Please use this thread for comments about the BBC’s current programming and activities. This post will remain at or near the top of the blog – scroll down for new topic-specific posts. N.B. This is not an invitation for general off-topic comments, rants or chit-chat. Thoughtful comments are encouraged. Comments may also be moderated. Any suggestions for stories that you might like covered would be appreciated! It’s your space, use it wisely.
General BBC-related comment thread!
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True to form when this criminally corrupt and incompetent Labour government are caught out thieving from the taxpayer the BBC default line is to run with the rebuttal first.
Telegraph:
Jacqui Smith claimed allowance ‘for living with sister’
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith is at the centre of a new MPs’ expenses row after it emerged she has claimed taxpayer-funded allowances for a second home while living with her sister.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/4557354/Jacqui-Smith-claimed-allowance-for-living-with-sister.html
Times:
Jacqui Smith attacked in new Commons expenses row
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article5687302.ece
Mail:
Expenses row: ‘Lodger’ deal earns Jacqui Smith £100,000 as she claims sister’s house is main home
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1138782/Expenses-row-Lodger-deal-earns-Jacqui-Smith-100-000-claims-sisters-house-main-home.html
And last and least Trash TV:
Smith denies expenses wrongdoing
http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7877422.stm
Who says they ain’t biased, apart from their loony tunes apologists of course.
Does anyone know if there is any commercial relationship between the BBC and Twitter (the micro blogging website) ? Its just all week Radio 1 have been plugging Twitter and in a really concerted way. Almost every DJ seems to have mentioned they use the service and who they follow I doubt 30 minutes could pass without it getting a mention. Even phone callers to shows got to talk about it as well. All mentions were positive as well.
If Twitter haven’t paid for the mentions they must have a flaming good PR person.
Nicolas Sarkozy among European leaders to suggest Britain could struggle in recession
Nicolas Sarkozy and other European leaders have suggested that Britain is badly placed to weather the recession. While Chancellor, Mr Brown was resented for using meetings of European Union finance ministers to lecture them on the virtues of “prudence”.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/recession/4560180/Nicolas-Sarkozy-among-European-leaders-to-suggest-Britain-could-struggle-in-recession.html
So EU leaders are ganging up on the snot gobbling kiddy fiddler.
Meanwhile on Trash TV ………. zzzzzz
The Carole Thatcher affair has certainly been a big story for the BBC.
Along with the weather and the ludicrously over the top coverage.
Meanwhile back in the real world.
Most of our banks have had it..
Corus, Jaguar and, I suspect, most of our remaining industry is so indebted as to be technically bust. leveraged up to the hilt with no hope of paying off the debts as sales decline inexorably.
At all costs keep the proles distracted.
The Romans used games etc. The establishment uses celebrity culture and non stories .
It ended badly for Rome. it will for us and the tragedy is that good ordinary people are going to pay the price.
Not the new boss class esconced in the BBc, the quangos and the liberal establishment. They will loot us all .
17.57, News24 today (Sun): Jay Wynne is doing the weather forecast. And, in a glorious moment of surreal incompetence, the words ‘mobile phone’ appear at the bottom of the screen.
Huh?
Current BBC programming: “Around the world in 80 faiths”; Peaches Geldoff becomes a Muslim in a faith-swap; History of Islaam (carefully balanced by Ann Widicombe on Christianity (silly moo playing into BBC hands with “Christian = Right wing”); some stupid Beeb bint went vox-pop in a town centre asking “are you too embarrassed to talk about God?”
According to BBC, faith is the new black. But who really gives a toss about “faith” issues apart from Muzzies and whacko creationist wing nuts? For the Beeb it is an opportunity to upload a back-door trojan, the Islam Virus, or a variant, the Marx Virus. Both these viruses cause irreparable damage to the recipient brain’s critical faculties, which then installs code that allows priests/ politicians to take control. Faith Zombies.
There may not be a God, but there most certainly is a Devil: its your friend the BBC.
And then of course, there are our old chums down at BBC Radio Solent, who despite all the tellytax money that gets sent their way, are quite incapable of putting an hour’s worth of competent radio together.
If you can handle the toe-curling embarrassment of it, listen to the first two minutes of this Sunday morning show, just after the end of the news bulletin, as DJ tries to contact weather bimbo.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p0023l94/Mike_Osman_08_02_2009/
And in that news bulletin, a highly trained BBC reporter tells us that ‘A gunshot was discharged’. Huh – again?
Presumably then, if and when Jackie Spliff sells the property in Redditch, it being her second home, she will be liable for capital gains tax ?
charlie, i think we will find that for tax purposes it will have been her designated ” main residence” for these past few years.
kerching !
I recall the Tories saying Britain didn’t need a manufacturing industry. Brown and Blair, like the Tories, believed the City was infallible.
We’ve based our entire economy on the “skills” and “talent” of gamblers.
Now, it turns out that was a nation-destroying mistake.
Oops.
The bankers in the City do not care; they have no sense of patriotism, and will take taxpayers money and flee to Asia.
Jimbob:
She can’t have it both ways, i.e. for the purpose of MP’s expenses claim that her sisters house in London is her main residence, and for Inland Revenue purposes the house in Redditch is, even though her employee, her husband lives in Redditch.
why am i not surprised part 456.
sara smith , jacquie’s sister WORKS FOR THE BBC !
trebles all round ! paid for by the taxpayer.
surely the time has come for an English intifada against these snouts in the trough merchants. how much more are they going to rip us off.
TPO: As I posted earlier this started last night on BBC News 24. It came up in the paper review and the beeboid immediately read out a statement from the Home Office.
Has anyone else noticed that when Labour sleaze or Government lies are dug up it’s always the Newspapers or Tories using FOI to expose it, but when Tory sleaze is alleged it’s always the BBC?
No doubt the BBC will be queuing up to put on this pro-Arab, anti-Jewish piece of political ‘left’ propaganda:
Melanie Phillips-
“The Royal Court’s Mystery Play”
http://www.spectator.co.uk/melaniephillips/3334851/the-royal-courts-mystery-play.thtml
AND at ‘Harry’s Place’:
http://www.hurryupharry.org/2009/02/08/seven-jewish-children-a-play-for-gaza-by-caryl-churchill-at-the-royal-court/
AND, Lawrence Auster:
“How strong is the Arab Claim to Palestine?”
http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=F9FC5FA9-FF95-49BC-86A2-C9EBD546AD3D
martin
I agree with what you say, but try to look at it this way.
As the BBC is a very powerful, publicly funded instrument of The British Establishment and has ALWAYS been so, without any doubt whatsoever.
Ask yourself not so much why The BBC wants so desperately and obviously to keep Gordon Brown and his party in power at whatever costs to The BBC’s own reputation.
Ask yourself why The British establishment wants so desperately and obviously to keep Gordon Brown and his party in office?
Here is a simply massive clue, that may help.
The British establishment is essentially a WORLD BANKING CORPORATION, has been so since around 1815 and arguably has been since around the late 17th century.
Turning on R4 at about 2.30 on Thursday I was somewhat surprised to be greeted by the words ‘shit’ and ‘poo’ being flung about. Turned out to be ‘Woman’s Hour’ and the presenter was interviewing a novelist called Charlotte Roche who’s written a novel which apparently devotes a lot of space to anal sex and bodily functions. Just the thing for toddlers to ‘Listen with Mother’!
Mysteriously, the item has now been removed from ‘Listen Again’ –
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/01/2009_05_thu.shtml
Wouldn’t have anything to do with the beeboids realising what sanctimonious hypocrites they really are post the great Golliwog furore?
1327: Re: Twitter
You’re right! It’s all over the BBC website in several stories and articles.
I still haven’t looked at it though, so their free advertising is not 100% successful!
David S
You are most surly getting there.
Our establishment have not basically learned a single new trick since even well before Roman times.
Even back in the times of Stonehenge the ruling elites have used ‘MAGIC’,( in other words unknown at the time to the masses, OLD technologies, lies and mind control propaganda) or other forms of occult knowledge to dominate, tax, confuse, intimidate, distract, scare, divide and therefore rule the common people.
The BBC is EVIL working for EVIL.
More anti Jew crap from Al Bowen. Why should he claim that just because Gaza has been bombed in places that that will breed another generation of Jew haters?
We flattened Germany and Japan in WW2. I don’t see much hatred or a desire for revenge from those two Countries?
So long as Jew haters like Bowen are allowed to stir it up then yes there will be no peace.
Perhaps if Bowen pointed out that if Hamas didn’t launch rockets in the first place none of the bombing would have been needed?
Our revered Home Secretary employs her husband at £40,000 a year for secretarial duties. Presumably this appointment was made in accordance with equal opportunities policies. Perhaps someone could tell me where and when it was advertised and who conducted the interviews for it.
Classic BBC crap. On Radio 5 the fat vile Stephen Nolan was just spouting on about the great John Prescott and Alistair Darling suggesting that the City bonus system needs to be changed.
Some guy from the City said it was down to deregulation. So Nolan spouts on about Prescott being right.
Er.. sorry but the BBC is re-writing history (again). Perhaps I’m missing it but hasn’t Liebour been in power since 1997? Didn’t Liebour do the de-regulation when fat Prescott was deputy PM and McFatty One Eye Chancellor?
I wonder why Nolan didn’t ask or point that out?
George R | 08.02.09 – 9:14 pm |
See, this is why I almost never read Melanie Phillips. It’s not like I don’t share at least part of her perspective on certain issues (quiet at the back, please), but I don’t really learn anything from her. I’m the least malleable member of the choir, and I’m usually aware of things that she talks about anyway, so I don’t see much point in listening to the fire-and-brimstone.
Never mind that I don’t need to read her stuff, but when I do, I see glaring errors like “Mystery Plays.” They’re called “Passion Plays”, as in JS Bach’s The Passion according to St. Matthew. Or The Passion Narrative according to the Gospel of St. John (also set to music by the superhuman Bach).
There’s even been the occasional controversy over the bit about Jews claiming responsibility for Christ-killing not being removed from Bach’s setting of the St. John P_. So it’s not like nobody knows that the Passion Plays are a bit problematic. Does Melanie not know Bach?
This isn’t a United Statesian peculiarity that a British person might not be aware of, either. The word “passion” comes from the Latin passus, or “suffering”, and generally refers to the bit in anybody’s Gospel concerning the run-up to the Crucifixion. The terminology is older than anybody calling it “Mystery Plays”.
If Phillips can’t even get that right, it’s hard for me to defend her. Yes, I’m a music geek, but that’s no excuse. This is pretty basic stuff.
Long-haired rant ends, but leads to me to the point that the “Suffering” bit totally helps her argument whereas “mystery” doesn’t. Her entire point about BBC bias is weakened – in my geek opinion, I admit – because of this basic error. But how much cooler would her post have been if she brought up the “suffering”? Total waste of a good metaphor.
The bBC, Mr Z-Un Noon and Half the story.
A man was awarded £20,000 in damages after claiming he was distressed by parking fines totalling £200. Z-Un Noon, from Tower Hamlets, east London, refused to pay four £50 fines to Newham Council and took the council to court claiming emotional distress……However, last month Bow County Court ruled in the council’s favour and Mr Noon has now been ordered to repay the £20,000 plus £7,500 in costs.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/7877596.stm
Here’s what Al Beeb doesn’t let you know about Mr Noon;
But the council may struggle to get the money back from Mr Noon as he is understood to have spent all the money.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1138947/Driver-wins-20-000-stress-parking-tickets-sends-bailiffs-collect-money.html
The bBC, Mr Z-Un Noon and Half the story.
“It was not the dancing style which struck Mr Johnson but the fact he lost two stone in 10 weeks on the BBC show.
Now he plans to create a “dance working group” to expand the availability of dance classes to adults.
He hopes people who have resisted previous efforts to get involved in sport could become active through dancing.
The working group would include the judges from the popular programme. ”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7877228.stm
Bloody hell what next – but it seems that the BBC don’t ask the question “Who is going to pay for this ‘working group'”? The country is in billions of pounds worth of dept and some crazy Labour MP wants to set up another cash cow for z-celebs.
The BBC headline should have read “Labour want to spend even more taxpayers money on stupid initiatives”.
High-ranking Foreign Office diplomat arrested over anti-Semitic tirade in the gym
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1139249/High-ranking-Foreign-Office-diplomat-arrested-anti-Semitic-tirade-gym.html
Anybody else find it strange how Al Beeb isn’t reporting how Bowens little helpers have been launching missile attacks against Israel over the weekend. What is even stranger is that everybody else in the worlds knows about this, so why aren’t the bBC reporting such news. You can bet your bottom dinar that when israel strikes back Al Beeb will be at the front of the pack;
http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/World/Story/STIStory_335969.html
http://www.japantoday.com/category/world/view/2-gaza-rockets-hit-southern-israel
http://www.postchronicle.com/news/breakingnews/article_212206504.shtml
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/2/9/worldupdates/2009-02-08T221926Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-379054-1&sec=Worldupdates
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2009/200902/20090209/article_390358.htm
http://www.asianage.com/presentation/leftnavigation/news/international/gaza-rockets-hit-israel,-truce-fails.aspx
http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2009/feb/08/gaza-rocket-strikes-israel/?breakingnews
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090208/israel_gaza_090208/20090208?hub=World
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aRG_AbaWIvBw&refer=worldwide
http://www.asianage.com/presentation/leftnavigation/news/international/gaza-rockets-hit-israel,-truce-fails.aspx
I note the BBC web of lies is still treating “Chancellor warns RBS over bonuses” as a major story, while the instant rebuttal, “Smith denies expenses wrongdoing” gets the briefest of mentions.
Funny how our regular BBC shills are never around to defend stuff like this, isn’t it?
I see Abu Bowens message of “Kill the jew” which the bBC promotes as the news has now become the currency of the day in the Uk.
I bet the bBC is really proud over how its left wing stance is taken for granted.
Black is white,white is black. Terrorist is good policemen are bad.
It seems the bBCs mission in which to make us all pray to allah is on line to become fact.
Message to the bBC.
Be very afraid if Sharia law is allowed to take root in the Uk
And I don’t mean from the Mosque either.
GCooper: Just like last night when on the paper review the Jacqui Spliff expenses story came up the female beeboid was quick to point out she’s done nothing wrong.
You NEVER see that with a Tory. NEVER.
David Preiser: Never mind that I don’t need to read her stuff, but when I do, I see glaring errors like “Mystery Plays.” They’re called “Passion Plays”, as in JS Bach’s The Passion according to St. Matthew. Or The Passion Narrative according to the Gospel of St. John (also set to music by the superhuman Bach).
There’s even been the occasional controversy over the bit about Jews claiming responsibility for Christ-killing not being removed from Bach’s setting of the St. John P_. So it’s not like nobody knows that the Passion Plays are a bit problematic. Does Melanie not know Bach?
This isn’t a United Statesian peculiarity that a British person might not be aware of, either. The word “passion” comes from the Latin passus, or “suffering”, and generally refers to the bit in anybody’s Gospel concerning the run-up to the Crucifixion. The terminology is older than anybody calling it “Mystery Plays”.
If Phillips can’t even get that right, it’s hard for me to defend her. Yes, I’m a music geek, but that’s no excuse. This is pretty basic stuff.
————————————
I don’t see a problem with what she wrote. The Passion Plays are examples of mystery plays. They depict the mystery of the passion of Christ. They are if you like a sub-category. Other mystery plays depict other episodes in the life.
Melanie Philips was probably referring to the English Mystery Plays, the mediaeval cycles that were shown in many different parts of the country. The York and Chester ones are the best known but there are others. That is what they are called, not Passion Plays. Sorry David Preiser, but that is all part of English literature and its history and Philips got it right. Wikpedia has quite a good summary: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miracle_play
Come despair at the waste of your license fee at the BBC’s Obama diary: The first 100 days
No less than eight Beeboids are contributing to this nonsense. Now, I’m perfectly happy to admit that the election of a person of African descent to the Presidency is an historic occasion. However – according to the BBC – the reason they were so obsessed with the US election to the point of pissing off UK viewers was because of the racial history.
So, why the hell are they doing this whole First 100 Days noise? If the only historic value is his race, what’s the point of going on about the first 100 days? Is the BBC somehow implying that the first 100 days of a Black President are somehow more newsworthy than yet another white President’s?
Of course not. It’s because, in the minds of Beeboids, it’s the first 100 days of the world being liberated from the tyranny of Booooosh. If the entire concept of this Diary isn’t a blatant display of bias, I don’t know what is.
I’d like to hear a better reason for this BS.
Having said all that, even though James Coomarasamy was professional enough to mention that President Obamessiah lost two nominees over tax dodging. He seems to have left out the double standard about lobbyists, and he forgot to mention that there were other problems for other nominees, but at least this is something.
Too bad the rest of the Beeboids are in full-on worship mode. All seven of them. Adding back Coomarasamy in his default mode, they’re short four Disciples. Anybody have any suggestions?
http://www.michaelyon-online.com/
Something you will NEVER find on Al beeb! Read the article about Israel.
“It makes no sense to risk life and limb only to allow people who intentionally target children to talk through my pen. Not until they stop the terrorism. Those members of the press who transmute Hamas’s crocodile tears into ink only exacerbate the disease.”
Wonder if he is talking about Aby Bowen?
Mailman
I can’t bear to read it, I’m afraid. Sky is also doing a 100 days’ diary. Haven’t read it either.
Sorry: my post at 11 59pm refers to David P’s post about Obama first 100 days, not Mailman’s about article about Israel.
In case anyone still has doubts after listening to the BBC telling us it is Brown has it all under control- A couple of facts.
Container traffic at the ports both inbound and outbound is falling fast as it is on the west coast US. A reliable indicator of the true economic situation. Nothing on the BBC about this.
One state quango, if that is the right word, Network rail will owe close to 29 billion year end 2009/10. Interest payable over the next 5 years 7.4 billion .
Huge sums which we are liable for as citizens. Payable to who? Atlas Shrugged probably can tell us.
Multiply this across all the PFI scams and the sums become horrific.
WE are truly going to be reduced to poverty.
Still we can watch Celebrity Come Dancing while we go down as a nation.
Lok at the picture on this report:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7877740.stm
He may be an evil F***** but AlBeeb think he’s the best!
David Preiser
Sure, you can find faults with Melanie Philips.
But she is one of the few journalists in the UK who TRIES to point up the stark truth about the threats we face.
There are a handful of such journalists around the world. Philips can be shrill at times,, but read heralong with Msrk Steyn and you have a mix of what we now face in Europe.
Dave S
Railway freight traffic was the clearest warning of the Great Crash in America.
I don’t know if it is still available – but Alastair Cooke’s short book “The Great Crash” is a good guide to what we may now be facing.
Countries with strong manufacturing bases and diverse economies will survive. Sadly, Britain’s dependence on gamblers, spivs, and crooks will be its downfall.
Go on Twitter (it’s quite good) and search BBC. They have registered over 100 addresses including BBCfoot, BBCfooty, BBCprem, BBCfootball1 and many individual club names.
biasedbbc (hope that’s you!) has been taken; bbcbias is still available.
I warned DV about this in an email last week.
He may be an evil F***** but AlBeeb think he’s the best!
Gigits | 09.02.09 – 1:03 am
The clear (and cleared with the Irani FO) implication is that Khatami is a moderate.
Perhaps old dinner jacket is up for the boot?
Another session of trouser-wetting excitement about a magnificent, brilliant, insprational, enchanting and spectacular piece of European science here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7864087.stm
Let’s wait and see, shall we? After all, who can forget the last big brilliant, inspiration [etc etc] Euroscience project that swallowed up endless hours of BBC coverage:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7632408.stm
Is the I or the M word missing from this article?
Trouble with the BBC is, after a while, you start seeing shadows move.
Jaqui Smith had her defence lawyer Nick Robinson on TOADY this AM telling us that Smith isnt a common thief, she is innocent of everything OK?
Ooooh thats alright then isnt it? I was under the mistaken impression that she was a crooked dishonest two faced money grubbing parasite, Hmmmmm just shows you doesnt it?
Robinson was so eager to impart his band aid sticking plaster over the festering wound he ‘forgot’ to mention one or two things, I wonder why!
David Preiser (USA) | 08.02.09 – 10:59 pm
While Passion Plays deal with the Passion, mystery plays deal with all sorts of Bible stories – including quite a lot of Old Testament ones. Given the settlement of the promised land by the Jews is an OT story, MP is surely right to use mystery plays?
John A
Interesting. My information on the fall of UK container traffic came from a train driver in that particular pool of drivers Fewer and shorter trains. And the lost traffic is not going to the roads. A spiralling cycle of declining trade which nobody can stop or alter.
No wonder governments and their propaganda experts in the media are anxious to keep us misinformed.
“Mystery plays” are indeed the standard modern term for medieval religious drama. However, the name derived from the fact that they were performed by the trade-guilds of a city. The term for their particular skill was a “mystery” — i.e. the mystery of shoemaking, carpentry and so on. It was nothing to do with the mystery of religion. The original name for them was “miracle plays”, which is closer to their subject matter.
The BBC offers a degraded contemporary equivalent, based on soft-left economics, moist Greenery, and hand-wringing social and political appeasement.
And unlike the medieval guildsmen, who worked hard to earn their own living, the BBC lives off the taxpayer.
BBC: Starts the Week, with more Islamization of Britain.
BBC Radio 4 ‘Start the Week’ with A.Marr (on now)is doing a 20 years since… the Islamic death threats to Salman Rushdie over the publication of his book ‘ The Satanic Verses’.
And who does the BBC get as THE two front-line speakers on ‘freedom of speech’ but TWO MUSLIMS, T.Modood and K.Malik! (Check out their views on Israel, Mr. Marr.)
Apparently, the dhimmi BBC accepts that the issues of ‘The Satanic Verses’ should be left to Muslims predominantly to decide on, for British society! The majority of indigenous British people are, with the enforced BBC dhimmitude, to take a secondary role to Islam in deciding what sort of society Britain should be.