Braben and Bell in the Radio Times

Website · Post by **DaddyHoggy** » Thu Jul 03, 2008 8:05 am

Channel Five be damned! Next week - the Brits who changed the world - replaced with Cricket Highlights! Bah Humbug!

JohnnyBoy · Post by **JohnnyBoy** » Thu Jul 03, 2008 9:42 pm

It's always the factual, documentary programmes that are sacrificed - never the miserable soap operas or the moronic reality tv shows...

Website · Post by **DaddyHoggy** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 7:18 am

The muppets from Channel Five wrote:
Your Reference: VA/221877/TD (Please quote this reference in all
further correspondence)

Date: 3rd July 2008

Dear John

Thank you for your recent enquiry regarding Brits Who Made The Modern
World.

We were delighted to read that you enjoy the programme. The series is
taking a short break to accommodate the Cricket. We anticipate that the
series will return shortly afterwards. In line with other commercial
broadcasters, our schedules are only confirmed up to two weeks in
advance. At present, there are no schedule dates we can provide you
with. As this information becomes available, it is released for
publication in the local and national press.

You can also get advance scheduling information for a 14 day period on
our website at the following address:

www.five.tv/tvguide

If there is anything further we can help you with, please do not
hesitate to contact us.

Thank you for your interest in Five.

Yours sincerely

Terry
VIEWER ADVISOR

English Cricketers - the antithesis of "Brits that changed the modern world"

TGHC · Post by **TGHC** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 11:15 am

Post the addy so that we can all email C5
that might make them raise their eyebrows a little

Website · Post by **DaddyHoggy** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 2:51 pm

@TGHC - My pleasure!

Fellow Ooliters - I bid thee - swamp C5 customer services!

Details are:

Please note that the contact details for Five Customer Services are as
follows:

Telephone: 0845 7 05 05 05 / 020
7421 7270
Text telephone for use by deaf people: 0845 7 41 37 87
E-mail: [email protected]
Fax: 020 7836 1286

Post by **Disembodied** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 2:55 pm

Maybe, maybe not... a friend of mine used to work for the BBC, answering viewers' queries and complaints, and they had a policy that, if anything seemed to be some sort of campaign, they just stuck them in the bin. For example, the Daily Mail, outraged at the BBC's lack of weeping, sombre music, sackcloth, ashes etc. when the Queen Mother finally ate a fish big enough to kill her, printed little "Why Oh Why" forms in their rag and encouraged their variously demented readership to post them to the Beeb. Who poured then straight into the recycler, unacknowledged and unanswered. They didn't even bother counting them, and news of the campaign's existence probably never left the letter-answering office. Not that I want to discourage you or anything but telly folk are probably the least likely to be influenced by anything so crass as the expressed opinions of the public!

Oh, and an interesting (secret) official BBC definition of "cult TV": "Anything we show when the snooker isn't on."

JohnnyBoy · Post by **JohnnyBoy** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 7:07 pm

Well, I watched "Brits Who Changed The Modern World" tonight. The title of the show tries to put an upbeat spin on these stories. It would be more accurate to call it "Politicians Who F***ed Britain".

I'm not sure that I can take anymore. It's so depressing.

Website · Post by **DaddyHoggy** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 7:36 pm

I couldn't bring myself to watch tonight's episode - I've worked with some of the guys who worked with the guys who were involved with our fledging space programme - like you said its depressing - "...no need for satellites in space..." and that's why the Douglas Adams principal should apply - those who WANT to be in power are the very LAST people who should be allowed that power. Where's Wonko the Sane when you need him?

JohnnyBoy · Post by **JohnnyBoy** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 9:44 pm

What's astonishing DH, is that at the time that these political decision makers needed some science/engineering brains handy to explain the importance of the space programme, there weren't any stationed in the corridors of power. I don't think that the situation really changed until Margaret Thatcher made it into the shadow cabinet in the mid-70s (Chemistry graduate).

And I don't think that the situation's improved that much today...

Website · Post by **DaddyHoggy** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 10:00 pm

As a research scientist who until recently worked for the MOD I can confirm that very little has changed at the coal face - politicians make the decisions policy/funding wise and then the scientists do what they can to fix it when it starts to go wrong.

Star Gazer · Post by **Star Gazer** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 11:25 pm

DaddyHoggy wrote:
As a research scientist who until recently worked for the MOD I can confirm that very little has changed at the coal face - politicians make the decisions policy/funding wise and then the scientists do what they can to fix it when it starts to go wrong.

...and I gave up on British industry because of management attitudes to research!!

...and went into education...

Commander Mysenses · Post by **Commander Mysenses** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 7:00 am

Star Gazer wrote:
I gave up on British industry ...
...and went into education...

I gave up on teaching... ... and became a firefighter.
Much safer!

Website · Post by **DaddyHoggy** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 10:02 am

@Star Gazer - I'm now a University Lecturer (Cranfield - so still involved with the MOD)!

JohnnyBoy · Post by **JohnnyBoy** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 12:14 pm

DaddyHoggy wrote:
As a research scientist who until recently worked for the MOD I can confirm that very little has changed at the coal face - politicians make the decisions policy/funding wise and then the scientists do what they can to fix it when it starts to go wrong.

Ah. Well that would explain the inevitability of the next government train-wreck: the NHS national computer network...

Website · Post by **DaddyHoggy** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 12:50 pm

Ah yes.

In this article (from 2004): http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3613220.stm it's overbudget at £6.2Bn

By the time this article is written (in 2007) its up to £12.4Bn! http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/ ... tlight.htm

This is the one run by Crapita isn't it? (As Private Eye refers to them)