I’m proud of the BBC, and Mitch Benn

As an expat there are many things you’ll not miss, the high fuel prices, the speed cameras, the invasions of privacy of the Blair/Brown years, but then there are some things I think every expat can agree on because there is always something about the BBC that we loved.  I took a DVD of Bagpuss into the office a few weeks ago, and every Brit there got a misty look in their eyes, and the DVDs been out on loan since then.

So it takes the brilliance of Mitch Benn (yes, him on The Now Show) to list a whole litany of reasons that no matter where we go there are a few things we all hold in common.  So take it away Mr Benn:

Now if like me you listened to that, then listened again, then thought “Wow, that is hilarious, and brilliant!” there are two things you must do:

1. Buy the single when it comes out on November 1st.  Go on, prove there is more to life than X-factor trash and urban (c)rap.
2. Buy the  t-shirt of the song.  I just ordered mine!

On a serious note, it isn’t until you live somewhere where the only television choice is commercial (even the Public Broadcast Station which I am often told is America’s BBC has commercial breaks) and ratings rule forever that you start to truly value the gift that is Auntie Beeb.  Even with the wealth of digital cable channels at my disposal it is hard to find a BBC2 (and now BBC4), in fact most networks just resort to block scheduling and repeats, some even showing the same sequence of episodes every 6-8hrs for days on end!

So defend the BBC, you might not always choose it, but right now at least you have a choice!  Once it is gone it won’t be coming back…

The final hesitation – RIP Sir Clement Freud

Another voice I recall so well from my childhood has passed away, Sir Clement Freud has died.

For me he was a slow but firm voice on the BBC Radio 4 comedy panel game “Just A Minute” where he was a regular appearance.  His educated, steady, and confident delivery was like an ice breaker pressing on through a sea of interruptions for deviation, repetition, or hesitation.  I respected him greatly for there are very few who can trip up Stephen Fry for diction and use of the English language!

On this show alone his career spread decades, appearing alongside comic noteworthys such as the aforementioned Mr Fry, Kenneth Williams, and the presenter Nicholas Parsons.  Beyond this he was a writer, journalist, Liberal MP, and one of those rare few who can be described as a raconteur and actually fill the word’s large boots to excess.

He will be sorely missed, thanks for the laughs.

• BBC Obituary – Writer Clement Freud dies aged 84
• Telegraph Obituary – Sir Clement Freud dies at 84

The return of “I’m sorry I haven’t a clue”

Good news for those who’ve missed the show since Humph’s sad passing last year.  BBC Radio 4 has announced that the show will be returning in June!

BBC News – Fry, Dee, Brydon take on Clue

The Telegraph – I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue returns to Radio 4

Is Russell Brand funny?

The BBC Website Magazine asked the question Why is Russell Brand funny?

With all the fuss over his prank phonecall exploits with Jonathan Ross (Prank call timeline) I think the article misses the point that Russell Brand is just trying to be the modern day Kenny Everett.  Let us consider the ways that Brand has followed exactly in Cuddly Kenny’s footsteps:

• Dressing to cause shock or controversy
• Publishing comically titled memoirs that hid ‘dark secrets’ (The Custard Stops at Hatfield and My Booky Wook)
• Unorthodox but unfortunately/bizarely made public sex-lives
• “Fired” from BBC Radio due to their broadcast exploits
• Television shows that pushed the boundaries of ‘the best possible taste‘

and this is just the obvious list that strikes me at 1am!

Was the prank call out of order?  Definitely, but I feel suspending Ross, and Brand’s resignation is an easy escape which allows them both to move on to fresh projects.  Could it possibly be that Brand quit because he wasn’t going to be “fired” like Kenny?

BBC transcript to be used in wake of nuclear attack

The following script was written by the BBC and the government in the early seventies, and was to be used in the event of a nuclear attack.

This is the Wartime Broadcasting Service. This country has been attacked with nuclear weapons. Communications have been severely disrupted, and the number of casualties and the extent of the damage are not yet known. We shall bring you further information as soon as possible. Meanwhile, stay tuned to this wavelength, stay calm and stay in your own homes.

Remember there is nothing to be gained by trying to get away. By leaving your homes you could be exposing yourselves to greater danger. If you leave, you may find yourself without food, without water, without accommodation and without protection. Radioactive fall-out, which follows a nuclear explosion, is many times more dangerous if you are directly exposed to it in the open. Roofs and walls offer substantial protection. The safest place is indoors.

Make sure gas and other fuel supplies are turned off and that all fires are extinguished. If mains water is available, this can be used for fire-fighting. You should also refill all your containers for drinking water after the fires have been put out, because the mains water supply may not be available for very long.

Water must not be used for flushing lavatories: until you are told that lavatories may be used again, other toilet arrangements must be made. Use your water only for essential drinking and cooking purposes. Water means life. Don’t waste it.

Make your food stocks last: ration your supply, because it may have to last for 14 days or more. If you have fresh food in the house, use this first to avoid wasting it: food in tins will keep.

If you live in an area where a fall-out warning has been given, stay in your fall-out room until you are told it is safe to come out. When the immediate danger has passed the sirens will sound a steady note. The “all clear” message will also be given on this wavelength. If you leave the fall-out room to go to the lavatory or replenish food or water supplies, do not remain outside the room for a minute longer than is necessary.

Do not, in any circumstances, go outside the house. Radioactive fall-out can kill. You cannot see it or feel it, but it is there. If you go outside, you will bring danger to your family and you may die. Stay in your fall-out room until you are told it is safe to come out or you hear the “all clear” on the sirens.

Here are the main points again:

Stay in your own homes, and if you live in an area where a fall-out warning has been given stay in your fall-out room, until you are told it is safe to come out. The message that the immediate danger has passed will be given by the sirens and repeated on this wavelength. Make sure that the gas and all fuel supplies are turned off and that all fires are extinguished.
Water must be rationed, and used only for essential drinking and cooking purposes. It must not be used for flushing lavatories. Ration your food supply: it may have to last for 14 days or more.

We shall repeat this broadcast in two hours’ time. Stay tuned to this wavelength, but switch your radios off now to save your batteries until we come on the air again. That is the end of this broadcast.

What a terrifying thought that this might have been heard on radios across the country.