The BBC

[mezzaninedoor]

Im a great fan of the BBC most of the time, I think it's a jewel in the crown of our culture. It provides a lot of distinctive content that seeks to entertain, educate and inform, those old Reithian values.

However, I have felt recently that the BBC News service has ignored some stories, almost, which is a concern. e.g. Tories being taken to court for overspending on election, TTIP etc.

I could so without the aspirational telly like 'Homes Under the Hammer' etc and my main loves are BBC4, 6Music, BBC Drama and most Comedy.

I'm pleased that the White Paper has kept the licence fee and that they haven't top sliced the 3.7 bn available to the BBC. I'm a little concerned about the Government appointing 6 of the new Unitary Board members as we don't want a State Broadcaster we want a continuing World Class Public Service.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-36276570

[MyNameIsTerry]

I'm always torn over the licence fee. It's really only the same as what we are forced to pay BT for, or pay them through another provider (unless the lines are non BT network) but I also know that the BBC get paid a lot of money every year by the electricity Distributors (and Suppliers were due to pay a %, but I left the industry after reviewing that area for my place) and it makes me wonder how much the other channels are paying them. If they are making too much out of all this, I think the licence fee should be reduced.

Content wise, good dramas. Comedies are not great these days, the BBC has lost out there. I'm not happy about all these comedy reboots though. Still Open All Hours was terrible in the pilot but it did grow on me, although I think his nephew should have been axed as Tim Healy's character was more his sidekick. I did laugh every time I saw the large photograph of Arkwright on the wall in the backroom, the one where the expression on his face looks like he's just been asked for a refund! (like this one)



http://imgc.allpostersimages.com/images/P-473-488-90/30/3008/II3BF00Z/posters/ronnie-barker-as-the-stuttering-lustful-shopkeeper-arkwright-from-the-bbc-tv-series-open-all-hours.jpg



:roflmao::roflmao::roflmao:

[mezzaninedoor]

I have never been torn over the licence fee as I think its a small price to pay for quality Public Service Broadcasting.
I don't want all telly to be Virgin or Sky subscription telly as I think generally we get a lower quality product that way.
Without the BBC we wouldn't get the broasder cultural stuff like BBC6Music, BBC4, Asian network, Shakespeare season, Radio4, Radio4extra, World Service etc

There is a fair bit of the BBC that I could cope without though, where they are copying commercial telly, that, they don;t need to do. BUt what they do best I would like to see more of

[MyNameIsTerry]

Have you seen the new legislation coming out to prevent the BBC broadcasting the same programmes in the same time slot as other channels? That seemed like an unfair piece of legislation that could be easily challenged in court.

[mezzaninedoor]

I think this was something that was going to be in the White Paper but had been withdrawn. I believe this isnt now part of the legislation.

The legislation is going to enshrine that the BBC is diverse though, which actually makes sense.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Is the White Paper very recent? I saw this being discussed in the last couple of weeks on Digital Spy's forum.

[mezzaninedoor]

Yes it was being discussed prior to the White Paper which came out this week.