British television, like its American counterpart, began developing in the 1930s, with the BBC Television Service beginning regular broadcasts in 1936. The early British television drama borrowed a great deal from dramatic radio productions developed between the First and the Second World Wars. In the 1920s the BBC pioneered dramatic readings of books. In 1925 it broadcast "A Christmas Carol", which has become a holiday favourite. Later, John Reith, wanting to use radio waves to "part the clouds of ignorance", came up with the idea of a "classic serial", based on a "classical" literary text.