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Original poster

Just wondering about my Radio 4 addiction and if it might be bad for 20 month old DD. Any thoughts?

74 replies

norktasticninja · 20/07/2009 15:21

I tend to have Radio 4 on all day most days, I enjoy it. Since I've had DD I find something on listen again turn it off if there is something with an unpleasant or disturbing atmosphere on, but other than that it's never occoured to me to censor it at all .

DS (6 weeks) seems to find it calming and it's doesn't seem to bother DD either, but she's 20 months old now and understands quite a lot. After something DP said last night I'm wondering if I should stop listening to it so much. I'd certainly never randomly leave the television turned on when she's around but I'd never considered that wall to wall speech radio might also have negative effects too. TBH if I've thought about it at all it's just been as another way of normalising English (DD's bilingual and we live overseas).

What do you think? Is it a Bad Thing (repeated news etc)? Do I need to cut down? I really hope not...

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

MadBadandDangerousToKnow · 20/07/2009 22:35

I've heard a slightly different version of that - if, after a war, a British submarine surfaces and can't hear Today at 6am, they are to assume that the UK has been pulverised.

Ponders · 20/07/2009 22:36

Is it possible to be enraged enough to shout at the radio by anything other than R4? (I love shouting at the radio )

MadBadandDangerousToKnow · 20/07/2009 22:39

From the BBC press office

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TsarChasm · 20/07/2009 22:40

You shout at R4? Steady on. A dignified 'tut' is all that's required shurley..

piprabbit · 20/07/2009 22:40

I did have a bit of on 'Oh dear - what have I done' moment when DD was about 3.5yo. I was listening to R4 in the car, driving home from childminders. They were talking about the Parlimentary Committee enquiry into the emergency services response to the 7/7 bombing. DD suddenly asked me about the explosion in London, obviously interested as she knew I worked there. I simply said that they were talking about ways to help people better if there was an accident - but couldn't help wondering about all the other information she was quietly absorbing as we drive around.
Upshot is that I do v. occassionally censor the news, esp. child abuse related items.

ilovemydogandmrobama · 20/07/2009 22:44

Yes! That's it -- Hennessey's Nuclear Launch.

Cudos MadBad.

OK, I got it a bit wrong

duckymum · 20/07/2009 22:50

One of my earliest memories is of bouncing up & down on a kitchen chair to the Archer's theme.
Made me to see dd doing it in her highchair 32 years on.
Although now she just says "see what's on CBeebies?"

wrinklytum · 20/07/2009 22:53

LOL.

DD is 3 and has sn and has a particular love of both "The Archers" theme tune and "In the night Garden".She has recently branched out into "64 Zoo Lane" and the Cbeebies Goodnight song.

MadBadandDangerousToKnow · 20/07/2009 23:01

Ilovemydog - Probably not wrong at all. I imagine that the Spooks have similar instructions, as they monitor what's going on outside the bunker.

Ponders · 20/07/2009 23:08

When I say shout, I mean in beautifully modulated tones, obviously, TC

Othersideofthechannel · 21/07/2009 06:11

norktasticninja, not that awful, it didn't ruin my relationship with my mum and I grew up to be a R4 fan, but at the time it hurt. Now of course I quite understand that R4 kept an intelligent woman sane while she was SAHM.

I just wanted to put a little perspective on your thread so that you at least turn the sound down when your DD comes in from school and says 'Guess what happened today'

BodenGroupie · 21/07/2009 06:14

I think someone might call Social Services if you expose such a young child to Sheila Dillon.

Habbibu · 21/07/2009 09:25

Oh, I shout at the Today programme all the time. But not at PM. That's much more tranquil.

You're rude, Aitch. I'm positively svelte. No, really. I am. R4 does that to you, dontcha know?

Threadworm2 · 21/07/2009 09:32

I swear at the Today programme a lot. DSs probably strongly associate "Wanker!" with Radio 4, because it is the only time they hear me say it.

So in fact R4 oddly protects them from being too middle England. One more reason for making letting them listen to it.

The comfiest memory of childhood I have is coming home for dinner in the school day and listening to Kenneth Williams et al. on "Just a Minute".

Habbibu · 21/07/2009 10:28

Passed your neck of the woods the other day, threadie. That's not middle England! Ver' nice, though.

Threadworm2 · 21/07/2009 10:33

Hope you managed to dodge round the underwater bits. Spent part of the w/e rescuing fish from a puddle when the flooded river went down.

AitchTwoOh · 21/07/2009 12:44

it doesn't do that to me, habs.

Dophus · 21/07/2009 12:51

Radio 4 is ocnstantly on in our house / car. Why on earth could it be damaging (apart form You and yours)?

Sometimes embarrassed when frineds children sing along to pop songs and mine humms the Archers...

hatwoman · 21/07/2009 12:53

I can remember school-run rebellions against Yesterday in Parliament. but no matter how hard we rebelled Dad never capitulated. I'm not sure why I found YIP so much worse than Today - but I definitely did. maybe I had an early-onset bullshit radar.

angelene · 21/07/2009 13:24

You lot are lucky buggers, we are never allowed anything in the car apart from "the new Mary Poppins", Three Little Witches or some ELC Wheels on the Bus tape.

As soon as DD's eyes droop then the radio is straight back on.

Original poster

norktasticninja · 21/07/2009 15:49

Blimey, I hadn't expected so many replies

Glad the general option is that it's harmless I'd be a bit bored without it TBH. Not sure it makes me any thinner though!

I think I'm going to have to have a go at radio 7 - I've never committed adultery before. Anything to escape You and Yours (usually I have to subject myself to an hour of nursery rhymes) Winifred Robinson is bad enough but John Waite really gets my goat.

Anyway, DPs point was that it's not good to subject children to all then negativity in the world so young. I can see what he means but the radio isn't really as in your fae as TV. It's almost always realistic balanced(ish) coverage IMO and unfortunately the world isn't all roses and honey bees.

I grew up on radio 4 myself and I'm a bit geeky it didn't seem to do me any harm - not really a valid argument though... Mind you, I'm not sure that he hasn't got a point when it comes to older children but I'm pretty sure I was never unduly upset by R4 as a child.

OP posts:

Original poster

norktasticninja · 21/07/2009 15:53

Ooops, rather a disjointed post there NAK is distracting me.

OP posts:

funtimewincies · 21/07/2009 19:59

Not a Radio 4 listener but I was wondering something similar the other day when, at the 8 o'clock 'pips', ds (2.7) sang at the top of his voice 'BeeBeeCeeeeeeee...RADIO 2!'

EachPeachPearMum · 23/07/2009 04:53

I have to say I have begun putting the radio off when dd (3.5) is around. The news is full of rape, torture, murder etc, and the comedy programme full of swearing ... I don't want her to hear that stuff yet.
It is a shame- the radio was never off when I was a child- but content is much more prurient these days.

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