A Charlie Brown Christmas, the beloved holiday special featuring Charles Schultz’s Peanuts characters, was originally commissioned and sponsored by Coca-Cola and aired in the US on CBS on 9 December 1965. This year marks its 50th anniversary, and to celebrate its history, ABC (which has owned the rights since 2000) will host a special about the creation of the program, featuring musical performances by Kristen Chenoweth, Glee’s Matthew Morrison and Boyz II Men.
But while A Charlie Brown Christmas is a holiday institution in the US, in the UK it’s more of a cult favorite. So what do our holiday TV viewing differences say about us? We asked American and British TV writers Brian Moylan and Hannah Verdier to explain.
Brian Moylan: I can’t believe you don’t watch Charlie Brown Christmas on your side of the pond, Hannah. As soon as I hear the opening score, a smooth jazz song called Christmas Time Is Here, I get in the mood for hot chocolate and writing a letter to Santa. The funny thing about A Charlie Brown Christmas, however, is that it isn’t just a happy, funny Christmas story. It’s actually melancholy and emotionally complex. Charlie Brown is depressed around the holidays, something that millions of people can understand.
Charlie’s problem with Christmas is that it’s become so commercial, and lost its true meaning. He sees shiny aluminum Christmas trees for sale everywhere, but instead he buys a scrawny, sad tree and decorates it with a single ornament. To lighten his spirits he throws a Christmas pageant with his friends, narrated by Linus, who tells us that the real meaning of Christmas is about baby Jesus being born.
In America we love to enforce Christianity at every turn. Linus really would have hated the “war on Christmas” and those plain red Starbucks cups.
What sort of holiday specials did you guys watch as kids?
Hannah Verdier (UK): Where have you been all our lives, A Charlie Brown Christmas? I’ve just watched it for the first time with a three-year-old and we’re blown away. Who knew Charlie Brown waged such a war on capitalism? He’d be one of those annoying people who posts on Facebook urging his friends to avoid the shops on Black Friday.
Over in the UK, Christmas specials take a more practical approach. In the 1970s and 80s, Christmas couldn’t start until the Blue Peter presenters had made their advent crown. (For the uninitiated, Blue Peter is a BBC show for kids that’s been running since 1958.) The advent crown was carefully crafted from two coat hangers, some tinsel and candles held in place by plasticine. Flammable is an understatement. Add in a dog on the loose in the studio (the beloved and often excitable Shep) and it’s a health and safety nightmare that wouldn’t be allowed today.
BBC children’s TV presenters always perform a pantomime, telling a traditional tale like Peter Pan, but with cross-dressing, boo-ing and cries of “Oh no you didn’t/Oh yes you did!” from the audience. That, my friend, is essential festive entertainment. These days, the star of the show is Mr Tumble, a genius of a clown who uses sign language to entertain children with learning difficulties. Inclusive, plus he looks pretty special in a dress.
Beat that, Charlie Brown.
Brian Moylan: Your pantomimes sure sound like a lot of fun, and a lot edgier than the children’s Christmas fare we were reared on. Most of our specials teach the importance of family and that it’s OK to be different even at Christmas time. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (the animated special, not the awful Jim Carrey movie) is all about how a Scrooge of a green fuzzy thing learned that Christmas wasn’t about gifts, but about being together with those closest to you. That’s how his heart grew three sizes that day.
But the most memorable special was the Claymation version of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Naturally it’s based on the song (you have to know that, right?) but in this very 60s telling of the story, the nonconformist Rudolph, the burly bear of a man Yukon Cornelius, a (seemingly very gay) elf who wants to be a dentist and his wacky friends from the Island of Misfit Toys are the ones who help Santa deliver toys to all the kiddies across the globe. From this we learned that sometimes it’s good to be a weirdo, but only if being a weirdo gives you superpowers.
Hannah Verdier: If we did have an animated Christmas special to rival yours, it would be The Snowman, Raymond Briggs’ tale of a small boy with a melty friend. Spoiler alert: there’s no happy ending. Every year, we hear a sweet-voiced choirboy singing Walking in the Air and we know that small boy will be left with just a puddle of water and a scarf where the Snowman once stood. You might as well start crying at the beginning to save yourself the hassle later. A bit like Frosty The Snowman, right?
Brian Moylan: That sounds super depressing! Being the optimistic Americans that we are, Frosty the Snowman has a similiar but much more upbeat ending. Frosty melts in a greenhouse, but then Santa arrives and uses his magic and Frosty is magically revived. Then Santa promises that Frosty will return every year to make the kids happy. Isn’t that sweet?
We know from Downton Abbey that you guys also have a long history of Christmas specials for popular series. Our shows air for most of the year, so they all do a Christmas-themed episode, but it’s not such a big deal. What’s up with Christmas specials over there? Are there any great ones?
Hannah Verdier: Oh yes, so many greats, but we can’t promise to match your country’s optimism at this most wonderful time of the year. Over here, a merry Christmas isn’t always guaranteed – our soaps thrive on fights, death and misery. EastEnders loves a shocking revelation over the turkey dinner and it’s not Christmas on Coronation Street without a catfight at the school nativity.
Ricky Gervais took a more romantic approach in The Office and a nation cheered when will-they-or-won’t-they couple Dawn and Tim finally kissed at their work Christmas party. The Royle Family celebrated family time sitting round complaining about what’s on telly, then moved us to tears when Denise went into labour. One of the warmest sitcoms of recent times, Gavin and Stacey, nailed the great British tradition of singing along to Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas? and panic-buying underwear at Marks and Spencer.
Blackadder’s Christmas Carol may be nearly 30 years old, but few tire of hearing the words: “Baldrick, I want you to go out and buy a turkey so large you’d think it’s mother had been rogered by an omnibus.” Yes, repeats are big in these budget-conscious times. But for the big Christmas special that brings the family together around the TV and sparkles with famous faces, monsters and stories that work on many levels, look no further than Dr Who.
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