The alternative Christmas message is a message broadcast by Channel 4 since 1993, as a sometimes humorous and sometimes serious alternative to the traditional Royal Christmas message.
Background Beginning in 1993, Channel 4 broadcast an "alternative Christmas message", usually featuring a contemporary, often controversial celebrity delivering a message in the manner of Queen Elizabeth II. This tradition started by accident when, running a series of programmes on "Christmas in New York", the channel invited Quentin Crisp (who, coincidentally, was born on Christmas Day) to give an alternative message – playing on the pejorative term 'queen' meaning a very feminine male homosexual. In contrast to the Queen's message, the alternative lasts only three to five minutes. The concept seems to date back to a sketch in a Christmas special of The Two Ronnies, where Ronnie Barker delivered a Christmas message from "Your Local Milkman". Examples of recent variations to the alternative Christmas message proliferate on YouTube.
Messages 1990s Year Presenter Notes 1993 Quentin CrispThe expatriate queer icon reflects on her experiences living in the United Kingdom and the United States and the differences between the two countries. Filmed in New York's Plaza Hotel. 1994 Jesse Jackson The American civil rights leader and politician criticised the "sins" of racism, human deprivation and exploitation in Britain, the United States and internationally. 1995 Brigitte BardotThe iconic French actress and animal rights activist spoke against the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 and its provisions to ban certain dog breeds and euthanize dogs declared dangerous. 1996 Rory Bremner In character as Diana, Princess of Wales spoofing her Panorama interview. 1997 Margaret Gibney A Belfast schoolgirl who broadcast a plea for peace in Northern Ireland 1998 Neville and Doreen Lawrence Parents of Stephen Lawrence called on the government not to "pay lip service" and to take seriously the public inquiry into his death and implement reforms to policing to ensure that he did not die in vain. 1999 Ali G, performed by Sacha Baron Cohen The protagonist of Channel 4's Da Ali G Show delivers a comedic monologue and interviews Reverend Geoffrey Roper about Jesus, the differences between him and Santa Claus, and the Christmas story.
2000s Year Presenter Notes 2000 Helen Jeffries Mother of a 14-year-old who died of Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease, a rare, fatal brain disorder. 2001 Genelle Guzman Survivor of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center 2002 Sharon Osbourne Reflected on 2002 as a "very weird year", joked about attending the Queen's Golden Jubilee and Buckingham Palace, referenced her colon cancer battle, and ended by urging people to value and show love to their families at Christmas. 2003 Barry and Michelle Seabourn A Heywood, Greater Manchester couple who appeared on Channel 4 reality show Wife Swap 2004 Marge Simpson, performed by Julie Kavner Marge Simpson was chosen to give the message due to Channel 4's recent acquisition of rights to broadcast The Simpsons.In it she commented on David and Victoria Beckham's marriage in a negative comparison with hers and Homer's, and compared the special relationship between the UK and the US to that of Mini Me and Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers films ("Helping out in all our zany schemes to take over the world"). Lisa Simpson also held a sign supporting Cornwall's secession reading "UK OUT OF CORNWALL," while chanting "Rydhsys rag Kernow lemmyn" (Cornish for "freedom for Cornwall now"). 2005 Jamie Oliver The majority of Jamie Oliver's message was in the form of a comedy sketch, where he was a school cook preparing junk food, including "Turkey Twangers", for children. This turned out to be a nightmare, and he awoke to give a message about his wish for the new year being for British children to be fed better. He was chosen to deliver the message following his successful Jamie's School Dinners series. The broadcast also featured actress Jessica Stevenson as a dinnerlady.For the first time, sister channel E4 broadcast an "alternative to the alternative message", delivered by Avid Merrion, the creation of comedian Leigh Francis from the series Bo' Selecta!. 2006 "Khadijah" A veiled British Muslim, who converted to Islam in 1996 and took up wearing the niqab two years later. She stated during her speech that her great-grandmother was a suffragette.This message was due to be presented by Khadija Ravat (b. 1973 in Zimbabwe), a British Muslim teacher of Islamic studies who had worn a niqab for ten years.The address went out at 3 pm, the same time as the Queen's speech on BBC One and ITV. Ravat had stated that she would not be watching her own broadcast in favour of watching the one given by the Queen.Ravat later withdrew from delivering the speech, and her place was taken by another veiled woman, with the first name Khadijah.The alternative Christmas message on E4 was Fonejacker's Christmas Message in which actor Kayvan Novak prank-called members of the public. This five-minute broadcast was also a preview of his new series which aired in mid-2007. 2007 Major Andrew Stockton A British soldier who lost his arm fighting in Afghanistan 2008 Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,President of Iran The message was given in Persian with English subtitles. Ahmedinejad said that "if Christ were on earth today, undoubtedly he would stand with the people in opposition to bullying, ill-tempered and expansionist powers". The message was considered controversial and received much criticism both before and after its broadcast. Much of the criticism was centred on Ahmadinejad's antisemitic and homophobic views. However, the message itself was not regarded as inflammatory and did not make any reference to these two issues. Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell called Ahmadinejad a "criminal despot, who ranks with Robert Mugabe, Omar al-Bashir of Sudan and the Burmese military junta as one of the world's most bloody tyrants". The broadcast resulted in almost 300 complaints to the media regulator, Ofcom, but it ruled that there was no breach of the Broadcasting Code. 2009 Katie Piper Katie Piper, a former model and television presenter who underwent surgery after sulphuric acid was thrown in her face, had featured in an edition of Channel 4's Cutting Edge documentary strand in October 2009. The hour-long documentary, which traced Piper's recovery from an acid attack in March 2008, had received significant viewer attention; it received the highest viewing figures of any entry in the Cutting Edge strand during 2009, and received the most viewer responses of any Channel 4 show in October 2009.Channel 4, The TV Show: Rated/Slated, October 2009 The documentary was later made available for international broadcast.The huge response to the Cutting Edge programme led Channel 4 to invite Katie Piper to give 2009's alternative Christmas Message, which focused on the theme of "appreciating the beauty in life" and also allowed Piper to reflect on the huge public support she had received following the earlier film. The message also featured new footage of Piper and her family at home. Piper's message was aired at 3 pm and repeated at 8.50 pm on Christmas Day 2009, the later showing being broadcast following on from a re-airing of Katie: My Beautiful Face. The 3 pm screening attracted 500,000 viewers and the 8.50 pm broadcast drew 400,000.
2010s