# Why are all my favourite shows on a break this week? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 1, 2011, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025 "2011-03-01T04:01:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Jay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b77776/32.png) [@The\_Jay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Jay)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2011, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025/1 "2011-03-01T04:01:56Z")
Is there a reason why Glee, Family Guy and 30 Rock are all taking a break this week? (30 Rock is actually off for two weeks!) I’ve even looked up a few other popular shows that I don’t watch and The Office is off for 3 weeks! What gives? ---
**Author:** ![heathen\_earthling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/13edae/32.png) [@heathen\_earthling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/heathen_earthling)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2011, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025/2 "2011-03-01T04:16:15Z")
I assumed there was no new _Family Guy_ last night because they didn’t want to compete with the Oscars. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2011, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025/3 "2011-03-01T06:23:38Z")
There’s an 90 minute episode of **American Idol** on Tuesday. NBC’s airing an entire 3 hour block of **Office** reruns for some reason. **Big Bang Theory** is also a repeat. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2011, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025/4 "2011-03-01T13:00:11Z")
February is a sweeps month. It is now March. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2011, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025/5 "2011-03-01T13:32:02Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > There’s an 90 minute episode of **American Idol** on Tuesday. NBC’s airing an entire 3 hour block of **Office** reruns for some reason. **Big Bang Theory** is also a repeat. If that’s all on Tuesday, there’s no “for some reason” about it. They expect they will lose their audience to American Idol. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2011, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025/6 "2011-03-01T13:39:36Z")
This happens every single year, and every single year someone notices it for the first time and asks the question. There are a limited number of new episodes shows available each season – around 22, IIRC. So to fill out a season, you need to take breaks. There are also three sweeps rating periods a year – November, February, and May. Thus the usual schedule is: Mid-September - Mid-December – new episodes (usually ending with the Christmas episode). Mid-December - Mid-January – reruns or a different show. Mid-January - March 1 (sweeps) – New episodes. March - Mid-April – reruns or a different show. Mid-April – Memorial Day – New episodes. Memorial Day – Mid-September – reruns. This isn’t true for every show, and doesn’t apply to reality shows, which don’t rerun ( but are cheap to make). But it’s been going on for at least 25 years. ---
**Author:** ![Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swords_to_Plowshares)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2011, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025/7 "2011-03-01T18:39:54Z")
What’s a sweeps ratings period? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2011, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-all-my-favourite-shows-on-a-break-this-week/573025/8 "2011-03-01T18:59:29Z")
It’s when they calculate how many people are watching a show so they can set advertising rates. Shows put their most interesting and blockbuster episodes on during sweeps period for that reason.