One hears lots of criticism of the Beeb, but for an expat, it still remains a source of excellence in broadcasting compared with what we have to put up with here in the Land of Sun and Fun. 120 cable channels with about 4 worth watching. When the chips are down, if you live outside Britain BBC news reporting is incomparable vs. the alternatives, even if often weighted unevenly in terms of time allocation to things it seems to have a bee in its bonnet about (Zimbabwe elections etc), or endless John Simpson wading through muck and bullets somewhere where it's very dark and he has to shout all the time.
However, I fear the comments I read about the Beeb's perceived decline in standards may after all have some validity.
Yesterday my BBC World TV programmes started being over-dubbed with spoken Japanese. Now then, I could care less about missing the football results and What Doctor Mugabe Did Today Shock Horror, but I do get teed off when I can't enjoy the re-runs of The Car's The Star which are currently being aired, especially as I want to tape them. As HJ pointed out, this is an excellently produced programme, and the choice of classics it covers is impeccable. It must be, since they include the Mustang ;-). Now, while I have a faint grasp of Nippongo, mainly gleaned from nights in hostess bars and trying to find my way out of Shinjuku underground station (which is like a ghastly computer game, only this time it's real), it's not much; neither do my abilities extend to lip-reading Quentin Willson.
I call my cable provider to enquire. No sir, no idea. Started yesterday, maybe BBC changed the frequency or something. Maybe somebody moved the satellite sir. (I liked that one). Called some friends with different cable providers. Yeah, we've got the same problem. Must be the Beeb. Oh alright, let's call BBC World in London.
We learn first that the hours for BBC World Customer Service (that's W-O-R-L-D, as in globe, Planet Earth, different timezones etc) are 0900-1730. How convenient (for them). We also learn that the Beeb has one of those push-button menus that you know, you just know, is going to be answered by someone called Darren or Tracy who has a doctorate in speaking in a featureless monotone from a prepared script. And, lo, so it transpires, even though after the obligatory 3 minutes of Mozart while the phone meter's running, Darren introduces himself as Robert.
No, that's impossible, we don't overdub our transmissions to the Philippines.
But somebody is.
Talk to your cable provider......sir (afterthought).
I did, he doesn't know any Japanese and everyone has the same problem. He says have you moved your satellite.
Satellites don't move sir.
I don't know, he just said to ask you.
Well, we don't know anything about it.
Let me illustrate for you (takes cordless phone to TV and holds it over Quentin Willson who looks right out of character apparently describing MGB bumper heights in Japanese). You hear what I mean.
No, not really .....(sir).
So you can't help me?
No, not really.
What do I do then?
Really can't help you (no "sirs" any more).
Growler feebly attempts joke: surely you don't want to make me migrate to the Fox News Channel instead ho ho? (anyone familiar with Fox News will know the irony of this remark).
That's your choice entirely, of course, proclaims Darren/Robert, right on course for Humorless Drone of The Year Award. Will there be anything else?....
........I'm still getting the weather forecast for New Caledonia in Japanese but least Robert didn't tell me to have a nice day.
So, and this is the serious part of this post, if anyone has a set of The Car's The Star on VHS, preferably in NTSC format but PAL would do at a pinch, let me know.....
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The television equivalent of Pearl Harbour, perhaps? :)
what maddens me in these days of technology is the NEED to overdub stuff. Subtitles have been around for years, so why not have them, not some mindless commentary...
Is it because people have forgotten hoe to read?
I have seen some overdubs where the "new" commentary lapses - and what the guy is saying is TOTALLY different to what is coming across on screen ...
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