Why Do We Bother With A TV Licence

We recently had a thread on here that showed that the most watched programmes over Christmas were on the BBC. I guess different people enjoy different programmes. I have watched quite a few that I have enjoyed on the BBC.

I watched ‘Middlemarch’ on I Player a few days ago, when there was ‘nothing on’.

6 Episodes.

Starring Juliet Aubrey, Robert Hardy, Rufus Sewell, Patrick Malahide to name but few.

Made about 30 or so years ago.

I had somehow never watched it originally, and what a treat I had missed.

Why on earth do they not repeat more of these excellent series at prime time, instead of some of the dross that is so often put out?

For Radio Four, for me: for The Scarecrow's Wedding, for the GC: for All Creatures Great and Small, for my DS..

I much prefer the older BBC offerings from their archive which are regularly broadcast on BBC4. Some amazing drama series from 10-30 years ago which are so much better than what they make today. Long live BBC4.

They have shown a few Bronte series lately including Wuthering Heights, Jayne Eyre, Tennant of Wildfell Hall. The BBC has an amazing archive including Dickens, Thomas Hardy etc. plus more modern stuff.

I just watched Peter Rabbit.

Yes, I know I should grow up 😁

Chestnut

I much prefer the older BBC offerings from their archive which are regularly broadcast on BBC4. Some amazing drama series from 10-30 years ago which are so much better than what they make today. Long live BBC4.

They have shown a few Bronte series lately including Wuthering Heights, Jayne Eyre, Tennant of Wildfell Hall. The BBC has an amazing archive including Dickens, Thomas Hardy etc. plus more modern stuff.

I don’t actually have the time to watch all the things I want to watch on catchup. My ex recently watched Bleak House, which he’d not seen before and was raving about it. I’ve been watching all of the old classics including some ( like The Tennant of Wildfell Hall) that I hadn’t seen before. When I’m not watching tv I’m listening to BBC Sounds ( new series of You’re Dead to Me starting soon). I’ve just listened to the audio version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Dark is Rising. On top of that, Monday night quiz night is now on every night with Christmas specials. I’d pay my licence fee just for that.

With you, Maybee. I love Beeb radio, its tops, too.

Famous Five BBC1 this morning whilst I was pottering in the kitchen.

Cannot beat BBC for its light entertainment

BBC Radio is default setting in my car.

We don't watch much other than the BBC and most of what we watch is recorded or on catchup so we can just watch it in our own time.

I’ve been watching things from other channels on catchup and it’s painful having adverts every few minutes. I can’t afford to go advert free for everything ( and that includes podcasts, too, especially as quite often the things I want to listen to are subscription only). I also need a new tv to watch ITV catchup which I’m not prepared to do as there’s lots of life left in my tv.

MayBee70

I’ve been watching things from other channels on catchup and it’s painful having adverts every few minutes. I can’t afford to go advert free for everything ( and that includes podcasts, too, especially as quite often the things I want to listen to are subscription only). I also need a new tv to watch ITV catchup which I’m not prepared to do as there’s lots of life left in my tv.

I've been watching Foyle's War and Brideshead Revisited on ITVX. The adverts are very frequent but I have learnt to live with them. You don't need a new TV, just plug in an Amazon Firestick. I have a non-smart TV from 2010 and the Firestick works just fine and has everything you could possibly want.

The BBC will cease to exist sooner or later. Streaming has taken over. I'm struggling to think of anything we watch.

Ah, Wimbledon. And that's about it

REKA

The BBC will cease to exist sooner or later. Streaming has taken over. I'm struggling to think of anything we watch.

Ah, Wimbledon. And that's about it

Just because you don’t watch it doesn’t mean that no one else does. And imo the end of the BBC is not a given. What about BBC radio and all of the podcasts?

REKA

The BBC will cease to exist sooner or later. Streaming has taken over. I'm struggling to think of anything we watch.

Ah, Wimbledon. And that's about it

REKA

(aka wrecker?)

The Licence doesnt just pay for the BBC.

It has been pointed out many times that the fee also plays for the platform on which all of us get the streaming services and free TV.

The David Attenborough programme Wild London, Call the Midwife, the Proms…..

I love television, love the BBC, happy to pay the fee.

It’s absolutely not worth bothering with a TV licence.

We have had to watch old repeats like The Likely Lads, Rising Damp and Minder because there’s nothing else on. Some of the films have been from the 40s and 50s! Total rubbish on most channels this Christmas.

The BBC News is late tonight because Mrs Brown's Boys and some other programme no-one has heard of takes priority!

Why?

Primrose53

It’s absolutely not worth bothering with a TV licence.

We have had to watch old repeats like The Likely Lads, Rising Damp and Minder because there’s nothing else on. Some of the films have been from the 40s and 50s! Total rubbish on most channels this Christmas.

There's nobody there, they all have Christmas and New Year off except for the news readers and someone who sits in a darkened room flicking switches to play old films and repeats, Primrose
It's a very responsible job and he/she gets paid a huge fee.

I would hate for the BBC to go, particularly their news coverage, so although tv is rubbish I do love the radio and some catch up

I'm a fan of the new BBC Radio channel "R3 Unwind". It has a variety of very relaxing "chill music", some standard classical fare, some ambient stuff, some medieval stuff...but at the moment I'm listening to bird song and music combined, there are sometimes short talks about relaxing, letting go etc.

Love it, if you want to try it out have more than one try because it varies.

I'm a lifelong fan of the BBC..
TV and radio and the iPlayer, it's the tops.

My main go to channels are Sky Arts, Channel 4 and rarely ITV.

Riding above all this though, are the BBC channels 1, 2 and 4- only when I have exhausted everything I want to watch on the BBC channels do I look elsewhere.

I hate the ads.

I love the value the license fee still gives. When I visit my daughter I have to watch Netflix because they pay for it. I don't know why because its rubbish.

Wyllow3

REKA

The BBC will cease to exist sooner or later. Streaming has taken over. I'm struggling to think of anything we watch.

Ah, Wimbledon. And that's about it

REKA

(aka wrecker?)

The Licence doesnt just pay for the BBC.

It has been pointed out many times that the fee also plays for the platform on which all of us get the streaming services and free TV.

"86% of the licence fee is spent on BBC TV channels, radio stations, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sounds and online services. This includes popular programming like news, documentaries, dramas, comedies, and films on TV."

Source tvlicensing.co.uk

If all tv and radio had to exist from advertising or paid streaming services it would be a disaster. There are hundreds of noisy pop music orientated station that have interminable ads. I would be lost without radio 3, 4, 4extra and 6 music. There is nothing of that standard anywhere else.

I cannot afford to have loads of streaming services, just the two I do have cost more per year than the TV licence. The BBC can afford to try out new writers and content, whereas those channels relying on ads cannot. We would lose our world wide reputation for producing quality programmes in quantity.