Triangle, Stratos to screen Pope celebrating Mass

Media Alert: December 18 2009

Triangle and Stratos to screen Pope celebrating Christmas Mass

New Zealand sister TV channels Triangle and Stratos Television are to screen the Christmas Mass live from St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.

Pope Benedict XVI is to break with tradition this year and will celebrate the Christmas Eve Mass from 10pm instead of midnight. That means it will screen in New Zealand 10am - noon on Christmas morning.

Jim Blackman, chief executive of Triangle and Stratos, says the Mass will be repeated 8pm – 10pm Christmas evening.

Triangle and Stratos are able to broadcast the Mass through the channels’agreement with the European Broadcast Union. The same agreement saw the channel screen The Eurovision Song Contest.

Vatican spokesman the Rev Federico Lombardi said the decision to start the Mass two hours earlier than the traditional midnight was made two months ago to “ease the (pope’s) fatigue at a time when there are many ceremonies and commitments”. He said there was no cause for worry about the health of the 82-year-old Ponitff.

Triangle Auckland is on UHF Channels 41, 42 and 52 and in Christchurch via TelstraClear cable (Channel 50). Triangle’s sister channel, Stratos Television, broadcasts nationwide via Sky Digital (Channel 89), Freeview (Channel 21) and TelstraClear cable.

ENDS

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