Last Christmas, I gave you my fanzine, but the very next year, I gave you another.
Yes, that's right, a whole year on from issue one of the Curious British Telly fanzine, it's time to unleash issue five! I had few plans in place for the fanzine when I first launched it, but since then I've managed - with the help of several contributors - to release a new issue every three months. And, this time, I've decorated the fanzine with a few baubles of festive joy to get everyone into the Christmas spirit.
Jon Dear casts his eye back to the BBC's imperial drama programming over Christmas 1972, new contributor James Fisher looks at Smith and Jones' rarely discussed The Homemade Xmas Video from 1987 and I look at five children's Christmas TV specials you may have missed. The infamously hard Great Big Curious British Telly Quiz is tinged with tinsel and there's even a vintage Christmas tree on the front cover.
But it's not all Christmas related. Scampy Spiro, another new contributor, has served up a quite remarkable look at the chilling Dramarama episode Snap from 1987. The history of Britain's first local television station, Greenwich Cablevision, is laid bare. There's a look at the Minder computer game and I also delve through one of the strangest Doctor Who books ever released: Travel Without the Tardis. And, at long last, we're blessed with a contribution for The Gallery thanks to Colin Wright. The full contents of issue five can be found below.
If you're interested in a copy of issue five then it costs £3.50 (inc P&P) - all you have to do is email me at curiousbritishtelly@gmail.com and let me know the best address to send a PayPal invoice to. If you're overseas and want a copy then let me know and I'll work out the postage costs.
Merry Christmas!
