Omnibus (broadcast)

Omnibus (broadcast)

An omnibus (or omnibus edition) is a compilation of daily television or radio episodes that is re-broadcast during the following weekend. The term has been most frequently used in the United Kingdom, though it has also been used in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. An omnibus is sometimes referred to as a marathon in other countries.

Brookside was the first television soap to have what was called an omnibus edition, in 1991; it continued until the series ended in 2003. EastEnders introduced the equivalent of an omnibus edition starting in the 1980s, but the term "omnibus" was not used until the 1990s.

United Kingdom

Programs that are or have been transmitted in omnibus format in Britain include:

Television:

Programme Years Channel(s)
Brookside 1991–2003 Channel 4
Coronation Street until 2000
2000–present
2006–present		 ITV (regionally),
ITV2,
ITV Network (ITV1, STV, UTV)
Doctor Who 1970s, 1980s BBC One
EastEnders 1985–1994,
1994–present		 BBC One
Emmerdale until 2000
2000–present
2004–present		 ITV (regionally),
ITV2,
ITV3
Family Affairs 1997–2002 Five
Hollyoaks 1996–present,
2001–present		 Channel 4 (part of T4),
E4
Home and Away 1999–2000,
1999-2002,
2001–present,
2006–present		 ITV2,
UK Living,
Five,
Fiver
Knots Landing 1992–1999 UK Gold
Neighbours 1993–2001,
2008–present,
 UK Gold,
Five, Fiver
River City 2002–present BBC One Scotland

Radio:

Internet:

Other countries

Marathons

SoapNet in the United States also utilizes the omnibus format for weekend re-airings of their major soap operas; however the term used in that case is marathon (the more common term for omnibus used by North American broadcasters), and the network's dependence on weekend full-week replays of their series has waned as the network has begun to air original and other acquired programming


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