According to a new survey by Freesat, the most likely cause of argument over Christmas involves the TV. I’m not sure about your house, but in our house thats usually more a daily argument!
The survey found that in over 60% of households, TV-related issues are most likely to cause a row, with 22% saying what programmes to watch was the biggest clash, 19% of people argue over who controls the remote control, 13% wrangle over what TV shows to record and 8% debate whether to watch the Queen’s Speech or not. Nearly a third of people then moan that Christmas specials weren’t that good anyway! We love moaning about telly in this country so why not include christmas day in that.
So to put an end to all TV-related arguments , here a list of 5 alternative ways to watch TV this Christmas:
1. Get a second TV! I know most people have more than one TV in the house, and Christmas is really about gathering around in the same room, but really, is it worth it? Get one of those cute Hannspree TV’s (honestly they’re fantastic – you’ll spend more time looking at the animal though) or bring in a small 9″ on a side table. It maybe anti-social, but at least it’ll remain argument-free. There’s plenty of choice – Freesat or Sky if you have a dish, Freeview if you don’t and Virgin Media if you want a TiVo as well. There’s always BT Vision as well if you can get a good deal from them.
2. Buy a USB TV tuner for your PC – There’s plenty of relatively cheap TV Tuner cards or USB dongles available that you just plug into your PC or laptop and away you go. Hauppauge is probably one of the best known makes and you can pick them up in all the usual electronics shops
3. SKY GO – Download the brilliant Sky Go app to your mobile and log in with your Sky details. You can then watch Noel’s Xmas presents on Sky One or the Sky Sports specials whilst everyone else is getting excited about the Queen’s speech. Failing that, there’s nothing better then watching Its a Wonderful Life for the umpteenth time
4. Watch the BBC or ITV iPlayer on your laptop – Like the Sky Go app but this way you can watch the day’s soaps and specials in peace. Don’t forget to plug in the headphones so you can drown out the real-life arguments in the background whilst Eastenders and Corrie have the usual onscreen ones
5. Invest in a Slingbox! If you already have a second TV but prefer it to remain upstairs, just connect up the Slingbox, open up your laptop, login to your TV upstairs and watch whatever you like without any interference
Failing that, switch off all the TVs, set the Sky Planner to tape everything you need (not in HD so you get more space on the box) and spend the day with your family, opening your presents, playing some games and enjoying some great food and possibly a nice bottle of wine…or three.
