About Christmas TV History

Friday, July 12, 2019

Christmas in July 2019: Adam Parker





Christmas in July 2019: Adam Parker from MerryBritsmas.podbean.com

1. What is your favorite Saturday Night Live Christmas/Hanukkah/New Year's sketch?

I’m British so we never really encountered SNL. As far as I am aware, it never really aired here, especially when I was growing up in the 90s. However, as a Xmas fanatic, I have spent a lot of time on YouTube looking for seasonal content and a lot of these include SNL clips! My favourite of the ones I’ve seen online has to be Vincent Price’s Christmas Special. I simply love Bill Hader and he does an amazing Vincent Price. On top of that, the contrast of old school horror and old school Christmas is brilliant and Kristen Wiig knocks it out the park as a manic Hepburn.  Although, I also can’t ever get the Wish It Was Xmas Today song out of my head after I hear it!

2. Do you most look forward to watching holiday episodes from series? Specials? Movies? Animation? or, all of it?

Honestly, I love all of it! However I get most excited about re-watching classic Christmas films and Christmas specials I remember from when I was young. For example, I always look forward to watching Home Alone and National Lampoon as they were two of my dad’s favourites, so we’d always watch them together. I’d also watch lots of British sitcoms with my family (we are British, so it makes sense!) so I love the Christmas specials of shows like The Royle Family, The Vicar of Dibley, Father Ted and Only Fools & Horses.



3. What's your favorite soundtrack from a holiday program? (it doesn't have to have been officially released as an album--just what program features your favorite collection of music?)

Again, I love sitcoms so I really like the crazy Christmas music in the likes of the Community Glee festive episode. I also have to rewatch the Muppet Family Christmas every year which has some great musical bits. Also I need to shout out for A Colbert Christmas and the music in Raymond Briggs' Father Christmas, which always takes me back to childhood.


4. What one program are you patiently (or impatiently) waiting for me to review on this blog?

Again, the British bias comes out in me as I’d love some reviews of classic British fare such as the aforementioned sitcoms or even specials such as Flint Street Nativity or Robbie the Reindeer!


5. What change in Christmas entertainment have you noticed over the years? Do you like the trend?

I have found that a lot of recent Christmas episodes of television tend to shy away from going full Christmas, which makes me sad! They sometimes have it in the background or as a ‘setting’ but the story isn’t as Christmas focused as shows used to make it. This isn’t all shows but I’ve definitely noticed it more over the last couple of years. I do love the fact that there is just so much more however! With the increase in different channels, services, brands and companies, there are always LOADS of different Christmas things to check out and many ways to watch them!


2 comments:

  1. Good mention of COLBERT CHRISTMAS, it didn't leap immediately to mind for me, but some of the silly music from that special has made it into our Christmas playlist rotation, particularly ANOTHER CHRISTMAS SONG and CAN I INTEREST YOU IN HANUKKAH.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I quit watching SNL at least 20 years ago, so thanks for the tip on the Vincent Price Christmas Special. I'd never seen it before -- very funny. And the Katherine Hepburn impersonation is great although to me, the Liberace impersonation sounds more like Paul Lynde. :)

    ReplyDelete