To think it's a terrible idea to scrap the BBC licence fee?

[dellacucina]

Inspired by this article: www.google.com/amp/s/www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1242927/BBC-News-Boris-Johnson-license-fee-subscription-British-Broadcasting-Corporation/amp

I'm recently naturalised and I think that the BBC is part of what makes Britain special. It makes me very sad indeed to imagine it being cut down.

CBeebies and Call the midwife are the only thing I use BBC for

Do those who say they never watch the bbc also never listen to any BBC radio stations.

No, I don't, the local commercial station is actually better than our local BBC radio station.

YABU. The licence fee should be scrapped and replaced with a subscription service. If you want it, you pay for it and you can pay more to make up for the shortfall if you think it is such great quality rather than expecting others to subsidise your preferences.

this is a big ask - or is it? Maybe other countries have it?

I'd like the BBC and it's vast amount of stuff to be subscription only.

I'd also like a news channel, nothing fancy, it could even run nothing if there's nothing to day, but something everyone could tap into, without paying, just to get basic news. Do they have that in the US?

All the other stuff can be subscription. It's the fact that you HAVE to pay the licence fee if you have TV capable of getting live BBC. I've wondered how they got away with that since I was a teenager, I'm now 44.

It's worth it for me just for the radio. And cbbc that my 3 have loved over the years, quality kids entertainment suited to their ages. And documentaries.
I still think it's one of the best things that the UK has.

The joys of BBC Radio* -

Radio 5 - Sports bollocks
Radio 4 - Log-rolling and back-slapping by terribly pretentious right-on types - let's invite all our old university mates on to discuss their latest book/play/pointless research project - interspersed by The Archers, der-der-der-der-der-der-der, der-der-der-der-der der ...
Radio 3 - Niche classical music, some of which might be OK but you have to drag through 20 crappy Bulgarian operas to find it.
Radio 2 - Easy listening pap crossed with inane overpaid presenters drivelling on about what they had for breakfast this morning in a way that makes you want to smash the radio.
Radio 1 - Hasn't played a record I've heard of since 1996.

• disclaimer - this is a subjective overview.

If No 10’s actions mean the dismantling of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, BBC Philharmonic, BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, BBC Concert Orchestra, BBC Singers, perhaps our beloved Proms (absolutely the finest music festival in the world) then we should fight this with all our zeal and passion!
I don’t want to say that No 10 is filled with a bunch of philistines, because I don’t know them personally and doubt I ever will. But their actions could well lead to the greatest single act of artistic destruction our nation has witnessed.
Let us remember, by way of record, that it was Dominic Cummings (together with Michael Gove) that started the very real and very dreadful dismantling of arts education in our state schools. And oh so many of us are having to work hugely hard to redefine and recreate arts education for our young people!
Freedom of choice is only good when the choice on offer is actually worth having!

Do those who say they never watch the bbc also never listen to any BBC radio stations

I only listen to the radio in the car and that tends to be Heart or GHR.

Do we reaĺly need all those local radio stations ?

Do those who say they never watch the bbc also never listen to any BBC radio stations.

My complaints above hinge exclusively on their radio service. The BBC delivers amazing radio, there's no good comparison, and in fact I listen to their podcasts regularly - (Inside Science, Thinking Allowed, In Our Time History + Philosophy). I know BBC radio inside and out.

The problem is that they're complacent and recycle a lot of content, which is hardly surprising given the fact it's essentially a mandatory payment.

Listen to Ian Wright on R4 Desert Island Discs today for the BBC at its best.

I don't want to pay 50p a day for something I never watch. That isn't good value for me, it's a waste of my money.

I understand how someone who watches it a lot would think it was worth that price. If that's you, can't you understand that it's not worthwhile or good value for someone who isn't interested in it, and why having to pay for it in order to watch, say, Channel 4, would seem unfair?

Hilarious TheMemoryLingers! - particularly the description of Radio 4, which I definitely enjoyed about 30 years ago but over the years has become self-satisfied wanky drivel. Give me Talk Radio any time.

And I agree with @TheMemoryLingers - I have to heavily censor R4 because I can't deal with the Archers and a lot of it is far too right-on, but I listen to the World Service all the time because there's no good alternative.

Their podcasts are a glimpse into what it could be if they were a bit more ambitious in that it's a distillation of their most excellent segments.

I don't want to pay 50p a day for something I never watch. That isn't good value for me, it's a waste of my money.

Should be obvious, of course, but it's not to the beeb's faithful followers.

@Syrinx89 I enjoy the proms, but you have to concede they only appeal to a limited audience made up of certain social economic groups. Why should BBC orchestras get additional funding over and beyond what commercial or charitable foundation orchestras either get or generate?

IMO it shouldn't be either, it should rely on adverts and be create its own revenue.

Because lets be honest, if its a subscription service it will be built on having defined layers of service and getting what you want will require a subscription to it all.

then we should fight this with all our zeal and passion!

Only if you like that kind of thing. It wouldn't be on my list of things to fight with all my zeal and passion.

Only if you like that kind of thing. It wouldn't be on my list of things to fight with all my zeal and passion.

Indeed.

People will miss it but it'll probably go the way of sky etc.

Do we reaĺly need all those local radio stations ?

Oh obviously we do Likefootball - if people rely on them for school closures and bus timetable information then clearly 61 stations isn’t enough and the BBC should double, triple or quadruple down. Maybe every postcode could have its own local radio station, all paid for through the license fee. Better policies for a Brighter, Better-informed Britain!

@TheMemoryLingers is being vvvvvv unreasonable! Radio 4 comedy is absolutely amazing- I love The News Quiz and The Now Show.

@WilheldivaHater if you don’t watch the bbc services you don’t have to pay.

www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/tv-licence/

People won't miss it. We thought we would but we don't now. At all.

It's so out of date now now that it's almost funny. It would be if it wasn't such a disgusting, unfair tax. If people want to watch the BBC, let them subscribe. Just bloody hurry up about it, talk about dragging your feet.

The BBC is already a commercial enterprise.

Overseas sales, magazines, merchandise, repeats on other channels (e.g. Gold etc) etc.

Where does all this money go?

There is also advertising on the BBC for it's own product so it's not completely advert free.

If it can justify why it needs the fee fine, if it can't make it compete with all of the other providers.