Scrap the BBC

[Travs]

the inanities of advertising.

The BBC (certainly Radio 5 in the morning), spend an unholy amount of time "advertising" their own upcoming events/shows/broadcasts though...

Which they have every right to do, and it's certainly not up to TalkSport or commercial TV levels (yet)… but it's creeping in.

Stagger mentioned above that you get what you pay for with SkySports. Perhaps the coverage is better of the actual match, but there's a whole lot wrong with Sky Sports. On the advertising front, they basically use whatever sport they broadcast as a vehicle for advertising... make no mistake if they could fill a 90 minute football match with advertising they would do it at the drop of a hat...

By far the best football coverage I find is on my betting account, where I can watch most European matches free of adverts, and free of commentary (which makes for a far better watching experience). And you don't have to be a committed gambler to take advantage of this... I've had the grand total of 19pence in my betting account for the best part of a year.

[Llani Boy]

Betting Travs. Now that is another can of worms you've just opened.

I dare not open an online account as I would not trust myself.
I still restrict myself to 50p each way at the Grand National if I can remember when it is and then find a betting shop that hasn't closed down!

[Travs]

Yes you have to stay on top of it. Very accessible.

I'll occasionally chuck a tenner into my account, and bet sensibly on a series of 3 or 4 match accumulators, and you can very slowly build a profit (sometimes!).

But get carried away and you're sat at work refreshing the phone to see the latest value of your 10-game acca on the Belgian women's 3rd division!

[Llani Boy]

Belgian women's 3rd division!

Wouldn't fancy tackling those!

[Llani Boy]

Watching the BBC news at 1 there were numerous pointless film reports from around the country which showed towns which were deserted, including a reporter referring to Trafalgar Square as a ghost town.

Back live to the studio and behind Ben Brown in the studio BBC staff were sauntering around, some with drinks, and chatting in small groups. Lovely and cosy.

All, no doubt, essential staff to keep their little world going with the main message being, do as we say not as we do.

[Travs]

Whilst i'm no fan of the BBC, i'm hesitant to knock anyone for going about their working day normally. Indeed I helped a lady at work undo the top on her drinks bottle (I didn't tell her I was in a sweaty gym last night!!).

We've implemented "measures" which have basically entailed spreading out around the office, some more stringent hygiene measures, and no external visitors, no site or client visits, etc. But it's a bit late really. We've likely either all got it from the past few weeks, or none of us have it.

Which I why I am a little astounded at the clamour to shut down leisure activities (referring to pubs/clubs/ etc as much as running and races), when there are other parts of society which need to carry on as normal (shopping, public transport, work), and which will likely carry as much if not more of a risk of spreading the virus.

ps i'm certainly not looking to engage in another long-winded debate about the rights and wrongs of how to behave in the current world... had enough of that on the FRA facebook page for one week!!

One area i'd definitely point the finger at the media (BBC included) is the criticism of the government and Boris Johnson in particular (clueless/rabbit trapped in headlights/etc)…. no government has really ever had to deal with something like this so it's hardly a surprise there's not a lot of coordination going on. Again i'd rather not get into political debate on this one either!!

[Llani Boy]

I agree that people should go about their day as normally as possible, its just the holier than thou attitude of the majority of BBC presenters that grates.

I'm carrying on as usual as much as I can. Gardening work, dog walking, bike rides and our RATRun from a local pub with beer and chips afterwards is on tomorrow evening.

[benshep]

I agree that people should go about their day as normally as possible, its just the holier than thou attitude of the majority of BBC presenters that grates.

I'm carrying on as usual as much as I can. Gardening work, dog walking, bike rides and our RATRun from a local pub with beer and chips afterwards is on tomorrow evening.

Keep spreading the love - and the killer virus!

[Stagger]

I'm with Llani. Stick to normal and avoid crowds.
Enjoy a beer.

[Llani Boy]

Praise where praise is due.

The best programme on the BBC returned tonight with a new series on BBC1. The Repair Shop. An absolute gem.

I must be getting soft and emotional in my old age as I found tears rolling down my cheeks whilst watching!