Christmas on TVNZ Heartland

Christmas on Heartland
Saturday 24 December, from 3.30pm

Christmas on Heartland takes a trip down memory lane with classic television moments from across the decades and a number of first plays for the channel, including New Zealand’s first animated feature film, and great family movie, Footrot Flats: The Dog’s (Tail) Tale.

Christmas Eve sees two cooking specials with Jo Seagar’s Easy Peasy Christmas (at 3pm), followed by A Taste Of Christmas with flamboyant foodie, Peta Mathias, who hits the gastronomic road with three festive picnic ideas for the holiday season (at 3.30pm).

At 6.30pm, our Kiwi Gold line-up has an It’s In The Bag Christmas special from 1988 with host John Hawkesby, then the 1977 Top Town Final presented by Howard Morrison and radio host Paddy O’Donnell, which features short shorts, jockettes, greasy poles and ‘balloon baloney’.

Watch Sir Howard Morrison in his prime – wearing a white suit and a big smile at 8.30pm. This show is a cabaret performance with all of Morrison’s hallmarks – big musical anthems, a few laughs and a lacing of Māori culture.

Following on is the Country Calendar Spoof Special from 1999. Ask any regular Country Calendar viewers what shows they remember and inevitably the answer is ‘the spoofs’ – satirical episodes that screened unannounced. Sometimes there was outrage, but mostly the public enjoyed having the wool pulled over their eyes.

On Christmas day at 7.30pm is the Heartland premiere of Footrot Flats: The Dog’s (Tail) Tale. Made in 1986, it was developed from Murray Ball’s widely syndicated newspaper cartoon Footrot Flats, and follows Wal Footrot and his nameless border collie, ‘Dog’.

Christmas Day also sees an hour-long special of A Taste Of Christmas with Peta Mathias, followed by the feature The End Of The Golden Weather (at 4pm), A Summer Place, which explores the past, present and future of the Kiwi bach (or ‘Crib’ as it is known in the deep South) with presenter Maggie Barry; A Country Calendar 40th Anniversary Special (at 9.30pm); and John Rowles Ladies And Gentlemen.