To be hurt and annoyed at being dropped by the BBC?

[Ladyof2025]

BBC contacted me asking me to speak on camera about an aspect of local history I happen to know a bit about. I agreed and spent the next few days brushing up on the facts and then writing and rewriting a script and reading it out loud again and again until I knew it by heart and could speak confidently to camera as though I'd never said it before.

I do not have a pretty face, and am in my 60s and rather podgy, but I went to the trouble of going through my wardrobe for the perfect outfit that flattered my podginess, and had my hair cut specially and put on some make up, so I could be the best possible version of me that I could.

The production team visited, took me to the site and filmed me speaking. I did it smoothly and confidently and was glad that I had put in all the rehearsal so I came across as knowledgeable, professional and confident of my material. They said my performance was perfect, thanked me profusely and left.

After about a week they rang me to say that due to time and space issues the section of the programme that featured my input had been dropped. I felt absolutely gutted, not because I want to see myself on TV but because I had used up a lot of my valuable free time for several days preparing and rehearsing for it (for no fee I should add).

A few months later the programme I was dropped from came on TV and to my utter astonishment an attractive, slim young lady appeared, at the same site I was filmed at, and she spoke the exact words I had written and rehearsed! I nearly fell off my chair - the absolute bloody cheek of dropping ME but stealing the script that I had written. Thinking about it, I realised that they wanted my expert input, but not my saggy face or ample figure.

AIBU to be hurt and angry?

It was a little girl, a child with wonky teeth, being replaced by another little girl with nice straight teeth, but yes I do remember this.

This. I am struggling to believe this. The BBC have plenty of people on who are not conventionally attractive or who are older etc etc.

Report it then. Don't troll hunt.

If you can bear to have your name in it, I think some of the tabloids might be interested, they love bashing the BBC.

After she had learned the script
that was yours I presume you have your script on your computer with a date stamp so you can show when you wrote it.

If you did it for free then I presume you didn’t sign anything
I only presume they thought they had paid you and signed a contract signing away any rights
I would be seeing a solicitor about this

She obviously read and learned OP's script. If she was just chatting naturally, she wouldn't be using exactly the same words as OP, she would be using her own words.

Why on earth wouldn't OP want to look her best if she was appearing on TV?

that's a really nasty reply

This.

My work involves getting experts for this type of programme. No one would ever be asked to write a script.
At best they would be given questions in advance to prepare but the point is usually that it doesn't sound like a script.

It's odd for them to use someone else though. I wonder if your edit was very difficult. Speaking very fast, giving overly full answers that can't be cut to the required 30 seconds while still making sense.

How can you learn a script when you are being interviewed? A script works because each person reads their bit.

As PP have said, if you can prove that these were your words and your knowledge and experience take some sort of action - people were watching this for local history, not a dolly bird!

If this is real then YANBU. I was going to say YABU, segments get dropped all the time, it's disappointing but don't take it personally, but nicking material isn't on.

That's disgusting!! 100% complain and invoice them for your time and script! Surely it's discrimination too. I am incandescent on your behalf!!!

They had it on film. They wouldn't have needed a paper copy in order to replicate all the content.

Doesn’t matter what happened, those words and that knowledge was hers to impart. Not for someone to copy and pay someone else to use them

There is a big difference between 56 and 60+

When you get there and find yourself in need of a job, let me know how you get on if you don’t know anyone who can pull strings

You might not retire for another 7 years but in the eyes of employers you should have already retired.

Wow that's awful!

Contact Sky News Or GB News about it. This needs to be brought out in the open.

We want to see older women on TV. If they say that viewers prefer younger women it's only because they have created that desire themselves by brainwashing people to believe that is what they want/are used to.

This is absolutely outrageous. Age discrimination.

....and yet it did seem to work for the new person?
For everyone saying it shouldn't be a script , it should be natural, just talk about what you know etc....how does that work for the presenter who has used the OPs script?

If this is true you need to take action, not just moan online. Not at the dropping but the theft of script.

Oh my god I would be furious! I was going to say these things happen all the time. Like the Gavin & Stacey episode where Mick is interviewed and is excited he’s going to be on tv and they cut it down to one line. But to actually do the piece at a later date and using your words is terrible! I think it’s pretty unethical really and I would email the producer to complain. As you say you put a lot of time and effort in and for them to use your work but not even acknowledge it is very dodgy territory. I would definitely point it out to them.

A few years ago the BBC came to my Dad's workplace to film. They spoke to/interviewed him and a few of his colleagues. He was so excited about it. The night it came out on the news we all say round to watch it. The way they edited it made my Dad look so stupid. It was so obviously deliberate and contrasted him with his colleagues different views with quick edits between them. It was heartbreaking. I remember him rewatching it several times over the next few evenings and he was so upset.
It still breaks my heart to this day. It was needlessly cruel to a very intelligent, lovely man.

This is one post I really hope the Daily Snail do read! This is horrible, OP and I can imagine how bloody dreadful this had made you feel.

Oh, no- poor man! That's really horrible.