BBC and the licence fee - a good thing?

[Danny Ocean]

Summer is over rated, that means they are simply extremely lazy and that my money is going to waste.

Perhaps to you. I take the time to enjoy things other than TV.

Wasted? What? On other people, you mean? That seems to be the root cause of your beef with the BBC.

so i dont have to throw my money away on a liscence fee.

If that's your opinion on it, then so be it. I don't think your money is being thrown away because it's not being spent on you.

Downgrade to the five pound a month monochrome fee if it bothers your that much.

 

[Tyro The Fox]

If I could give the BBC a massive hug - everyone that works there in one go - I would. The shows are of a better quality than Channel 4 or ITV generally. While there are things on the others I do like (Misfits, The Gadget Show and The IT Crowd) they seem to be carrying the entire appeal.

Meanwhile, BBC seems to know what people will like: Quality. Life On Mars is mesmerising, QI is a great way of learning things to talk about around a water cooler, That Mitchell and Web Look is inventive and original while still being hilarious, Doctor Who is great (still!), Sherlock turned out to be an interesting reinvention of the great detective, Mongrels seems to be a cross between The Muppets and Family Guy but is worth looking at if you don't mind your comedy mostly heartless and the BBC has given us Bottom, The Young Ones, Blackadder, Faulty Towers, Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Men Who Stare At Goats, Top Of The Pops, Charlie Brooker's Screen/News/Gameswipe and Ashes To Ashes, to name but only the ones that come to my head. To carry on getting shows like these at this quality, I'd pay. I'd wish the Monsters in Doctor Who would look a little more realistic but I'd still pay.

Leave 'em alone! They do good work.

 

[Mr Montmorency]

So long as "Young, Dumb and Living off Mum" is on the BBC, I'm not paying to watch it.

Come to think of it, the entire schedule of BBC3 after it became all "down with the homies" with the patronising idents set on the council estate, it started putting out some real crap.

 

[Tyro The Fox]

Forgot One: Red Dwarf.

And Last of the Summer Wine: The Longest Running Sit-com ever.

And The Good Life.

And Dead Ringers.

And Wallace and Gromit: A Grand Day Out/The Wrong Trousers/A Close Shave

And Mock The Week.

And Never Mind The Buzzcocks...Is it all right that I know about The Good Life. Or the Goodies? What about Noal's Christmas Presents. Or his House Party...

 

[jasoncyrus]

Summer is over rated, that means they are simply extremely lazy and that my money is going to waste.

Perhaps to you. I take the time to enjoy things other than TV.

Wasted? What? On other people, you mean? That seems to be the root cause of your beef with the BBC.

so i dont have to throw my money away on a liscence fee.

If that's your opinion on it, then so be it. I don't think your money is being thrown away because it's not being spent on you.

Downgrade to the five pound a month monochrome fee if it bothers your that much.

You arn't getting the point at all.

Why should people who don't watch the bbc, be harassed and forced to pay a liscence fee that goes to the bbc? In short, why should i be charged to be allowed to use a tv? Because they arn't just charging to watch their crap, they are harassing people who dont even GET tv channels of any kind. They are trying to charge you for OWNING A TV.

Thats why it's wrong and thats why my money is being wasted. Screw other people, if i pay for something its because it has something I want in relative proportions. The bbc has 2 shows i want. I'd gladly buy them in a microtransaction if it got them to me faster than dvd release. so why the hell should i be forced to pay their bullshit theft of my money for other people's entertainment?

Forgot One: Red Dwarf.

And Last of the Summer Wine: The Longest Running Sit-com ever.

And The Good Life.

And Dead Ringers.

And Wallace and Gromit: A Grand Day Out/The Wrong Trousers/A Close Shave

And Mock The Week.

And Never Mind The Buzzcocks...Is it all right that I know about The Good Life. Or the Goodies? What about Noal's Christmas Presents. Or his House Party...

Dwarf VERY rarely shows on the BBC, usually its on dave or UKgold or some such (sky ftw)

If I could give the BBC a massive hug - everyone that works there in one go - I would. The shows are of a better quality than Channel 4 or ITV generally. While there are things on the others I do like (Misfits, The Gadget Show and The IT Crowd) they seem to be carrying the entire appeal.

Meanwhile, BBC seems to know what people will like: Quality. Life On Mars is mesmerising, QI is a great way of learning things to talk about around a water cooler, That Mitchell and Web Look is inventive and original while still being hilarious, Doctor Who is great (still!), Sherlock turned out to be an interesting reinvention of the great detective, Mongrels seems to be a cross between The Muppets and Family Guy but is worth looking at if you don't mind your comedy mostly heartless and the BBC has given us Bottom, The Young Ones, Blackadder, Faulty Towers, Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Men Who Stare At Goats, Top Of The Pops, Charlie Brooker's Screen/News/Gameswipe and Ashes To Ashes, to name but only the ones that come to my head. To carry on getting shows like these at this quality, I'd pay. I'd wish the Monsters in Doctor Who would look a little more realistic but I'd still pay.

Leave 'em alone! They do good work.

They USED to do good work. almost all of those shows are gone now. They don't make great british comedy anymore. If they had the young ones etc (or some equivelant) then yes i would gladly pay them to do so. But they don't anymore. It's a dieing lumbering workhorse who needs to be taken out back and put out of its entertainment misery.

It's good at the news so focus on that, it's about all its good at anymore.

 

[Tohru_Readman]

I never watch tv and even if I do, it's not the bbc normally. Sometimes they have good shows about 1 or 2 a year if you're lucky. I don't think we should have to pay as much or nothing at all if you don't watch the bbc channels.

 

[SenseOfTumour]

To be fair tho, BBC created Red Dwarf with licence fee money.

I like the fact that we pay a license fee. Otherwise the only way to keep BBC running would be for it to become a commercial station. Meaning that BBC news will be owned by a a company or business... Rather than being owned by the people. Meaning that the BBC News will no longer be a none bias new station. Also because BBC doesn't require commercial funding... It can show more controversial programs or factual programs on controversial subjects that it may be limited against if they where run as a commercial station (They couldn't have a show that told you how bad Kitkats where for your teeth as the company that owned Kitkats may find it a conflict of interest and refuse to have their adverts running on that station (meaning a cut in funding).

I've gotta agree with this guy too, I fear how much the UK population were swayed in their voting by the newspapers, and if the BBC was gone, we could end up with a UK Fox News, and I want news on my news shows and opinions kept to discussion and chat shows. I bring this up as the guy who owns the Sun and the Times also has a sizable stake in Sky and ITV, and would grab all he could if the BBC was destroyed.

Again BBC news isn't unbiased, but it's by far the LEAST biased and most trusted news source in the UK, and I think we need to keep it. As sovvolf said, the moment it's owned by a company, it can't be unbiased.

 

[jasoncyrus]

I have a much better solution to this problem instead of all this arguing.

Drop all benefits for drug users, limit child benefit to 3 children and finally make prisons what they are supposed to be, PRISONS, instead of luxury freaking hotels. A bed, a toilet/sink and a lightbulb per prisoner and a yard to walk around in is all they need. They broke the law, thus they have no rights. (Rights were invented for people who obey the law after all)


EDIT: oh and chain gangs too, councils will save a mountain of cash if we have prisoners clearing stuff and digging holes.
That way we'll save BILLIONS! BBC can be funded from that. Simple.

 

[Tyro The Fox]

Actually, Its the Drama I enjoy BBC for nowadays, not so much the Great British Sit-Com. Like I've 'hinted' at, enjoyed Sherlock, David Moffat is the best thing Doctor Who needs after the rather soppy way Russel T Davis conducted everything.

Having said that, Mongrels was a good satire of animal behaviour. Like adding a voice to what your cat is doing only with this heartless cruelty to certain characters.

 

[Sovvolf]

Again BBC news isn't unbiased, but it's by far the LEAST biased and most trusted news source in the UK, and I think we need to keep it. As sovvolf said, the moment it's owned by a company, it can't be unbiased.

I think it's one of the most trusted news sources in the world for that matter (I hear it's quite popular over in America among other places). I admit it's not immune to bias but it attempts and for the most part succeeds in being a none-bias news station. Though it is quite hilarious the way it gets accused. See, to some right wingers... The BBC is left wing bias and to some left wingers it can be right wing bias. I guess that's what you get really when you try and take no side in politics. Both sides will think your against them.

The big problem with Fox news is that it's owned by Rupert Murdock and he pulls the strings on what's broadcast. Meaning they take what ever political view point Rupert takes. I'm personally against this. I don't think any news source should be owned by one man, but owned by the public.
I don't think a news source should be made for one political side or for any political side at all. Rather they stay out of it and do what we need them to do... Report the news... And occasionally lie to me about the weather.

That being said... In Fox News favour... They do have a brilliant team working on their game news and reviews section on their site.

 

[Danny Ocean]

Dwarf VERY rarely shows on the BBC, usually its on dave or UKgold or some such (sky ftw)

Dave and the UKTV network are both part of the BBC.

You arn't getting the point at all.

Yes I am. I understand you exactly. This is your problem right here:

Screw other people

And it's something we'll never be able to reconcile because I seem to enjoy being selfless while you apparently don't. That's that.

 

[Vie]

The Beeb on the whole is bloody good value for money, produces the majority of the worlds good documentaries (not just British, the whole world), some of the best comedy and drama and is willing to try new things from time to time.,

The downsides of the Beeb... ..well they do make rather too much crap like Strictly Come Tallentless, but I suppose they have to justify the fee to the average idiot in the street.

 

[sosolidshoe]

Are any British news programs (TV, this is) particularly biased? I know the BBC has a left-wing bias, though not a particularly strong one, but none of them seem very one-sided in the same way that newspapers are.

I think the BBC's ok, not especially great but provides a decent service.

Sorry hold on, care to provide evidence for the idea that the BBC has a left-wing bias? Because frankly, the BBC is one of the few places in the world you can find unbiased news, in my experience.

As for the service as a whole, I would hate to see the BBC die off, they provide an island of sanity in the sea of effluent that is modern television. Do I watch everything on the BBC? No. But it's worth it for BBC News and BBC Four. I do wish they'd stop wasting money on the braindead "yoof" programs on BBC3 though, I shudder when I look at the listings and see Random Insightful Documentary on BBC Four and "Snog, Marry, Avoid" or "Baby Beauty Queens" on BBC3.

BBC2 is kind of a nonentity now, in my own viewing. I used to get my dose of TNG, Buffy and Farscape there, but they rarely have any good programming these days. BBC1 still has the odd good drama(want more of the new Sherlock series!), plus shows like Question Time and Panorama(although Channel 4's Dispatches seems to be thrashing Panorama recently). At the same time, they seem to be stooping to ITV's level with their saturday night programming, which makes me want to stab people in the eye. The only other complaint I could really level at them is their new comedy rules, which are so restrictive as to be laughable(has anyone else noticed how tame and dull the new series of Mock the Week is? I want my Hammond car crash and Olympic Athlete spoon-face jokes back), and they're just providing an opening for Channel 4 to overtake them.

 

[Scobie]

DELETED

 

[SenseOfTumour]

I'll wrap this up then, thank everyone for adding to it, and while we don't all agree, I'd suggest that the majority seems in favour of the BBC at least, tho it needs to take a step back from its desperation to get ratings and return to making quality instead of mass produced mediocrity.

 

[SalamanderJoe]

The license fee is rubbish now. According to the TV License people, it's OK to watch TV shows on the internet, like iPlayer, without a license as long as it's isn't been streamed live. That's an actual rule on the website.

And in all fairness I haven't watched TV in a year because that £140 fee is more useful for food at University anyway.

 

[Hateren47]

I don't have a problem with licence fees if they were used for public service. In Denmark our licence fee pays for crap like talent shows and sports events which I don't consider public service so I do have a problem with my licence fee. I don't think I would mind paying for BBC though as they actually have good productions as well.