TV Viewing.... what do you do.

[Muban]

I was just pondering about TV viewing today and wondered, do I really watch much less than the average viewer (the chap that visited me last year from MORI seemed to think so). How many hours are average per week these days? Does your viewing alter with the seasons (e.g. watch less in the summer) or with sporting events. How much TV do you really sit down to watch and how much is either the sort of thing you dip in and out of while doing something else or is just essentially just background noise? Just for the record I don't really judge people that watch a lot more TV than me, I'd probably watch more if there was anything else on I really wanted to watch. So for me (at the time of going to press ;) ):

Hours of TV per week: 4.5hours
Programs:

Always watch: Being Human, The Big C, The Good Wife, Holby City, The Tudors (the last two being guilty pleasures...especially the terrifically historically inaccurate Tudors!)
Watch if nothing else to do: QI, CSI (Vegas), Casualty
Watch but not currently on: F1 Qualifying & Race, Dexter, Larkrise to Candleford, The Big Bang Theory, Downton Abbey, Damages


I don't find my viewing changes much with the seasons, if I really like something I tend to make the time. Though my viewing goes up a fair bit come F1 season as I try not to miss any of the qualifying or races unless I absolutely have to. I only have freeview mainly because there are very few non-freeview shows I want to watch so either get them on DVD or wait for them to come on freeview. So what is your viewing like?

[Briggykins]

Very similar to you really - definitely all the F1 I can watch, and then certain programmes that grab my fancy (tonight is Marchlands and 10 o'clock live, but most weeknights it's nothing). I'd say I watch about 5 hours a week on average. I probably would watch more if I got Sky (can't get Virgin, grr) but it's far too expensive for what I'd end up watching on it.
By comparison my mum and sister (who do have Virgin) will just leave the TV on and find something to watch tho - probably get through 15 hours a week at least, which I'd say is probably more typical of the average UK viewer nowadays.

[BBx]

Monday: Glee
Tuesday: 90210
Weds: Beauty and the Beast
Thurs: Again some rubbish - mostly background noise, so Come Dine with me or CSI
Fri: Never in (hopefully!)

Maybe one or two Eastenders....apart from that I don't watch that much :/

Oh and music video channels at the weekend.

Not much... but then I probably spend more time at this screen which is probably worse :/

BB x

[Pheebs]

I don't have TV and haven't done for a year and a few months now! Happpppppy days!

I *do* however, watch many many films! Probably 3-4 a week. I read an awful lot/play guitar/piano/dance and am out/DIYing the rest of the times.

Possibly once a week I will watch QI on iplayer or a Live at the Apollo or some other comedy sketch. This will normally be on in the background whilst I'm DIYing or writing a letter so it's never watched.

I may... I may get a series and watch that... but this will be in the time I would normally watch a film. So say Band of Brothers, I will watch an episode of that maybe 3 times a week.

So although I don't *watch* TV as such, I probably watch about 5hours worth of films a week. I probably go to the cinema at least once a fortnight too. Really depends on my weeks. This week I've watched only one film. Next week, it's one of my less busy weeks so I'll probably get through 4 films.

I do not miss TV at all. Not in the slightest!

[Desmo]

Don't really have any regular progs we like to watch but the TV is on in the background a lot. If you said what do you watch without fail each and every week I'd say.....nothing. Nothing at all, I can take or leave any of it.

Only time we really soley watch TV is when we go to be and pop it on for an hour or so before nodding off to Mock the Week, QI, Question Time, whatever happens to be on that's vaguely interesting or funny.

[Burble]

I tend to have the TV on quite a lot if only for background noise, especially in the morning when I'm getting read for work but there isn't much I watch.

The only things that spring to mind are Hustle, The Big Bang Theory, F1 and MotoGP.

[Stan_Lite]

Because of my work, I tend to have a lot of time on my hands when I'm at home for my 4 weeks off.

My telly doesn't get switched on until lunchtime at the earliest through the week - I listen to Radio 2 in the mornings. I'll usually bung on a bit of old Top Gear or something on the Discovery channel while I'm having lunch.

During the afternoon, I'll watch pretty much anything to fill the time if I'm doing nowt else. Typically either repeats of Top Gear or Time Team or NCIS (You never know, some day you might get some girl on girl action with Ziva and Abi ;)) or pretty much anything on the Discovery channel.

In the evenings, I always try to watch the BBC news (national and local) and the One Show. After that, it's the same as afternoons - usually whatever is on Dave (QI, Mock the week, Have I got news for you etc.).

At the weekend, I like to watch Saturday Morning Live on Saturday and Something For The Weekend on Sunday. Apart from that, it's time fillers like the rest of the week.

As you can see, it's mostly crap I watch but it's just stuff to pass the time when I've nothing better to do. I tend not to watch proper series and drama as I probably won't see the whole series. I really should watch more drama on the tellybox though instead of all the mind numbing stuff I do watch.

Like Pheebs, I had no TV for about 3 years when I was back home in Shetland and didn't suffer for it at all. The radio was on all the time and, if there was anything I desperately wanted to watch, I'd watch it on the PC (very rare). Only reason I got a TV again was because the kids complained when they came over for weekends.

[volospian]

Don't really have any regular progs we like to watch but the TV is on in the background a lot. If you said what do you watch without fail each and every week I'd say.....nothing. Nothing at all, I can take or leave any of it.

Only time we really soley watch TV is when we go to be and pop it on for an hour or so before nodding off to Mock the Week, QI, Question Time, whatever happens to be on that's vaguely interesting or funny.

^^^ this... with the only exception that I do try to catch Top Gear on Sunday nights (when it's on), but only because the lads at work often talk about it the next day, so I try to watch it before they spoil it for me :)

When TG is out of season, I couldn't care less about what is on the TV and generally flick channels until I find something bearable... then go and do something else like play guitar, read, surf or whatever. I just hate silence. Even when I'm in the kitchen cooking I have to have the radio on.

As far as "take it or leave it" goes, I find myself recording loads of stuff and then, after about 2 months of seeing it on the recorded list thinking "Hmmm, I'm never going to get around to watching that" and just deleting it.

We also watch TV in bed for an hour or so, exactly the same kind of thing as Desmo

[Garp]

Watch almost no TV whatsoever. Kari watches Glee, and has been steadily making her way through Buffy and now on to Angel. We've been watching the odd bit of Babylon 5 and Stargate SG1 too, but we wouldn't really miss the TV if we didn't have it. Kari's bro-in-law can't understand why we're happy with a small TV (28" widescreen, maybe?) but the truth is that for us a large screen would be an utter waste of money.

[Goose]

Nothing, really. Danish TV blows monkey chunks.

[Belmit]

There's nothing on TV I bookmark to watch. Last thing was probably series 3 of the Inbetweeners, but other than that I'll switch it on before bed and watch an episode of Family Guy, or occasionally enjoy a rant at Come Dine With Me. Most of my viewing is from DVD series - borrowed every series of House recently and watched them back to back and started watching The Shield about a fortnight ago. Bought all 7 seasons for £30 at Christmas.

It's funny how as a kid I could watch TV all day on Saturday and not be bored, but now there's no kids TV in the morning, only cooking shows, and evenings have become unbearable to watch. I blame the explosion of channels to a point. In the 80s and early 90s choice was limited so the programs had to be good. Since it's become easier for people to switch the channel we just get a slew of cheaply made reality crap and talent shows. Probably why I've turned to US television for decent stuff because they seem to have had the opposite transition; plenty of channels showing cheaply made rubbish to quality shows with reknowned actors in. Even their sitcoms are now trouncing ours in terms of quality, which is a scary thought.