So this is Christmas... STV serves up 50 years of repeats

REPEATS on television over Christmas are hardly a surprise.

But no-one could have predicted that STV would devise a festive schedule based on recycled clips from its own archives spanning five decades.

There were groans from critics and media analysts yesterday as the channel unveiled a string of nostalgic compilation programmes to coincide with its 50th anniversary.

Among them will be 50 Years of Scotsport on Hogmanay, with presenter Grant Stott counting down the years since the first edition in September 1957.

STV Gold, a 90-minute show hosted by Stanley Baxter and spanning 50 years of programming, is broadcast on Christmas Day. Meanwhile, in From SR to Lavvie Heid, comedian Des Clarke runs through the 50 best STV commercials.

Charles Fletcher, of Caledonia Media, said STV's line-up would fall flat against BBC Scotland's festive package, with its seasonal specials such as Still Game.

"It's rather as if STV has packed its bags and gone home early. If it wants to be the national broadcaster of note, that's what it says it wants to be, it has to do a little better," he said.

BBC Scotland has effectively cornered the seasonal market, he said, with Still Game and live Hogmanay shows that feature a mix of modern Scots rock alongside top traditional musicians.

Scotsport presenter Grant Stott and Michelle Watt, of Club Cupid and Price Drop TV, will see in the New Year with a 20-minute live show from Princes Street in Edinburgh in Hogmanay Live. They promised a surprise "first footer".

STV marked its 50th anniversary milestones in August and September. "It's been a great year for STV celebrating its 50th, it's a great time to sit back and wallow in nostalgia on Hogmanay, 50 years of great clips," Stott said.

"You've got to look at Taggart, at Rebus, and my own endeavours on children's television, Wemyss Bay 902101."

On the sports front, he said: "Scotland's highs and lows have been many and Scotsport have been there. There will be a particularly interesting section on the World Cups, STV were there in Argentina."

But The Scotsman's television critic, Andrea Mullaney, said STV has to rely on nostalgia because the station lacks a strong identity. Early on, STV had shows like Thingummyjig, a bizarre ceilidh dancing mix hosted by Jack McLaughlin the "Laird of Cowcaddens".

She said: "Going back to the 1970s, they had a kooky humour. The identity was very couthy, traditional and shortbready. There's nothing that really says STV any more, they have to really look back, because when was the last time they created a new sitcom?"

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THE BBC Scotland big-hitters last Christmas included Still Game, which got a 70 per cent audience share, and Only An Excuse? the football comedy sketch show, with 61 per cent.

It is no surprise that both shows are back, in BBC Scotland's attempt to dominate Christmas viewing this year. In its line-up announced last week, Still Game has both a Christmas show and a Hogmanay special, in which the sitcom's action moves to the Highlands. In Colin McRae - Born to Race, big sporting names look back at the career of the rally driving champion killed in a helicopter crash. Hogmanay Live drew nearly a million viewers to BBC Scotland in 2006. This year, Phil Cunningham and Aly Bain are back, with singer-songwriter Amy MacDonald.

STV is banking on a trip down memory lane in Scotsport, with the return of the legendary Arthur Montford, while STV Gold includes clips from long-defunct soap High Road, The Steamie, cult series Weir's Way and more recent programmes such as High Times, pictured, and Rebus.

A spokeswoman said: "STV is very proud of its heritage, so we think it is only right we mark our 50th year through our programming, and the holiday schedule is a great place for these programmes."