BBC “what has the BBC done for me”

I wouldn’t want the BBC to change, it couldn’t make the type of programmes it does in the same quantity and quality if it was a subscription service and I love watching TV without adverts.

I’m a strong supporter of a licence fee funded, or if it has to be, central tax funded news, current affairs and factual programming service.

But a significant amount of programming is just aping the commercial providers. That should go.

And, more importantly, the BBC has increasingly been taken over by ‘group think’ about fashionable causes like transgenderism and the pro-Palestine movement.

The BBC is worth keeping, but it must change if it’s to maintain trust and support.

I would imagine that the demographic who listen to radio four and documentaries etc are more likely to appreciate and pay for it without whinging so don’t need it selling to them perhaps.

The person on this thread who (oh the irony) saw the advert whilst watching the World Cup and doesn’t have a licence. Good grief.

The BBC ad copied a similar one it did in 1986 with John Cleese in the RR role. What a difference in the quality of the participants, BBC had genuine talent then. I do watch BBC, use iPlayer and Sounds so pay licence fee, however, I'm totally against anyone who doesn't watch having to pay. Make it subscription.

Bore off OP. I am sick of people whinging about the BBC. If you don't watch live TV, don't pay it.

I love BBC Sounds podcasts (so many are binge-worthy), Traitors, HIGNFY, the Proms, Wimbledon, the World Cup matches I chose to watch on the Beeb because of thr lack of ads, their weather app, their news... CBBC, Horrible Histories, Operation Ouch.

I genuinely think we're lucky to have them.

If they create brilliant content they should have no difficulty as a subscription service

Agree, don’t watch Eastenders or strictly and quite frankly sick of them both. A lot of the BBC stuff I enjoy are their documentaries, drama and arts.

I didn’t mind it but don’t want to see it again and again and again. I generally like the BBC but don’t need this rammed down my throat

I totally agree. I would probably pay for the BBC if asked to voluntarily subscribe, but this advert seemed to be filled with stuff that's not current and is on the way out rather than showcasing innovation and new trends. The only newish thing featured was The Traitors and that already feels about 5 years old. It kind of highlighted that it has a hit every twenty years which it then flogs to death, but that's not even true. Even the use of Romesh kind of highlighted that he's on everything!

The radio is fantastic, but that makes up a fraction of the licence fee.

BBC TV is woke nonsense and not at all representative of the general population. I can't bring myself to watch anything outside of the news, sport and some factual content.

I think the Beeb gives great value for money. I’d rather pay that and have vanishingly few ads than Netflix, Prime, etc that are adding more and longer ads all the time AND expecting me to pay to watch them.

So pay a subscription then.

The question 'what has the BBC ever done for me?' is a bitter question heard quite a lot now. There's a group of people who want to take everything away, bit by bit.

We still sometimes watch live tv (like 3 nights a week) plus I watch a lot of bbc iPlayer, listen to radio 2 and access the news and weather. I think it’s worth the fee. We get freeview, Disney and now (both on reduced rates) and we pay for Netflix comes to £35 in total including bbc. Which I think is reasonable.

I quite liked most of it but I don’t need to see it / hear it (radio) so frequently

I love the BBC. I listen to BBC radio all the time, I find their news app and weather app the best. And I love some TV. I will be forever thankful for pride and prejudice.

BUT the advert is crap. And it is full of old shows. It almost was a showcase of things they used to do but don't do well now. Nods to strictly, the tiredest of shows, EastEnders. It should be about BBC 4 content, huge documentaries, proper quality drama. The BBC offers good quality in the face of netflix docs that say the same thing for an hour with some dramatic music over the top. They missed a trick in trying to appeal to the football audience I think.

If it was £58 in 1985, then the price has increased very slightly less than inflation between then and now.

You could have watched the World Cup final on ITV if you don't like the BBC?
And you know you should be paying for a licence watching anything live but even more so when choosing to watch BBC when there are other options.

The BBC is about soooo much more than Eastenders and Casualty 🙄. I watch the BBC a lot, and listen to the radio, and have never watched either of those programmes in my life!

I thought the advert was cringeful- it came across as desperate and a bit bitter, like an eastenders character hollering down the street ‘worr av I done for you, eh? EH?’

I thought they picked some of the naffest content to centre as well. Where was Attenborough, quality drama and the films?

At least they stopped short of including Mrs Brown’s Boys.

They do. My daughter was one and is now a radio producer. Every year there are at least 5 taken on from all backgrounds and that’s just the small area of radio that she works in. They are chosen purely on talent, the interview process is long and quite arduous but if you’ve got that spark and hunger they recognise it.

Because reliable informative programming is not something that should just be left to market forces and everyone should have access to it free at point of use because those with the last cash are also the least likely to be able to afford a cash cost. Personally I would prefer it was funded out of general taxation, including tax rises as required, as that would be a lot less regressive in tax terms.

My preferred method of societal function is universal access to a range of services some of which we'll use and some of which we won't. E.g. education for children, adults, and to me this forms part of the ongoing commitment to education being available for all.

The World Service was historically paid for by a grant from the Foreign Office.

It was only in 2014 that Osborne forced the BBC to pick up most of the bill and only about £200m from the c. £4bn of license fee goes towards it

If the license fee was scrapped, it would go back to being completely funded by the Foreign Office.

You're all obviously watching the BBC to see it

You're not being forced to pay anything—that's simply factually incorrect. If you watch it, pay the licence, just as you would for any other service you use. If you don't watch it (which, for many people, is unlikely), then don't pay.
Just be honest with yourself. Most people use BBC services regularly and may not even realise it—football, for example.
You have agency and choice, but if you choose to use a service, it's a reasonable expectation that you pay for that service.