BBC1′s Saturday nights are looking healthier than they have for some time.

Nice to see you ... back on Saturday nights

That’s thanks to the imminent return of Strictly Come Dancing and the upcoming debut of Merlin .

However, what it still hasn’t been able to reconstruct is a bonafide Saturday night schedule.  Outside of those stellar shows, BBC1 is still unable to transmit two successful series one after the other.  There are rumblings that what is required is a big new entertainment format – but what should it be like?  That seems to be the big question.  Is a module show a la Noel’s House Party the answer, or is a high concept game show (surely someday, some channel will successfully resurrect Wanted) required?

What’s clear is that the well of talent shows is rapidly drying up (I predict Maestro to be the last successful iteration of this mould), but BBC1 really needs something extra on Saturday nights to complete its rehabilitation as the owner of TV’s happiest night of the week.