Germany made the film Dinner for One a New Year's Eve television tradition.
Dinner for One is a short English-language comedy sketch recorded in 1963 for German television. It stars May Warden as Miss Sophie and Freddie Frinton as her butler, James. During a birthday dinner, James pretends to serve four absent guests, repeatedly drinking their toasts and stumbling into the same routine.
Although the sketch was produced in Germany and performed in English, it became especially associated with German New Year's Eve viewing. German broadcaster NDR first aired it in 1972, and repeated broadcasts helped turn it into an annual ritual.
The line “The same procedure as every year” became widely recognizable in German-speaking popular culture. The program is also shown in several other European countries, but Germany is the country most strongly identified with the New Year's Eve tradition. It is not a film about New Year's Eve itself; its association comes from its broadcast history.