Advent Calendar Day 1: Christmas illustration
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We begin our Advent Calendar with the 1966 Christmas Radio Times cover, by illustrator Gaynor Chapman.
The 1966 Christmas BBC season promised a "tremendous feast of broadcast catering for every taste and every member of the family." Christmas Eve viewing would include waiting for Santa with Val Doonican and the Midnight Mass from Tewkesbury Abbey at ten minutes to midnight. BBC Two offered I Gotta Shoe, which was a version of Cinderella set in the American Deep South.
Christmas Day's line-up of festive specials included Doctor Finlay's Casebook Christmas episode, John Betjeman's report on a Journey to Bethlehem, and a glimpse into the life of French underwater explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau narrated by Orson Welles - apart from the usual staple of Christmas Carols,Billy Smart's Circus, Disney Time cartoons for the children and some pantomime. A visit to the Royal Palaces preceded the traditional Queen's speech at 3pm.
