Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with bbc

That drunk guy on TV that was on past my bedtime.

chambers — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:37:31 -0800

Identify this late 70's-early 80's British TV show starring a drunk guy! I saw it in the late 70's - early 80's in the United States, on a PBS station in Pittsburgh. It was on late at night, right before or right after Benny Hill. It was most definitely from the UK, but wether it was BBC or ITV produced I don't know.

Forgive the somewhat odd backstory, but it will help give some context to the vague remembrances of over 25 years ago. I was only a small lad then, and was only about seven or eight. My parents found it somewhat amusing, but discouraged me from watching it, as it was apparently a bit of salty humor. Most of it went over my head, but i remember he was offensive at times, and quite opinionated. Topics mostly were about current events, I think. It would have been seen as a very un-PC show, if that term were around then.

It was just a middle-aged man, in a suit and sitting on a stool, and he always had a drink in his hand. He was some sort of comedian or raconteur, and would get progressively more drunk as the monologue went on. I have no recollection of him having guests on, but I may be wrong.

Any ideas?

Is the old BBC "My Music" radio series available on CD?

parttimesaint — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 10:34:47 -0800

Is the BBC radio series named "My Music" from the 60's & 70's available on CD anywhere? This was a companion show to "My Word!" and I can't find it anywhere.

Help a British Ex-Pat Access Overseas Content (BBC, iTV, premier league football, etc...)

ghostpony — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 14:10:32 -0800

My father is a British ex-pat who is craving some good old fashion football/cricket/BBC. Please share some advice about best way to access this content while in the states. My father is a British ex-pat who has lived in the states for some 20 odd years. After many years of paying through the nose for pay per view football matches and the occasional cricket test match he gave up.

Can you give us some advice about the best way to access this content? He is interested in watching Premier League matches, cricket, rugby, and most everything the BBC puts out. He is particularly interested in live-streaming matches, but would take what he can get.

Also news to me Hulu has a UK only site that features content from Channel 4, ITV, and other UK only channels, and so access to that would be welcome.

Do you have any advice? Where do we start?

What's the beat backing Thunderheist on this mix?

JamesJD — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:59:59 -0800

DJ Shiftee, two-time winner of the world's biggest DJ-ing contest made a mix for BBC. At 1:09:30 into the mix he transitions from M.O.P.'s "Ante Up" to Thunderheist's "Bubblegum" backed by an insanely catchy beat. What is this beat???

There's no copyright on Palestrina

venividivici — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 09:53:49 -0800

Do BBC Radio shows really expire after 7 days? I have, once again, missed a critically important radio show, only to have it yanked from iPlayer before I'd found out about it. I know the BBC says there's no way to listen to things after 7 days, but is this really true? Is there honestly no way around it? Many other online radio services will make exceptions if you beg and plead, or even just ask nicely. Many will also direct you to places where people are (legally, with their consent) archiving various shows.

I'm looking specifically for the Early Music show from October 3rd, featuring the Tallis Scholars and their director, Peter Phillips. Help me listen to this, people. Is it really gone into the ethers forever?

Is the 1967 program "Our World" available anywhere?

quarterframer — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 22:39:54 -0800

Where can one see/obtain the full version world's first live international satellite broadcast "Our World"? Does footage still exist besides the easy-to-find Beatles segment? More info on Wikipedia.

This show seems like it would be a treasure. I can find very little info about it. I'm coming up empty after searches for a copy of the whole program. I've looked on the usual video sites, Google, BBC and archive.org. I suspect part of the problem is the generic nature of the title, which is shared with other programs, and the overwhelming noise of the Beatles references. Nothing seems to have been issued for sale.

I must be missing something. Anybody have any clues?

How can I listen to Number 10?

JMB1138 — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 09:44:24 -0800

Is there any way in the world that I can listen to BBC Radio 4's audio drama series Number 10? It seems like the perfect combination of my love for shows like The West Wing and my curiosity about British politics. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like this has been or is going to be made available anywhere. Is it truly impossible for me to listen to it?

Can non-UK citizens enter BBC game shows?

rollick — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 08:06:56 -0800

Are non-UK residents eligible to enter the BBC quiz show Mastermind? I'm interested in applying for the 2010 series of Mastermind, a BBC quiz show. However, I can't work out from the program's website whether or not I would be eligible to participate.

I'm an Irish citizen, living in Ireland, and would be able to go to the Belfast audition centre (or else take a short flight to England). Is there anything in the terms and conditions (which I can't find, aside from "We regret that BBC members of staff and their immediate families are not eligible to apply") that restricts entry to UK citizens?

Short BBC dramas

IanMorr — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 06:58:26 -0800

What great <10 episode British dramas, such as State of Play, have I missed in the last 10 years? I just finished watching the 6 part series State of Play, which reminded me how much I used to enjoy that format. I left the UK 10 years ago, so I'm hoping that I've missed lots of other great short drama series that I can now catch up on.

There are some excellent suggestions here, but most of them have too many episodes for my current limited TV watching time.

I'm not looking for procedural types where there's a new problem to solve every hour. I also prefer dramas set in the present day. State of Play was ideal and is exactly what I'm looking for more of: a great story that unfolds over 6 hours, 2 DVD's, 2 weekend evenings at home while the kid's asleep.

Identifying a British TV series

Riki tiki — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 13:37:41 -0800

Trying to identify a British television program about a doctor that used to be broadcast on PBS. Here's the information I've been given from fuzzy recollections:

It was British, possibly syndicated from the BBC.
It aired Sunday nights on PBS during the '90s or early '00s.
It was a comedy/drama.
It was about a doctor and his wife.
One of the storylines involved the wife cheating with the doctor's intern.

Anyone have any idea what that might be? Thanks in advance.

Need help finding a 70s-80s BBC show

emjaybee — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 11:50:23 -0800

Does anyone remember a BBC kids' TV series from the 70s-80s featuring psychic teenagers? I last saw it in the mid-80s. I'm pretty sure it used to air on Nickelodeon. It had freaky deaky Dr. Who type graphics at the beginning, and one particular episode was about evil paintings taking over people's minds.

I think there were maybe three teenagers, one of them a girl?

I want to be a Prommer

rose selavy — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:24:31 -0800

I've never been to any of the BBC Proms. Recommendations / general advice? I really want to go to one or more of the BBC Proms this year, both for the experience and as a starting point for learning more about classical music, which I'm pretty ignorant about. If I were to pick one though, it would be no more of a conscious decision than just throwing a dart at the schedule and seeing where it lands. Can anyone recommend something good and accessible for a first timer?

The programme is here.

Also, general Prom tips please. eg. Best vs cheapest tickets? I don't know if I'll want to stand for over an hour..

Thank you Prommers!

And now, some music on the Light Programme ...

scruss — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:21:34 -0800

Trying to track down a piece of mid-20th century music. It's got a whimsical "Auntie Beeb" feel to it, a meandering woodwind (clarinet) theme and unexpected woodblock or claves usage. Last time I heard it, the piece was being used ironically. Whether the piece was actually used in 1950s BBC broadcasts, I don't know, but I'd love to get its name.

Help me find out what I'm missing on the Beebs

jaybeans — Sat, 23 May 2009 15:58:14 -0800

I've really enjoyed all the programming I've seen from the BBC themed seasons (The Edwardians, Shakespeare ReTold, the current Poetry Season). Where can I find a list of the seasons I've missed? I guess I'm hoping for a page on the BBC site, Wikipedia, Amazon or somewhere that lists the seasons for easy reference, but I haven't been able to find one yet. Barring a nice, organized site, are there any that pop into your head? Here's what I've seen already:

*Shakespeare ReTold
*The Canterbury Tales
*Fairy Tales
*The Edwardians
*The Medieval Season
*The Poetry Season
*Or ITV's Jane Austen Season

I'm curious about any ITV seasons (although they don't seem to do as many).

Hey BBC, stop being stingy.

photoslob — Sun, 10 May 2009 18:04:01 -0800

How do I watch streaming video from the BBC 4 site in the US? Is there a way to spoof or use a proxy to circumvent country restrictions on streaming video from the BBC?

I thought this video from this MeFi post was funny and so I did the google thing and found the show on the BBC 4 site. I tried to watch the streaming video and I get the "this service is not available in your area" message.

I know the Beeb is tax payer supported but it sucks they don't want us yanks to watch.

Help me remember the name of this early 1990s BBC2 programme on computers and technology.

Glum — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 17:42:08 -0800

Help me remember the name of this early 1990s BBC2 programme on computers and technology. This programme ran for at least two series and was broadcast on BBC2, in a late-ish slot, sometime in the early 1990s. It was just around the dawning of the World Wide Web.

I vaguely remember that the presenter (mostly present as a voiceover) may have been called Simon Woolley. The theme music was some very beepy, ambient fayre. The general feel of the show was quite highbrow, with an eclectic mix of business, arts, consumer related etc. technology content.

If my memory serves me well then there was usually a kind of 'infoblast' during the end credits. Pages of information would flash up and the viewer was meant to watch them frame by frame on a Video Recording.

Not to be confused with the erstwhile 'Micro Live' with Fred Harris and Ian MacNaughton, this programme came sometime later and it's really starting to annoy me that I can't remember the title!

Quality U.S. F1 Coverage?

jsonic — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 10:26:15 -0800

U.S. Formula 1 fans: How can I legally watch the British broadcasts of the upcoming Formula 1 season? I became a Formula 1 fan by watching the comparatively excellent British ITV coverage. The only U.S. broadcast I can find is on the Speed Channel or a few races on ABC, all of which are terrible when compared to ITV. The BBC is taking over the race coverage this year, promising even better coverage. I would love to be able to watch their broadcasts here in the U.S., but how?

I realize that all the races are available on bittorrent soon after the broadcasts, but surely there must be some way to subscribe or pay to watch the British race coverage. Anybody know if BBC America will show the qualifying and races?

House hunting in England

anonymous78 — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 14:22:47 -0800

Are there any websites, books or films that list the estates used in British period drama movies and television programs? I'm convinced that the house used in the original film version of Room with a View is also used in the BBC production of North and South. I wish there was somewhere I could go to see if this is actually the case...

What was the name of this British radio series?

The Card Cheat — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 12:28:03 -0800

A while back I had a job as a radio archivist and I dubbed a few episodes of a very trippy British serial that I believe originally aired on the BBC during the late '70s or early '80s. It involved some sort of quest for knowledge, had Buddhist (or at least eastern spiritual) overtones and was often accompanied by psychedelic background music. Anyone have any idea what the name of this series might have been?

Please help a North American find a great new British mystery on DVD.

Toto_tot — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 11:49:23 -0800

What is the latest and greatest murder mystery series or procedural series on British TV that I can get on DVD for my Canadian husband? He's loved Cracker and Prime Suspect and Waking the Dead...
He's a big fan of the Wallander novels. So, that's where he's coming from.

Is it possible to find a set online of something awesome he's never heard of? Doesn't have to be British, I guess - as long as it has english sub-titles.

Best WiFi / Internet Radio

dance — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 11:03:27 -0800

As an English ex-pat, my fiancée really misses the BBC's Radio 4. We both do. Can anyone speak from experience about the best Internet/wifi radio for both listening live and the BBC's 'listen again' feature? I've done some Googling but there is lots conflicting information and I don't feel like the reviews I've found have been informative enough to make a purchase. Is there a Mefite who owns one and uses it for this purpose?

How can I listen to Peel Sessions tracks?

rbs — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:42:40 -0800

Where can I listen to BBC's Peel Sessions? There doesn't seem to be a way to stream them, or to buy them? Am I dense? I'd like to listen to some Peel sessions from a few years back, in particular the Electrelane sessions, but sometimes others too. I can't find a way to do so. What am I doing wrong?

Help an Anglophile out, mate!

red cell — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 17:56:57 -0800

US user desperately seeking workaround to view BBC/Channel 4 full program(me)s. Thank you.

why i love the internet

sgt.serenity — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 13:20:06 -0800

how to watch bbc iplayer outside of the uk ? genuine uk resident and er... licence payer here - im in the us for three months so would want to watch some stuff from home but it wont let me even though i am incredibly legally entitled to watch - anyone who can lend a hand ?

Lets Not Do the Timewarp Again

Gratishades — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:52:43 -0800

I can't watch the Daily Show or listen to the BBC iPlayer any more in Firefox- what the heck have I done? Please help me avoid using IE. I've done something to my computer (Windows XP) that means that I can no longer watch the Daily Show (I kept being prompted to download Adobe Flash Player which I've done a few times to no avail) in Firefox, and since the bbc has updated to iPlayer I can no longer use the Listen Again function (again IE works but Firefox doesn't)

I updated Windows Media Player recently and root cause may be the settings it installed. Please help as having to go back to IE after years of happy Firefox use, it is driving me mental. Ta!