No More Money for BBC from Me

[Rhyd6]

Our TV licence is due for renewal on Monday, we don't watch a lot of live TV and have been monitoring our viewing for last month. On BBC we've watched the weather forecast just before 1 o'clock news each day and thats it. We were still undecided but the final nail in the coffin was reading that Amal Rajan was taking over as Question Master on Uni Challenge and that he would receive further payment on top of his salary of £329,999. I can't stand the man, I find him smug, rude and his diction extremely sloppy. I refuse point blank to contribute a penny of my money to either him or other overpaid so called crisp munching presenters.
Rant over

R6

[Leothebear]

Just wondered, do you listen to BBC radio? I think I'd pay a few quid a week for R4 alone.

[bungeejumper]

Just wondered, do you listen to BBC radio? I think I'd pay a few quid a week for R4 alone.

What? Is that, Like, a hire purchase? Seems expensive.

Hire state of intellect, that's for sure. (On the radio, noboddy knows you cant spel.)

BJ

[scotview]

Well, here's the thing, I could easily pay the BBC fee, even if I think Attenborough's latest videos are now climate evangelising cr**p, not the superb 4K wildlife footage which does my investment in a Oled 4K justice, as it sadly, used to do.

And their 20 or 30 or 40 business "reporters" don't particularly have a clue, even though each of them are probably on £100K.

I pay a lot of dosh on Sky/BT/Prime....... BUT, they deliver, so I absolutely don't think they are ripping me off, they just match the expectations of my 4K tech investment. My next TV is not going to be particularly cheap so I demand the highest of visual broadcast/streaming perfection in drama, wildlife and particularly sport.

I really resent my 13 quid for the BBC plo**nkers. With their RPI pensions. They are preaching gloom for the everyman whilst wishing RPI to go a LOT higher for their indexed linked salaries.

Sorry for the rant.

[AF62]

I pay a lot of dosh on Sky

Does Sky still show absurd amounts of advertising, like they used to, despite the exorbitant subscription fees they charge?

[scrumpyjack]

I pay a lot of dosh on Sky

Does Sky still show absurd amounts of advertising, like they used to, despite the exorbitant subscription fees they charge?

There is some, but I record things then fast forward through the ads. Can't remember when I last watched anything on the BBC. Van der Valk is good but that's ITV and the only thing I watch on that channel. Sad that mainstream TV has gone so far downhill over the years. I can't be bothered to cancel paying the BBC fee as I might at some point watch something live on some channel and you are liable for the fee if you watch anything live on ANY channel even if it isn't BBC

[Lootman]

you are liable for the fee if you watch anything live on ANY channel even if it isn't BBC

Never did understand why that is the case.

[scrumpyjack]

you are liable for the fee if you watch anything live on ANY channel even if it isn't BBC

Never did understand why that is the case.

I suppose that when Sir Humphrey wrote the rules it never occurred to him that anyone other than the BBC would have the temerity to broadcast TV signals!

If the Tories wanted to give the Beeb a mild boot up the backside they could change the law so that a licence was only required if you watched BBC channels live. Hard to argue against that?

[scotview]

Does Sky still show absurd amounts of advertising, like they used to, despite the exorbitant subscription fees they charge?

There is some, but I record things then fast forward through the ads.

Evening AF62, I think you are missing my (not very subtle, sorry) point.

I, like most folkies here, can decide what to spend our hard earned dosh on. I like SUPERB UHD quality video tech, wonderful audio receivers and amazing floor standing speakers. I demand media to match my tech investment and will pay for it.....GLADLY, because I can.

If some folkies do enjoy radio 4 and world service (voice) on a radio, so be it. But, please don't expect me to pay a monthly stipend for that ethereal service.

Sorry to be so blunt.

[CliffEdge]

Can't beat a book.

[GrahamPlatt]

I refuse point blank to contribute a penny of my money to either him or other overpaid so called crisp munching presenters.

Baby & bath water. My father voted Leave because he couldn’t stand the thought of paying for Farage and Kinnock’s MEP sinecures. Doh!

[Mike4]

Can't beat a book.

I have a book. Just checked it for the news tonight and it just keeps prattling on about the same old investment strategies. Same as yesterday and last week. Nothing at all about the price of gas.

[CliffEdge]

Can't beat a book.

I have a book. Just checked it for the news tonight and it just keeps prattling on about the same old investment strategies. Same as yesterday and last week. Nothing at all about the price of gas.

Sounds like a good book. Yup that's a good one, no incessant made up 24 hour so called news about which you can do nothing. And all the PC brainwashing twaddle.
Really it's got pretty bad now, almost nobody is free, you're all sucked in and played like a fiddle. And you actually pay money for the "privilege"!

[Gerry557]

Our TV licence is due for renewal on Monday, we don't watch a lot of live TV and have been monitoring our viewing for last month. On BBC we've watched the weather forecast just before 1 o'clock news each day and thats it. We were still undecided but the final nail in the coffin was reading that Amal Rajan was taking over as Question Master on Uni Challenge and that he would receive further payment on top of his salary of £329,999. I can't stand the man, I find him smug, rude and his diction extremely sloppy. I refuse point blank to contribute a penny of my money to either him or other overpaid so called crisp munching presenters.
Rant over

R6

You could watch sky news on YouTube then no licence needed. I can't guarantee you will like the people over there either though.

Yes I think some on the BBC are overpayed but less so than I used to mainly cos I'm not looking. Although I'm considering purchasing a license next month to see if I have missed anything.

At worst I can burn the tv licence to keep warm....... It might be cheaper than lecky

[Mike4]

I have a book. Just checked it for the news tonight and it just keeps prattling on about the same old investment strategies. Same as yesterday and last week. Nothing at all about the price of gas.

Sounds like a good book. Yup that's a good one, no incessant made up 24 hour so called news about which you can do nothing. And all the PC brainwashing twaddle.
Really it's got pretty bad now, almost nobody is free, you're all sucked in and played like a fiddle. And you actually pay money for the "privilege"!

One thing about the BBC Radio News that has been chuffing me off recently is the constant news bulletin headline items that simply don't qualify as "news" (in my book).

The other day for example they were running a headline news item twice an hour saying something along the lines of "BBC research has discovered that fewer than 10% of dentists are accepting National Health patients". Cue endless discussion of this revelation as if it had not been the case yesterday.

Does this sort of ol' tosh that just pads out news programmes appear in the BBC telly News too?

[Dod101]

Sounds like a good book. Yup that's a good one, no incessant made up 24 hour so called news about which you can do nothing. And all the PC brainwashing twaddle.
Really it's got pretty bad now, almost nobody is free, you're all sucked in and played like a fiddle. And you actually pay money for the "privilege"!

One thing about the BBC Radio News that has been chuffing me off recently is the constant news bulletin headline items that simply don't qualify as "news" (in my book).

The other day for example they were running a headline news item twice an hour saying something along the lines of "BBC research has discovered that fewer than 10% of dentists are accepting National Health patients". Cue endless discussion of this revelation as if it had not been the case yesterday.

Does this sort of ol' tosh that just pads out news programmes appear in the BBC telly News too?

It is that sort of thing that gets to me. They run what are really magazine items more suited to say Panorama or something instead of news that I object to.

Dod

[AF62]

There is some, but I record things then fast forward through the ads.

Evening AF62, I think you are missing my (not very subtle, sorry) point.

I, like most folkies here, can decide what to spend our hard earned dosh on. I like SUPERB UHD quality video tech, wonderful audio receivers and amazing floor standing speakers. I demand media to match my tech investment and will pay for it.....GLADLY, because I can.

Of course you can spend your money on whatever you want.

It just surprises me that people are happy to pay Sky a small fortune to watch their output, and then have to suffer adverts or have to jump through the hoops of recording and fast forwarding.

As for most of Skys output, aside from a few HBO shows everything else is terrible or mind bogglingly dull - irrespective of the quality of the picture or sound.

Sorry to be so blunt.

Likewise.

If some folkies do enjoy radio 4 and world service (voice) on a radio, so be it. But, please don't expect me to pay a monthly stipend for that ethereal service.

But of course you do pay, as you need a tv licence to watch Sky.

[Arborbridge]

Our TV licence is due for renewal on Monday, we don't watch a lot of live TV and have been monitoring our viewing for last month. On BBC we've watched the weather forecast just before 1 o'clock news each day and thats it. We were still undecided but the final nail in the coffin was reading that Amal Rajan was taking over as Question Master on Uni Challenge and that he would receive further payment on top of his salary of £329,999. I can't stand the man, I find him smug, rude and his diction extremely sloppy. I refuse point blank to contribute a penny of my money to either him or other overpaid so called crisp munching presenters.
Rant over

R6

Since I almost never watch University Challenge, it isn't something I am bothered about (though my wife sleeps through it sometimes). I know the guy you mean, and he does gabble a bit - but he isn't alone in that. He's OK, but I would imagine he doesn't have quite the feeling of authority that Paxman brought to this type of program. No doubt he will bring his own ideas to the program, but his lighter more humourous touch (which is perhaps what you see as "smug") may be seen as part of the dreadful dumbing down the BBC has been undergoing for about 20 years. Some people might be glad at last to lose Paxman's abrasive style and think this change is a good thing.

Of course, he isn't an old fashioned white man of a certain age, but then times are changing. Having someone "of colour" was quite predictable, though I do think TV in general (not just the BBC) goes too far in the respect of tickboxing diversity of all kinds. It's enough to bring out the racist in one.

For my part, I watch almost entirely BBC and do not need anything else, so I find it very good value and would not want to be without it. No way am I yet ready to buy a plethora of channels for which one has to pay individually.
Each to his own, but I can't help feeling you might be losing out: one could pay considerably more and receive much less.

Arb.

[Arborbridge]

Does Sky still show absurd amounts of advertising, like they used to, despite the exorbitant subscription fees they charge?

Yeah.

I cut my Sky bill from £96pm to £19 by binning the sports and movies. I was quite chuffed with myself until Scottish Power came knocking.

£96 a month. If people are paying a small fortune to get this one service, no wonder "ordinary" people find it difficult to pay their way. And Sky is just one catch-penny - I assume one can get tempted into paying for other services in addition.

I'd bin the whole lot and go back to the BBC plus the occasional night out. These scoundrels (and tax avoiders) have created a ethos in which people feel "poor" if they don't pay this private enterprise levy: it is pure exploitation of our addictive tendencies.

And some people have mentioned the high salaries at the BBC. If they are so high, why do we repeatedly find names who have cut their teeth and become famous thanks to the auspices of the BBC, defect for vast sums to commercial channels? No one seems to complain about that.

Arb.

[MrFoolish]

One thing about the BBC Radio News that has been chuffing me off recently is the constant news bulletin headline items that simply don't qualify as "news" (in my book).

BBC breakfast news is the worst. Hardly any proper news on it. Endless tedious banter between the presenters and it's obvious they are just going through the motions. Most days there's an over-long touchy-feely story about a charity walk-a-thon or an interview with a Strictly star. Plus way too much sport - which now goes on forever because they have to give equal coverage to women's sport. I don't consider sport to be proper news. It's all very dumbed down and frankly the BBC should be doing better.

Tough luck if you want to know what's happening in the world.