The newer series on Channel 4 can be found here. Since Channel 4's episode list begins with series 1, it means the continuation gets a a separate page here.

It's clearly the same show just on a different channel - same production company, logo, music etc. Yes, Channel 4 have been annoying with the season numbering, but I don't think that's a good reason to separate them. We already have the ability to have different networks for different seasons, and use it for such shows as https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/13963-royal-institution-christmas-lectures/

The new network has explicitely restarded the season numbering from 1. Consequently, this is a new show.

OK guys, I know I'm new here, but this is the reason I opened a TMDB account today. I generally have VERY few issues with your naming, with over 700 shows on PLEX pretty much correctly matched because of your resource. HOWEVER, PLEASE LISTEN TO USERS! The Great British Baking Show (The Great British Bake Off in the US) needs to be fixed. I'm seeing several discussions regarding your reasoning behind considering them as 2 different seasons, but even the studio has now renamed their series so there's continuity, so this should be a moot point.

"The new network has explicitly restarted the season numbering from 1. Consequently, this is a new show."

When GBBO was originally released on Channel 4 UK… yes, they DID try renaming the series as season 1. It didn't help that there was even more series naming confusion with PBS branding their DVD releases of Season 4-7 as 1-4. HOWEVER, Channel 4 received so much push back that after just a few seasons (3 I believe), they finally fixed their naming and started correctly showing Season 8 as their first season. This was several years ago now. So yes, ORIGINALLY Season 8 was listed as Season 1 on the broadcaster’s site, but they now follow the actual series production naming, starting from Season 8.

https://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-great-british-bake-off

IMDB concurs with this as the correct naming order:

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1877368/

...as does TVDB:

https://thetvdb.com/series/the-great-british-bake-off

...as does Wiki:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_British_Bake_Off

So you have the broadcaster, two of the largest Movie/Show databases, and the Public showing you the correct naming conventions for this show, so I'm really confused as to why there seems to be so much resistance and push back when users of your site are pointing out these facts and reaching consensus that the entry needs to be fixed. Surely the whole point of your site is to provide the best and most accurate show details... why would making this change be difficult?

If there's something I'm missing, please enlighten me, but otherwise, please merge the shows - it's the same one.

As per our rules, we follow the original broadcasts.

Taking in account that the new network has explicitely restarted the season numbering from 1 when it have started to broadcast this series, this should be a new show.

Changes done later doesn't affect this.

Each site has its own set of rules.

Clearly, the broadcaster also has a set of rules, which you try to stick by which is great... HOWEVER, when the Broadcaster fixes an issue due to an error (even broadcaster's screw up sometimes), you should also reflect that update so that your rules 'match'. Otherwise there would be no database consistency or accuracy with shows that have been fixed by the broadcaster.

We should follow the original broadcast, not a change done 3 years later.

I took a look at your rules:

https://www.themoviedb.org/bible/tv/59f743289251416e71000037#5b71c6b4c3a3684161000001

and you seem to be missing the fact that this show is a continuation of the original show (broacast on BBC prior to moving to Channel 4, which according to YOUR OWN RULES should follow naming convention (as this is the same show, simply moved networks):

"When seasons are re-organized, for example after a network change, (e.g. American Dad, Futurama), we do not re-arranged the aired seasons/episodes. The new season is simply added as the next season."

The ORIGINAL broadcast for this show starts in 2010 on the BBC, and then simply MOVES to Channel 4, who initially renamed the series naming before changing it back. Therefore, the new season starting on the new network should continue the naming conventions from the BBC, as outlined in your bible.

These are your rules, not mine.

@mattcomps said:

I took a look at your rules:

https://www.themoviedb.org/bible/tv/59f743289251416e71000037#5b71c6b4c3a3684161000001

and you seem to be missing the fact that this show is a continuation of the original show (broacast on BBC prior to moving to Channel 4, which according to YOUR OWN RULES should follow naming convention (as this is the same show, simply moved networks):

"When seasons are re-organized, for example after a network change, (e.g. American Dad, Futurama), we do not re-arranged the aired seasons/episodes. The new season is simply added as the next season."

The ORIGINAL broadcast for this show starts in 2010 on the BBC, and then simply MOVES to Channel 4, who initially renamed the series naming before changing it back. Therefore, the new season starting on the new network should continue the naming conventions from the BBC, as outlined in your bible.

These are your rules, not mine.

We are not in this case. This is not a reorganisation. Simply, in 2017, Channel 4 has started a new show from season 1.

A reorganisation mean that the new broadcaster broadcast the old episodes with a different numbering as this happen, for example, for Futurama or American Dad. If the new broadcaster doesn't broadcast the old episodes, there are no reorganisation.

Wow! You seem to now be bending / changing the rules, based upon YOUR desired outcome. PLEASE show me another production where TMDB have done this. Please tell me your reasoning for stating 'Simply, in 2017, Channel 4 has started a new show from season 1' .

The series has ALWAYS been owned and produced by Love Productions, there was no change of ownership when it was moved to Channel 4. Negotiations between BBC and Love Productions fell through in 2016, and the production was MOVED to Channel 4... see:

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2016/sep/12/bbc-loses-great-british-bake-off#:

This was not a newly commissioned series for Channel 4, was not a reboot, and there were no changes in the format of the show, with the exception of some of the original presenters were locked into contracts at the BBC which they didn’t want to / couldn't get out of.

If Channel 4 were buying this as a new series (a 'new show' as you claim) the show would have been renamed / rebranded due to rights issues (as has happened with many other shows). This is the same show as evidenced by:

The same production company rights owner and producer. No changes to the shows branding, name, or even title sequence. Presenter, location, format, graphics are identical to previous shows. Key production and support staff same as original show.

More importantly, the production company who owns the show, displays numbering continuing and NOT as a new series:

https://www.loveproductions.co.uk/programmes/archive/2017/gbbo-series-8

Way Back Machine confirms this was a show MOVE from a release on the production company website:

https://web.archive.org/web/20170719170816/https://www.loveproductions.co.uk/

... and confirms this with their official show line up for 2017:

https://web.archive.org/web/20171001071102/http://www.loveproductions.co.uk:80/programmes/2017

Channel 4's Annual Report from 2017 has an entire page dedicated to the show (see page 18):

https://www.channel4.com/media/documents/press/news/180605_Channel_4_2017_Annual_Report_FINAL.pdf

... which states the following:

"Produced by Love Productions, The Great British Bake Off was moved from the BBC to Channel 4 in 2017. The innovative and uniquely Channel 4 line-up of presenters was instrumental to the programme’s successful transfer, alongside the diverse cast of 12 amateur bakers."

Note, nothing stating this is a new show, and specifically calling this a 'MOVE' and a 'TRANSFER'.

@mattcomps said:

Wow! You seem to now be bending / changing the rules, based upon YOUR desired outcome. PLEASE show me another production where TMDB have done this. Please tell me your reasoning for stating 'Simply, in 2017, Channel 4 has started a new show from season 1' .

Another example is American Idol, where American Idol (2018) on ABC did follow after American Idol (2002) on Fox.

The series has ALWAYS been owned and produced by Love Productions, there was no change of ownership when it was moved to Channel 4.

The rules are based on the broadcaster, not the producer.

• If the new broadcaster restart the season numbering from 1, this is a new show, like any other show that start from season 1.
• If the new broadcaster continue to increment the seasons number, this is the same show with a new broadcaster.
• if the new broadcaster reorganise the old seasons/episodes and broadcast them differently before continuing with new episodes/seasons, like it was done for Futurama and American Dad, this is a reorganisation.

So could you shoot me the reference as to WHERE this show has ever been officially listed when it FIRST started on Channel 4 as being renamed to 'Season 1'. I cannot find ANY reference to this naming convention ANYWHERE apart from individual user threads and contributers on other sites ... which is what I was originally reading the history from also re Channel 4 renaming the series.

WayBackMachine was down, but now it's back up I've been able to research this more. Channel 4 NEVER listed this on their website or program line-up (on Channel4.com that I can find) as Season 1. The show page simply shows the episode names with no series name attached to it.

https://web.archive.org/web/20171026180444/http://www.channel4.com:80/programmes/the-great-british-bake-off

Under an episode description, it's only referred to as 'The Great British Bake Off 2017', however there is a prominent banner ad showing above the content (2017-10-26 is the oldest archived version of the page available) stating the following:

'The Great British Bake Off is looking for a fresh batch of brilliant, amateur bakers to dough battle and enter the tent for the ninth series... Apply now'

Specifically calling the NEXT series to air as the ‘ninth’ series, so Channel 4 had the naming convention of Series 8 from the very beginning - note this ad was displayed while the current season was still airing.

The first reference to Season 8 as Season 1 isn't until a website update in February 2018:

https://web.archive.org/web/20180202043237/http://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-great-british-bake-off

So by your rules, it does indeed seem that the show was ORIGINALLY titled as Season 8, even on Channel 4...

'If the new broadcaster continue to increment the seasons number, this is the same show with a new broadcaster.'

@mattcomps said:

So could you shoot me the reference as to WHERE this show has ever been officially listed when it FIRST started on Channel 4 as being renamed to 'Season 1'. I cannot find ANY reference to this naming convention ANYWHERE apart from individual user threads and contributers on other sites ... which is what I was originally reading the history from also re Channel 4 renaming the series.

WayBackMachine was down, but now it's back up I've been able to research this more. Channel 4 NEVER listed this on their website or program line-up (on Channel4.com that I can find) as Season 1. The show page simply shows the episode names with no series name attached to it.

https://web.archive.org/web/20171026180444/http://www.channel4.com:80/programmes/the-great-british-bake-off

They are clearly refer as "series 1" here on the official episode list page.

And on this 2010 archive, you can clearly see that the first 3 seasons where titled "series 1", "series 2" and "series 3".

Note : The application page is on the production website, not on the Channel 4 website. So, it doesn't count.

@mattcomps said:

I took a look at your rules:

https://www.themoviedb.org/bible/tv/59f743289251416e71000037#5b71c6b4c3a3684161000001

and you seem to be missing the fact that this show is a continuation of the original show (broacast on BBC prior to moving to Channel 4, which according to YOUR OWN RULES should follow naming convention (as this is the same show, simply moved networks):

"When seasons are re-organized, for example after a network change, (e.g. American Dad, Futurama), we do not re-arranged the aired seasons/episodes. The new season is simply added as the next season."

The ORIGINAL broadcast for this show starts in 2010 on the BBC, and then simply MOVES to Channel 4, who initially renamed the series naming before changing it back. Therefore, the new season starting on the new network should continue the naming conventions from the BBC, as outlined in your bible.

These are your rules, not mine.

It was originally not a network move from BBC One to Channel 4 as the latter restarted the season number from 1 when they started airing it.

@mattcomps said:

Wow! You seem to now be bending / changing the rules, based upon YOUR desired outcome. PLEASE show me another production where TMDB have done this. Please tell me your reasoning for stating 'Simply, in 2017, Channel 4 has started a new show from season 1' .

Popstars (on M6 / D8) and Popstars on Prime Video and American Idol as @superboy97 mentioned come to mind. As an example, Brooklyn Nine-Nine did not restart season numbers after moving from FOX to NBC. Neither has Inside the NFL despite moving between 4 different networks.

The series has ALWAYS been owned and produced by Love Productions, there was no change of ownership when it was moved to Channel 4. Negotiations between BBC and Love Productions fell through in 2016, and the production was MOVED to Channel 4... see:

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2016/sep/12/bbc-loses-great-british-bake-off#:

And I imagine that was useful, up until the show premiered on Channel 4 and restarted the season number from 1.

This was not a newly commissioned series for Channel 4, was not a reboot, and there were no changes in the format of the show, with the exception of some of the original presenters were locked into contracts at the BBC which they didn’t want to / couldn't get out of.

None of that matters as Channel 4 restarted the season number from 1. For example, according to the episode numbers at the end of the credits, Narcos: Mexico was produced by Gaumont TV as seasons 4-6 of Narcos but aired as seasons 1-3 of a separate show whose season number was restarted by Netflix.

If Channel 4 were buying this as a new series (a 'new show' as you claim) the show would have been renamed / rebranded due to rights issues (as has happened with many other shows). This is the same show as evidenced by:

The same production company rights owner and producer. No changes to the shows branding, name, or even title sequence. Presenter, location, format, graphics are identical to previous shows. Key production and support staff same as original show.

Renaming/rebranding doesn't always happen. Both Animaniacs series are called just "Animaniacs."

More importantly, the production company who owns the show, displays numbering continuing and NOT as a new series:

https://www.loveproductions.co.uk/programmes/archive/2017/gbbo-series-8

That's how it was produced, but that's not how it aired.

Way Back Machine confirms this was a show MOVE from a release on the production company website:

https://web.archive.org/web/20170719170816/https://www.loveproductions.co.uk/

... and confirms this with their official show line up for 2017:

https://web.archive.org/web/20171001071102/http://www.loveproductions.co.uk:80/programmes/2017

Channel 4's Annual Report from 2017 has an entire page dedicated to the show (see page 18):

https://www.channel4.com/media/documents/press/news/180605_Channel_4_2017_Annual_Report_FINAL.pdf

... which states the following:

"Produced by Love Productions, The Great British Bake Off was moved from the BBC to Channel 4 in 2017. The innovative and uniquely Channel 4 line-up of presenters was instrumental to the programme’s successful transfer, alongside the diverse cast of 12 amateur bakers."

Yes, and a show can move between networks and either keep its season numbers or have them be restarted. Channel 4 chose the latter and then changed their mind years later.

Note, nothing stating this is a new show, and specifically calling this a 'MOVE' and a 'TRANSFER'.

It doesn't need to be called a new show, it just needs to restart from season 1, which this show did when Channel 4 started airing it.

@mattcomps said:

So could you shoot me the reference as to WHERE this show has ever been officially listed when it FIRST started on Channel 4 as being renamed to 'Season 1'. I cannot find ANY reference to this naming convention ANYWHERE apart from individual user threads and contributers on other sites ... which is what I was originally reading the history from also re Channel 4 renaming the series.

Right here for season 1, here for season 2, and here for season 3.

WayBackMachine was down, but now it's back up I've been able to research this more. Channel 4 NEVER listed this on their website or program line-up (on Channel4.com that I can find) as Season 1. The show page simply shows the episode names with no series name attached to it.

https://web.archive.org/web/20171026180444/http://www.channel4.com:80/programmes/the-great-british-bake-off

Check again because the archive I linked from August 31, 2017 calls it Series 1. Seems like they called it Series 1, then removed the any series number information for some reason, then added it back again, and then changed the numbers completely a few years later.

Under an episode description, it's only referred to as 'The Great British Bake Off 2017', however there is a prominent banner ad showing above the content (2017-10-26 is the oldest archived version of the page available) stating the following:

'The Great British Bake Off is looking for a fresh batch of brilliant, amateur bakers to dough battle and enter the tent for the ninth series... Apply now'

Specifically calling the NEXT series to air as the ‘ninth’ series, so Channel 4 had the naming convention of Series 8 from the very beginning - note this ad was displayed while the current season was still airing.

And that ninth series aired on Channel 4 as Series 2. Production companies can have their own order but TMDB goes by the network.

The first reference to Season 8 as Season 1 isn't until a website update in February 2018:

https://web.archive.org/web/20180202043237/http://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-great-british-bake-off

First reference is actually in August 2017.

So by your rules, it does indeed seem that the show was ORIGINALLY titled as Season 8, even on Channel 4...

Well, no. The "Next on TV" section said "Series 1 Episode 1" on August 28, 2017. Episodes were also listed as "Series 1 Episode #" until episode 6 aired on October 3, 2017, when "Series 1" was removed altogether for some reason.

@superboy97 said:

We should follow the original broadcast, not a change done 3 years later.

No, you really shouldn't. I understand why, but you apparently don't realize what this does to the users.

Sonarr sees this particular series as one continuous series with 15 seasons, as does TVDB. But because TMDB splits it into two different TV shows, it's damned near impossible to make Kodi see both. So I can either see the full original series on BBC, or I can see a bizarre mishmash of Series 1-3 and Seasons 11-15, which aren't even the right show. I can watch episode 4 of season 15, which hasn't aired yet, and apparently stars Sandy and Noel Fielding.

In other words, your listing for The Great British Bake Off, while unwaveringly following your rules, is bloody useless in the real world.

I get having policies and sticking to them, but when it's at the cost of user functionality, there's a problem.