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Original poster

Incredibly boring programs - Starting with Ben Fogle

275 replies

EllyRoff · 13/08/2025 21:07

BF lives in the Wild must be the most boring program ever made. Every episode is the same:

“We left the rat race to live in a cow shed in the middle of nowhere. We live on rain water and mouldy vegetables but we’re so happy”

Next minute the socially isolated kids are shown studying butterflies or some shit.

I just can’t stomach it, normally I can sit and watch anything but this just irritates me beyond belief, I have to leave the room whilst DH watches it. The only other thing that comes close is Jools Holland.

Anyone else have such a strong dislike of a particular program?

OP posts:
Teenagequeenwithaloadedgun · 13/08/2025 22:40

I love Dog House but hate that everyone has a depressing backstory. 'This is Sally, she really wants a dog because one day she woke up and both her arms fell off and ran away. When she tried to get them back, she crashed her car into a big marshmallow. Here's a puppy'.

faffadoodledo · 13/08/2025 22:40

ThePure · 13/08/2025 21:35

Mine is radio. I often have R4 on in the background and the only programme that I will actively rush to switch off is Any Answers. Lots of bigoted middle Englanders being given airtime for views that are at best twee and pointless (what ever will happen when the wind isn’t blowing?! John from Southend thinks he’s the only person ever to have spotted that issue with wind power. It must be because hes a retired engineer) and at worst racist.
Actually Feedback I switch off too for the same reason.

Come now, surely the worst radio four programme is You and Snores.

it must be part of some Reithian remit or something. Dreadful.

TyroleanKnockabout · 13/08/2025 22:46

Love Island. I had to watch it once. Nothing fucking happened. And it was so deeply unsexy, which you’d think would be impossible with so little clothing about. And there were adverts.

I find David Attenborough programs scary rather than boring (same with anything about space). I can’t explain it though.

CalzoneOnLegs · 13/08/2025 22:46

I recently watched the moist pointless doc on iPlayer called ‘the odd sock murder’ about a 50 odd years old unsolved murder they think they knew who had committed it now but didn’t say because he had living relatives so it was all pointless - just filler really

FurForksSake · 13/08/2025 22:47

I’m hoping the bbc see this and knock the one show on the head. It is drivel.

Charlize43 · 13/08/2025 22:48

Anything with smug Sandi Toksvig and her supercilious manner.

CurlyhairedAssassin · 13/08/2025 22:48

EllyRoff · 13/08/2025 22:31

One on now that irritates me - 24 hours in A&E

Bloke comes in with an interesting and seemingly serious medical issue … next minute his relative is sat talking to us about how they met at a bike fair and how they made ends meet by working 3 jobs each etc etc … no fucker cares Shiela! We just want to know why he’s in A&E - it’s literally the whole point of the program!

Ooh I disagree with you there. I like seeing how different people have led their lives. Shows you what they mean to each other at a crucial time like that.

Barney16 · 13/08/2025 22:50

Time team. Basically standing in a field looking at the ground. Or picking up random tiny pieces of rock whilst saying oh, an artefact from a Roman Villa.

awakeandasleep · 13/08/2025 22:52

I love Ben Fogle's programmes especially LITW - YABVU.

Barney16 · 13/08/2025 22:54

Radio 4 drama about the CIA, called, imaginatively Central intelligence. Random I know, but I drive a lot. It possibly the most boring programme I have ever listened to.

Thelostjewels · 13/08/2025 22:56

Bf kids are at bording School so not socially isolated

Quicknamechange2025 · 13/08/2025 23:02

Allthesnowallthetime · 13/08/2025 21:18

Anything of this genre:

"White middle aged men making tedious programmes"

🤣🤣🤣 That's genuinely made me laugh, thanks, haven't done that in a few days x

CalzoneOnLegs · 13/08/2025 23:04

@Barney16 good for dropping off to sleep to

RaininSummer · 13/08/2025 23:04

I love it but your analysis isn't far off the mark.

TooOldTo · 13/08/2025 23:11

Just me with a DH obsessed with all the gold diving, opal hunting pish on Discovery+ then? I’m irritated by the whole channel.

Also the one show. So old fashioned and twee. 🥱🥱

Enough4me · 13/08/2025 23:11

Charlize43 · 13/08/2025 22:48

Anything with smug Sandi Toksvig and her supercilious manner.

Yes, plus she has a really annoying voice. It's the tone most people use while eye rolling. Passive aggressive.

Ben is ok on the eyes but his presenting style sends me to sleep.

FlappyThing · 13/08/2025 23:12

Blue Peter. Boring in the 80s, just as boring now but more cringey as they scrabble around to seem relevant with features on influencers and gabbling presenters trying to sound edgy.

Arraminta · 13/08/2025 23:12

CurlyhairedAssassin · 13/08/2025 22:14

Oh god, yes, I caught a snippet of that the other day and was astounded at the lack of general knowledge amongst those taking part. It was the bit where they had objects in a box and had to take out the ones which weren't associated with a particular country. The amount of times those objects were going in and out of the box.....it got tedious. They were so thick that it just became a very boring guessing game, when it should have been a race to see who could get it right first time the quickest.

Considering it was a travel entertainment progamme, why did they go on it if their knowledge about other countries was so lacking?

Show quote history

Oh don't. There was also the woman who pronounced 'Danube River' as Dan-oo-bee River. At which point I raged myself into a temporary coma and DH had to revive me with a cup of tea.

Denim4ever · 13/08/2025 23:13

That Sara Cox book show. So dumbed down they once had a panellist who didn't usually read books but had for the show 🤣

Re Jools - he's good on his Radio 3 show which is called Earlier

Enough4me · 13/08/2025 23:24

FlappyThing · 13/08/2025 23:12

Blue Peter. Boring in the 80s, just as boring now but more cringey as they scrabble around to seem relevant with features on influencers and gabbling presenters trying to sound edgy.

Agreed, that and Record Breakers were really dull.

SuperFi · 13/08/2025 23:30

All award shows.

Pleatherandlace · 13/08/2025 23:34

Escape to the fecking country. Never seen anyone escape anywhere. Always have a million quid budget, yet never seen anyone buy as much as a garden shed. Can’t stand the presenter either.

Lilyhatesjaz · 13/08/2025 23:35

There was a show where Kate Humble followed people who were moving from the city usually London to an isolated place in the middle of nowhere. I quite enjoyed a few of them, then some man moved to a hamlet supposedly miles from anywhere which was in reality about 2 miles from the quite large town where I live. You really are not leaving civilisation if you are 10minutes drive from a big tesco, McDonald's and Costa drive through. I didn't watch any more.

Isittimeformynapyet · 13/08/2025 23:41

Anything with the repugnant Dominic Littlewood. I cannot fathom his appeal. He looks like a cross between a baby and a dildo and he's got a very ill-disciplined mouth. He's totally witless.

Oh god, I'm all riled up now.

AThousandCaloriesToTheBad · 13/08/2025 23:45

I like most telly, and like ‘lives in the wild’. Not overly keen on Ben Fogle as a presenter though, generally. He is quite handsome though.

I’ve never been able to abide ‘A Question of Sport’ - so glad it’s finally ended.