https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-61591674 In other words, let them die a slow, lingering death. Plenty of people enjoy watching TV live as broadcast, don't watch TV online, and enjoy the more cerebral output of BBC4. Where else would a foothold of Nordic Noir and other Foreign Crime and serious drama output be able to form and build into a dedicated following. I was pleased that BBC3 was brought back as it meant there was an opportunity for some serious post-news at 10 programming to return to BBC1, but if the result of this is that BBC4 is going to disappear as a terrestrial broadcast channel then BBC decision makers, BBC3 and it's audience can go f-u-ck themselves. My mum and mother-in-law are also well p1ssed off about this. I suppose there will only be Sky Arts to get a Friday evening music fix. I can't see BBC1 and BBC2 Sat evening schedules being cleared for the Proms. Completely exasperating.
I quite agree with this and I'm sure it's a cost-cutting measure. I love a lot of the BBC4 stuff, particularly, as you say, the Friday night music strand. The problem for me is not so much not being able to watch it online, but the ability to assimilate what is available and when. I watch a lot of stuff I discover on the off chance and putting it online makes it less noticeable for me.
Where will I be able to watch Michael Portillo and his Bradshaw's guide? I will always be grateful to BBC4 for introducing me to Bob Ross's 'wet on wet' painting technique through the peerless "Joy of Painting" series.
Is it true that the licence fee will end as we know it in 2027? It will be interesting to see how they will fund themselves if it ends up being the case.
The Proms are run by the BBC so I'd be surprised if they didn't clear the schedules, frankly. This would have really bothered me five years ago but BBC4 is nowhere near as good as it used to be. And won't the channels still be on iPlayer? Surely most people can access/know how to use this by now?
Or just streaming via a smart TV? You've probably got to have a telly more than 8 years old to not have that functionality I'd have thought.
I can see the idea of it, especially for the CBBC aspect. Kids nowadays don't want to sit in front of the T.V, they want to be able to watch their fave programme and talk to their mates on Facebook at the same time. Online subscription? Money for BBC and entertained kids with less stressed parents? Sorted.
At the BBC, making changes to well loved things is often simply the antecedent to a viewer campaign that ensures they stay as they were.
The BBC6 Music backlash was quite impressive. Standby for the middle classes to furiously write letters to the Torygraph.
There are still many households, particularly of the elderly generation who don't have or want internet access. At least BBC3 is hidden down the program list so Granny can't inadvertently stumble across it. There's going to be big cuts in local radio too, will this mean less local footy commentary?
I’d like to see the stats on this, frankly. BBC4 is clearly most likely to appeal to the better educated, and I would guess the vast majority of that cohort will have internet access. Although I concede there is an equality/educational argument there.
Just another inevitable sign of the BBC dumbing down. Must cater to youth of course. Seeing what comes from BBC3 much of which is drivel makes you weep. Just chasing the ratings on BBC1 for the most part. Removing current affairs programmes, science programming and shoving anything that requires a concentration span of more than a few minutes onto BBC4 along with plays, ballet and opera. BBC4 has produced some excellent documentaries from The Colour White/Blue/Gold, and a host of experts and their areas of expertise. Januszcak on art, Worsley on palace art and architecture, Khalili on Physics, Sautoy on Mathematics. A host of other great documentaries as well such as Mechanical Marvels, Storyville and original commissions like Detectorists. The original remit of the BBC was to inform, entertain AND educate. If people are not exposed to more challenging television they will gladly accept the drivel of celebrity led, cookery, reality, talent show garbage they are fed now. Surely the BBC ouight to raise the bar and maintain it's tradition and reputation of world class television which was the envy of many countries ? If you do expose people and especially children to stimulating programming with great presenters like the late Bob Ross for instance it can bring about an interest, appreciation and participation in those. David Attenborough criticized the BBC for it's dumbing down and he's not wrong. Which channel is going to produce a two hour trip from the North Island in NZ without narration to it's tip on the South Island. A beautifully composed, immersive journey. What new series now for example with the lovely Alice Roberts on The Great British Dig for instance ? You look at the state of television in America and it's rating chasing, style over substance even in the factual programming. Aside from PSB America which still produces excellent series like The American Experience. Are we having to go down that route to fund high quality television here ? Public donations and private organizations keen to show they are worthy institutions ? Sky has their arts channel but compared to the quality seen on BBC4 as with their directors series it's not even close. I shall certainly be writing to the BBC and complaining. BBC4 is about the only channel I ever watch now.
That NZ train journey was great. Mrs Keighley and I used to love the art programmes with AGD, Waldemar, Sooke, Fox etc. There have been notably fewer of these recently though, and I don’t think that is because of dumbing down - it’s a cost thing. If moving online helps to preserve resources for the occasional programme of that type, while still maintaining the corporation’s non-commercial basis, then that is a price worth paying in my book. PS Alice Roberts is overrated. Bettany Hughes, on the other hand…
What’s wrong with you lot, aren’t those hour long adverts Channel 5 do about Burger King and Greggs enough culture for you?
Here we go again. Worked well for BBC three didn't it? I swear there's a bigwig somewhere at the BBC that is changing **** just to justify their job. The sooner the BBC stop trying to compete with the commercial providers and return to being a public service the better. Provide their revenue though central taxation (Which then makes it means tested), protected for inflation and against political intervention and jobs a goodun.
How do you protect it against political intervention? Any future government could just secure the passage of legislation overturning your arrangement. It could easily end up like the NHS, a political football.
Dunno not a political expert but there must be some method of being able to get a cross party agreement turned into law to say the BBC will get this much from central taxation per year and it will rise by RPI minimum per year. Any changes to this would have to be agreed to be referendum. Statute? Actually I'd have the NHS funded this way as well. If a government wants to lob some more in they can, but they can never cut it without the public agreeing.
That was the excuse for doing it. If I recall correctly at the time it was widely explained that there were no or a least very limited savings in switching off the broadcast. A quick google provided this point of view. https://media.info/television/opinion/bbc-three-going-online-only-doesnt-save-money Unless there was a reduction in the programming generated for the channel there would be no savings. In fact the excuse used was saving money to improve programming. A few years on and under even tighter budget constraints they bring it back, so that point of view would tend to be reinforced although I admit I'm not going to trawl through their accounts to verify this. Still plenty of cash for some lovely new logos on their www site. A horizontal yellow bar chart represents sport aparently. Infact it does it so well that they need to write "sport" next to the logo. https://www.creativebloq.com/news/bbc-modern-new-logos
Ir's legalty possible but I can't see many governments wanting to tie their hands in that way. (And, to be pedantic, legally a future government could just repeal the referendum requirement by a simple majority vote). It's not just about funding anyway; there are various other forms of political interference which might appeal if it were to be funded out of general taxation.
Also Suzannah Lipscomb's BBC4 series Hidden Killers was also great, as shown by this nostalgic clip about chemistry sets: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03vb2yn/player
The present lot in government don't like the BBC's pesky interviewers asking them awkward questions trying to get them to tell the truth hence boycotting Radio 4 and seeking solace with LBCs Nick Allegro.
