All Star Comedy Carnival

All Star Comedy Carnival, 1969

ITV’s answer to BBC’s Christmas Night With The Stars.  It ran along similar lines to the BBC offering, but had a much heavier emphasis on the comedy element (although other genres were included).

It ran on annually on Christmas night from 1969 – 1973.  During this time there were four hosts.  The 1970 edition was recorded and broadcast in black and white due to an ITV colour strike.

Summary

The show offered a selection of specially written Christmas sketches of ITV’s most popular sitcoms.  These were mixed with light entertainment and musical interludes.

Among the shows to feature were: Man About The House, Love Thy Neighbour, Nearest and Dearest, Sez Les and On The Buses.

Sadly like so many shows of the time only 2 editions still exist in the archives these are the 1972 and 1973 editions.  These are available on DVD from Network On Air

Clips

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Presented By

Des O’Connor – 1969
Max Bygraves – 1970
Mike and Bernie Winters – 1981
Jimmy Tarbuck – 1972 and 1973

 

Details

Channel: ITV
Originally Transmitted: Annually 25th December 1969 – 1973

Where To Watch

Selected episodes available on You Tube