Spectacle: Why his BBC and ITV Christmas shows were so expensive.
  • The Characters: A look at his greatest creations, from ‘Parliamo Glasgow’ to his film parodies.
  • Legacy: Discussing his later career in theatre and voice work.

Christmas Sitcom Advent Calendar Day 5

We’re taking a nostalgic trip to Grace Brothers department store for a festive feature of ‘Are You Being Served?’.

We’re unwrapping the classic Christmas special ‘Christmas Crackers’. Get ready to join the staff as they navigate the chaos of Christmas costumes. So, let’s see what’s on offer!

Christmas Sitcom Advent Calendar Day 2

For the second day of our ‘Christmas Sitcom Advent Calendar,’ we’re re-visiting a timeless classic: ‘Last of the Summer Wine’.

Over its record breaking 31 series, ‘Last of the Summer Wine’ had 28 Christmas related episodes, including a short special for the BBC’s ‘Funny Side of Christmas’ show in 1982. So, grab a cuppa and get ready to join Compo, Clegg, and Foggy as they bring their unique brand of Yorkshire mischief to the most magical time of the year!

Christmas Sitcom Advent Calendar Day 1

This is my little Christmas gift to all of you: the videos in this series are completely free of ads so we can show you some great clips.

To kick things off, I wanted to go back to the very beginning. While the first ever sitcom with a Christmas episode was Pinwright’s Progress back in 1946, that entire series is lost to time. So, for our first day, I’ve picked a truly legendary BBC show, ‘Hancock’s Half Hour’. The episode was titled ‘Hancock’s Forty-three Minutes’ as it was 43 minutes, not half-an-hour! It was broadcast live from the BBC Television Theatre on Monday, 23 December 1957.