Sir David Attenborough 1926-2023 (cancelled)

[Grumble]

Joe Lycett has said he’s available for MOTD
https://twitter.com/joelycett/status/16 ... 26498?s=20

[Little waster]

The BBC says Attenborough wasn't cancelled.

This is totally inaccurate, there is no ‘6th episode’. Wild Isles is – and always was - a 5 part series. We acquired a separate film for iPlayer from the RSPB, WWF and Silverback Films about people working to preserve and restore the biodiversity of the British Isles.

https://twitter.com/bbcpress/status/163 ... ioa5Q&s=19

OTOH from the OP

Senior sources at the BBC told the Guardian that the decision not to show the sixth episode was made to fend off potential critique from the political right. This week the Telegraph newspaper attacked the BBC for creating the series and for taking funding from “two charities previously criticised for their political lobbying” – the WWF and RSPB.

One source at the broadcaster, who asked not to be named, said “lobbying groups that are desperately hanging on to their dinosaurian ways” such as the farming and game industry would “kick off” if the show had too political a message.

They added: “Frankly, this idea that you sort of put it in a separate programme to almost parcel it to one side is disingenuous.

Given Wild Isles is likely the last major Attenborough documentary, is likely to be a huge hit and "Episode 6" is therefore likely to be Attenborough's final farewell, how likely is it the BBC decide unprompted "yeah this is no big deal, let's only make it available in Cyberia."

Their account doesn't add up.

Remember the beeb is currently so strapped for decent broadcast material it recently devoted a whole Saturday(?) evening to a compilation clip show of old episodes of TOTP, Jools Holland and even the musical sections of Morecambe and Wise!

They'd normally sell their firstborn for an extra primetime hour of everyone's favourite TV grandad.

[Tessa K]

The BBC says Attenborough wasn't cancelled.

This is totally inaccurate, there is no ‘6th episode’. Wild Isles is – and always was - a 5 part series. We acquired a separate film for iPlayer from the RSPB, WWF and Silverback Films about people working to preserve and restore the biodiversity of the British Isles.

https://twitter.com/bbcpress/status/163 ... ioa5Q&s=19

OTOH from the OP

Senior sources at the BBC told the Guardian that the decision not to show the sixth episode was made to fend off potential critique from the political right. This week the Telegraph newspaper attacked the BBC for creating the series and for taking funding from “two charities previously criticised for their political lobbying” – the WWF and RSPB.

One source at the broadcaster, who asked not to be named, said “lobbying groups that are desperately hanging on to their dinosaurian ways” such as the farming and game industry would “kick off” if the show had too political a message.

They added: “Frankly, this idea that you sort of put it in a separate programme to almost parcel it to one side is disingenuous.

Given Wild Isles is likely the last major Attenborough documentary, is likely to be a huge hit and "Episode 6" is therefore likely to be Attenborough's final farewell, how likely is it the BBC decide unprompted "yeah this is no big deal, let's only make it available in Cyberia."

Their account doesn't add up.

Remember the beeb is currently so strapped for decent broadcast material it recently devoted a whole Saturday(?) evening to a compilation clip show of old episodes of TOTP, Jools Holland and even the musical sections of Morecambe and Wise!

They'd normally sell their firstborn for an extra primetime hour of everyone's favourite TV grandad.

Thanks for clarifying. I was wondering if they'd made a separate 'making of' or episode about the people involved. Sometimes they do a ten minute slot at the end that can be cut and packaged separately as an episode when they sell to countries that have ad breaks.

[lpm]

This thing comprises the full range.

Tory Ministers using dehumanising language of "swarm" and "invasion" is contemptible. The policy itself is enraging and immoral. The seizure of control over the BBC is depressing. Treating father of the nation Sir David Attenborough this way is really sad. And Lineker is hilarious light relief.

[lpm]

Phew! Football Focus is cancelled, but instead there's a rare opportunity to instead watch a show called "Bargain Hunt".

[Brightonian]

.

[headshot]

Someone on Twitter has found the original Countryfile page where it talks about the show being six episodes. It has since been edited to show five episodes, but the Internet never forgets.

[lpm]

They say football is good. But Bargain Hunt, wow. The way the blue team lost £6 on a crappy garden trowel. And then the red team made £11 on a rusty old biscuit tin. Incredible scenes.

[Fishnut]

Someone on Twitter has found the original Countryfile page where it talks about the show being six episodes. It has since been edited to show five episodes, but the Internet never forgets.

In case you missed it

I think this tweet makes a valid point. Even if we accept the argument that the BBC didn't fund the sixth episode, the question is then, why? Many of the Attenborough series, particularly more recent ones, have ended with a more activist episode discussing how the incredible wildlife that have documented in the previous episodes is at risk from things like habitat loss and climate change. The Blue Planet II played a significant role in efforts to address plastic pollution, for example. And yet in the first Attenborough series to focus exclusively on British wildlife* the BBC decided they didn't want to highlight the reality of the pressures that wildlife is facing in this country. Whether or not the final episode was going to be aired on broadcast TV, it is clear that they felt uneasy about it in a way they haven't for any of the other series they've produced.

* Which in itself feels like a massive oversight - he's done two Blue Planets, two series on the poles (three if you include Life in the Freezer that focused on Antarctica), two series on plants and while some of the series do have segments on British wildlife the vast majority has been focused overseas.

[Little waster]

The Blue Planet II played a significant role in efforts to address plastic pollution

I was a teacher at the time the pollution episode aired and you couldn't overstate the impact it had on the kids who saw it.

Clearly in hindsight it should never have aired as it clearly breaches the BBC's guiding principles to entertain and inform.

[Tessa K]

The Blue Planet II played a significant role in efforts to address plastic pollution

I was a teacher at the time the pollution episode aired and you couldn't overstate the impact it had on the kids who saw it.

Clearly in hindsight it should never have aired as it clearly breaches the BBC's guiding principles to entertain and inform.

Paul Whitehouse's two parter about pollution in rivers really doesn't pull its punches about government responsibility. I'm surprised it wasn't pulled

[Little waster]

The Blue Planet II played a significant role in efforts to address plastic pollution

I was a teacher at the time the pollution episode aired and you couldn't overstate the impact it had on the kids who saw it.

Clearly in hindsight it should never have aired as it clearly breaches the BBC's guiding principles to entertain and inform.

Paul Whitehouse's two parter about pollution in rivers really doesn't pull its punches about government responsibility. I'm surprised it wasn't pulled

There's a certain irony that even ITV's new series of The Bay has the topical sub-plot on how 13 years of Tory "efficiency savings" has left the police and social services incapable of providing even the minimum of expected service levels.

Still that's the capitalistic ITV, at least it isn't that den of unreconstructed Commies at the Beeb.

[lpm]

MOTD only 20 minutes long tonight. I'm praying they fill the time with another Bargain Hunt.

[geejaytee]

MOTD only 20 minutes long tonight. I'm praying they fill the time with another Bargain Hunt.

It'll be an extended Coast* with that nice Scottish bloke on it (Neil Oliver)


*They do use this as filler, as it can be edited into 20, 40 or 60 minute slots

[EACLucifer]

MOTD only 20 minutes long tonight. I'm praying they fill the time with another Bargain Hunt.

It'll be an extended Coast* with that nice Scottish bloke on it (Neil Oliver)


*They do use this as filler, as it can be edited into 20, 40 or 60 minute slots

I'm feeling a little slow today. Is this an actual thing, or a reference to the distincly not nice bloke's hideous politics?

[geejaytee]

It is a reference to his politics and that segments of Coast are used as filler if there's a gap in the schedule, although it is unlikely that his segments would be shown if they do use it.

[Gfamily]

Joe Lycett has said he’s available for MOTD
https://twitter.com/joelycett/status/16 ... 26498?s=20

Joe Lycett has said he’s available for ...
https://twitter.com/joelycett/status/16 ... 2052336642

[Martin Y]

Joe Lycett has said he’s available for MOTD
https://twitter.com/joelycett/status/16 ... 26498?s=20

I don't watch MOTD but I would watch the f.ck out of that.

[noggins]

Ive wondered if you could do a sports MS3TK type thing.

[bjn]

Ive wondered if you could do a sports MS3TK type thing.

Ooooh. There are 2 comedians in Australia, 'Roy Greenslade' and 'HJ Nelson' who regularly broadcast commentary during various major rugby and AFL fixtures. The idea is you watch the game on TV, turn the sound down and listen to Roy & HJ lovingly take the piss out of the whole thing on the radio.

[Fishnut]

Just finished the first episode of Wild Isles. It's the first Attenborough doc I've watched in a good while because I've felt they've got a bit too 'look at the pretty animal' and let the educational aspects slip. But it's the first one he's done focused on our local wildlife so I've had to watch.

My concerns about the lack of in depth info still stand but my goodness did it look pretty, particularly the banded demoiselles which were stunning. I was also surprised by the strength of the closing comments made by Attenborough, both at the end of the main episode and the 'making of' section. It's made me more convinced that regardless of what the BBC says about the sixth episode, the production team has decided to make this series as a plea for us to care more about protecting our wildlife. Pretty much every species and/or habitat they showed in tonight's episode are under threat in one way or another.

[jimbob]

The Blue Planet II played a significant role in efforts to address plastic pollution

I was a teacher at the time the pollution episode aired and you couldn't overstate the impact it had on the kids who saw it.

Clearly in hindsight it should never have aired as it clearly breaches the BBC's guiding principles to entertain and inform.

Paul Whitehouse's two parter about pollution in rivers really doesn't pull its punches about government responsibility. I'm surprised it wasn't pulled

Just watching this.

I know some ecologists working for for the Welsh Assembly in their equivalent of DEFRA in farm wildlife schemes. They say that Welsh policy in encouraging chicken farming and in particular their nitrate regulations are worse than England's.

[JQH]

Countryfile originally said there were six episodes, though they've since edited the site to say it's five.

Wow.

They've gone full Soviet

Oceania is at war with Eastasia. Oceania has always been at war with Eastasia.

[geejaytee]

It is a reference to his politics and that segments of Coast are used as filler if there's a gap in the schedule, although it is unlikely that his segments would be shown if they do use it.

It was a joke, and I didn't get it quite right (it was a 10 minute filler on BBC Two rather than a replacement for MOTD), but they *did* show an episode of Coast with Neil Oliver this weekend:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008ydpx

[Martin_B]

Just finished the first episode of Wild Isles. It's the first Attenborough doc I've watched in a good while because I've felt they've got a bit too 'look at the pretty animal' and let the educational aspects slip. But it's the first one he's done focused on our local wildlife so I've had to watch.

My concerns about the lack of in depth info still stand but my goodness did it look pretty, particularly the banded demoiselles which were stunning. I was also surprised by the strength of the closing comments made by Attenborough, both at the end of the main episode and the 'making of' section. It's made me more convinced that regardless of what the BBC says about the sixth episode, the production team has decided to make this series as a plea for us to care more about protecting our wildlife. Pretty much every species and/or habitat they showed in tonight's episode are under threat in one way or another.

I was recently re-watching the Seven Worlds, One Planet series (from 2019) and the same thing was being brought up, so it's not just a decision for this series - the BBC Natural History Unit have been trying to educate us in this for years.