Monday 4 August 2008

Letter from a Region

Sent from the Scottish "region" to the BBC iPlayer people:

Sunday 3rd August: BBC2 Scotland 1800-1900 "The Adventure Show"

Programme listed as "Not Available". As it covered the annual mass-hike of the TGO Challenge, which is open to all nationalities, and not just the Scottish "region", perhaps there's a simple reason why the programme is "Not Available" on iPlayer?

Some people chomping at the bit to watch it were  there, in shot, eg http://alansloman.blogspot.com, and others just want to see it, eg http://walkaboutuk.blogspot.com.

As you don't broadcast the programme to the non-Scottish regions, the iPlayer is the only chance people have to watch it. Short of paying money to your competitor, Sky.

Duncan

One of the chaps running the Cape Wrath marathon said he'd moved to Scotland after competing in the marathon. What a shame that instead of filling the schedules with reality shows, we don't get to see so-called regional programmes. As I commented elsewhere, I had the same problem with "Wainwright's Walks" when finally shown on BBC2 Scotland. It is worse for local languages (eg "Tir is Teanga"), which are so poorly advertised in the English-speaking schedules that some people miss them completely. In the TV-listings, an arts programme will often be scheduled as merely that, but Ealtainn recently covered a couple of artists (a photographer and a poet) who walked the length of the "Long Island". Previous series have included a history of the Lordship of the Isles.

I suppose the iPlayer gives the BBC a chance to truly become the British company that it's name proclaims.

9 comments:

Alan Sloman said...

I am slowly coming round to Paddy Dillon's view of the Beeb.

It seems to be an organisation that is run by Londoncentric arts luvvies, that have a special prole sub-department for south eastern chavs - producing ordure such as 'Eastenders' so that the charge of being eletist will be difficult to stick.

As for the brainless bimbos that co-present 'BBC Breakfast' - well they just beggar belief! You have to watch it carefully or you will miss the amazingly crass things they come out with - I have to check with Lynnie to see if they had actually said what I thought they had.

AktoMan said...

I think all "broad"casting suffers so. The regional STV news splits out to Aberdeen and Dundee for this 'region'. I looked at my parents and commented that both are on the opposite side of the country from Lewis. And then I noticed how much news was about events in Aberdeen.

I'm catching up with lots on the BBC iPlayer. I like this "on demand". Having caught up with the offensively tiny "Click", and the hidden away "Sky at Night", I have to agree that at there is a dumming doun of teevee.

chasrle said...

There's a semi-promising note this morning on the outdoors portal page for the show: "There are currently delays publishing many programmes on the Iplayer."

AktoMan said...

That'll be here then.

Love the photo that they have of "camping" on their AudioVideo page - it is all caravans except for, maybe, a tent on the far right of the photo.
link.

Ah well, and the 2 clips in there are the ones supposedly about wild camping, but merely discuss these wasters who polute the outdoors. Under the Scottish laws, they have lost their access rights, and rights to be considered "wild campers". I don't believe I recalled the law being mentioned once in these programmes, but I may be wrong.

Anonymous said...

This was so enormously frustrating! I almost cried when I couldn't find it anywhere!! I hope your letter has some effect.

*snivel*

AktoMan said...

They emailed to say they'd received my email yesterday (Tuesday). The show's website still notes "There are currently delays publishing many programmes on the Iplayer."

On the show's site, there is a link to http://www.tgochallenge.co.uk/ - which is nice.

AktoMan said...

Reply came in today...

Dear Duncan

Thank you for your e-mail asking why 'The Adventure Show' is not available to stream or download on BBC iPlayer.

This is not due to this programme being a BBC Scotland regional show, as we have many regional programmes from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with continuing developments to include more regional programmes in the future. 'The Adventure Show' is a Triple Echo production for BBC Scotland and, as such, we only have the rights to broadcast it on terrestrial television, but not to host it on our catch-up service.

Thanks once again for contacting BBC iPlayer

Regards

BBC iPlayer

--
I replied thanking him (I've deleted the gent's name above).

Alan Sloman said...

Thanks Duncan

Having seen it on DVD I can honestly say it wasn't worth watching anyway. Having said that its nice to see people you know in the programme, but it really didn't do justice to the event at all.

AktoMan said...

Aye, Alan, as my text chat with Darren (and Mike) was very much a case of spotting familiar faces.

Sadly the reply of thanks didn't reach them as it was sent from a do-not-reply email address.