O/T tv licence

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

The bottom dollar is this, if the BBC lived up to their own mission statement of "to act in the public interest, serving all audiences through the provision of impartial, high-quality and distinctive output and services which inform, educate and entertain".

Then most would have no argument with them.

But they don’t and compound the insult by having the gall to make you pay for it

[great_fire]

I would still have an issue with them.

Paying the BBC to watch Sky, ITV, Channel 4 etc is just bizarre, and unfair.

The whole concept of a "TV licence" is also bizarre and dated.

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

I would still have an issue with them.

Paying the BBC to watch Sky, ITV, Channel 4 etc is just bizarre, and unfair.

The whole concept of a "TV licence" is also bizarre and dated.

Yep agree with that

[Silly-miller]

The bottom dollar is this, if the BBC lived up to their own mission statement of "to act in the public interest, serving all audiences through the provision of impartial, high-quality and distinctive output and services which inform, educate and entertain".

Then most would have no argument with them.

But they don’t and compound the insult by having the gall to make you pay for it

Hit nail on head there mate

Even I wouldn’t have a problem with em if they had a more wide range of tv shows but they don’t because comedy is too divisive and offensive to the wokeys violence isn’t nice enough so your stuck with news, antiques and garden shows all of which 20 years ago would have been put on bbc2 while only fools and horses kept people entertained

[KerrAvon]

I am largely with you, scum. And it illustrates my point that when you have more and more broadcasters chasing a fairly fixed amount of advertising revenue the outcome will be cheap populist TV like 'Can't Pay? We'll Take it Away' where a production company takes advertising money to make entertainment out of debt fuelled misery.

The BBC disappoints me in the 'safe' approach to its programming these days. If you look back at some of the comedy it produced in the past you can see that it was quite innovative and willing to use largely unknown talent in a way that it isn't today.

[Scum-Triumphant]

I am largely with you, scum. And it illustrates my point that when you have more and more broadcasters chasing a fairly fixed amount of advertising revenue the outcome will be cheap populist TV like 'Can't Pay? We'll Take it Away' where a production company takes advertising money to make entertainment out of debt fuelled misery.

The BBC disappoints me in the 'safe' approach to its programming these days. If you look back at some of the comedy it produced in the past you can see that it was quite innovative and willing to use largely unknown talent in a way that it isn't today.

This Country is a perfect example of what you mean but it is the exception.

There was a time when comedy screen writers would be falling over themselves to get into the BBC. Inside Number 9 is excellent when it's more funny than dark but it is fairly subjective (My wife hates it)

Talking of comedy shows, I recently started the US version of The Office. In 12 episodes and a xmas special Ricky Gervais managed to tell develop several characters and complete all their arcs. Whilst funny in it's own right, I cannot understand why there are so many, So far I have watched 24 and I am still not off the second series. It is like watching the same episode over and over again.

Maybe CAM can answer why this works better for american viewers but I am going to stop watching in a few more episodes because it's boring.

Americans do great drama but really laboured comedy.

[KerrAvon]

This Country is a perfect example of what you mean but it is the exception.

There was a time when comedy screen writers would be falling over themselves to get into the BBC. Inside Number 9 is excellent when it's more funny than dark but it is fairly subjective (My wife hates it)

Talking of comedy shows, I recently started the US version of The Office. In 12 episodes and a xmas special Ricky Gervais managed to tell develop several characters and complete all their arcs. Whilst funny in it's own right, I cannot understand why there are so many, So far I have watched 24 and I am still not off the second series. It is like watching the same episode over and over again.

Maybe CAM can answer why this works better for american viewers but I am going to stop watching in a few more episodes because it's boring.

Americans do great drama but really laboured comedy.

I was going to mention 'This Country' as an exception to the rule, but decided not to as it is not to everyone's taste. Innovative comedy made with unknown actors. The BBC should and could do more.

[CAMiller]

This Country is a perfect example of what you mean but it is the exception.

There was a time when comedy screen writers would be falling over themselves to get into the BBC. Inside Number 9 is excellent when it's more funny than dark but it is fairly subjective (My wife hates it)

Talking of comedy shows, I recently started the US version of The Office. In 12 episodes and a xmas special Ricky Gervais managed to tell develop several characters and complete all their arcs. Whilst funny in it's own right, I cannot understand why there are so many, So far I have watched 24 and I am still not off the second series. It is like watching the same episode over and over again.

Maybe CAM can answer why this works better for american viewers but I am going to stop watching in a few more episodes because it's boring.

Americans do great drama but really laboured comedy.

I think it is down to the fact that US broadcast TV dictates that writers must commit to producing 24-36 episodes per season (Sep-May) hence massive dilution. There are 4 broadcast channels, ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX and it seems every year each one tries to introduce one or two new 'family' comedies so you can guess how much crap gets aired and some are so bad they only get through 2-3 episodes before getting axed. Consequentially, successful ones run for ever and end up with so many episodes you could fill a small terraced house with the DVD boxed sets e.g. Cheers, Seinfeld, Friends, The Office.....

Drama suffers the same fate, e.g. Lost was good for a while but dragged on so long they might as well have renamed it Total Boll.ocks

[howdydoo]

I think it is down to the fact that US broadcast TV dictates that writers must commit to producing 24-36 episodes per season (Sep-May) hence massive dilution. There are 4 broadcast channels, ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX and it seems every year each one tries to introduce one or two new 'family' comedies so you can guess how much crap gets aired and some are so bad they only get through 2-3 episodes before getting axed. Consequentially, successful ones run for ever and end up with so many episodes you could fill a small terraced house with the DVD boxed sets e.g. Cheers, Seinfeld, Friends, The Office.....

Drama suffers the same fate, e.g. Lost was good for a while but dragged on so long they might as well have renamed it Total Boll.ocks

I thought it was just total bollox, full stop.

[wendun]

Drama suffers the same fate, e.g. Lost was good for a while but dragged on so long they might as well have renamed it Total Boll.ocks

Lost put me off everything TV based forever. I used to say to the wife; "This must be really frigging good 'cos it's completely lost me. I can't wait to see how it all makes sense at the end." I then discovered the writers were waiting for exactly the same thing and all of us were disappointed, the only difference being I wasted hours of my life and the writers made big bucks.