I just want to say how wonderful the BBC is, and I would happily pay double the licence fee just to be able to access THIS online cornucopia of delights. The BBC seems to have gone Thatcher-tastic this week.
On Thursday it is showing the long awaited play about Margaret Thatcher's final days in office, starring Lyndsay Duncan. And to coincide with the 30th anniversary of her election in 1979, the BBC have put together a wonderful archive of video and audio clips detailing Margaret Thatcher's most memorable moments on the BBC. They include her first appearance on Any Questions, a Panorama profile in 1970, the clip from Val Meets the VIPs (which I remember watching as a 10 year old!) and much more besides. I hope they replicate this exercise in many other areas, and for other politicians. It really does fit right into the BBC's public service remit - and I'd be saying that if they did it for Clement Attlee or even Tony Blair. There must be thousands of treasures in the BBC archives which could be utilised in this way.
To view the Thatcher archive click HERE. But I warn you, put a few hours aside...
28 comments:
I just want to say how wonderful the BBC is, and I would happily pay double the licence fee just to be able to access THIS online cornucopia of delights. The BBC seems to have gone Thatcher-tastic this week.
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Iain, please feel free to pay mine then!
By the way, isn't it the 30th anniversary?
Lyndsay Duncan's interview in Radio Times was typical lovie uninformed rubbish. Having lived through the seventies and eighties working largely in manufacturing, the Thatcher experience was ghastly but absolutely necessary. You just have to look at comparative wealth, earnings and most importantly productivity data with our neighbours to see what was achieved. Even 12 years of New Labour has not completely wrecked it, yet.
Now all we need is for the director general of the BBC to apologise for all the anti-Tory rubbish they've been broadcasting over the years. Will it happen? Of course not.
"They include her first appearance on Any Questions, a Panorama profile in 1970, the clip from Val Meets the VIPs (which I remember watching as a 10 year old!) and much more besides. I hope they replicate this exercise in many other areas, and for other politicians. It really does fit right into the BBC's public service remit - and I'd be saying that if they did it for Clement Attlee or even Tony Blair."
- Thats nothing to do with bias, its for the same reason I am pleased the BBC have done this for Margaret Thatcher and its all to do with being a political anorak ;-)
Iain bud - the BBC are hoons.
"The collection focuses on the significance of Thatcher becoming one of the most powerful women in the world during the 1970s."
It just reflects the BBC's 1970s fixation. Bizarre - what about her time as PM in the 1980s?
I for one will be sitting sticking pins in my little doll.
This dreadfull woman was the start of the industrial revolution in reverse.
We used to make things didn't we?
Why is Cherie Blair on my telly? And what the bloody hell (hmm - poor joke) do Labour women only take their husband's name as option?
I've been bob on with my psephelogical predictions for the last 20 years. Unlike Draper I didn't do some Mickey Mouse counselling course but Economics when my love was politics.
The runes give rise to a Cameron government instantly hated by the franchise. He has to reach out to the people and NOW. Strategy they retort - wait they imply - listen they entreat.
The lad's a tosser.
Yes Tom we used to make loads of stuff - My old stamping ground of the West Midlands was known as the workshop of the world. Unfortunately the rest of the world learned to make the same products to a higher quality and for a fraction of the cost - hardly Thatcher's fault but hey ho, blaim her anyway.
The question is - what are they up to ?
Can I suggest that this Mrs T season will be used as evidence of impartiality to justify the slavish running of Labour's political lines over the next few weeks.
Telly Tax Rebel - I've been trying not to pay my telly tax since October but some dude turned up at my house tonight and I stooopidly confirmed my name but went into the mantra 'sorry, can't help you'.
Am I screwed?
Conservative Blogger Loves BBC!
A Winston Smith moment Iain?
Salmondnet said "Conservative Blogger Loves BBC!"
He just wants to appear more often on their newspaper reviews. ;-)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/thatcher/6332.shtml?all=1&id=6332
"The Labour government, confronted with the worst WORLD recession in many years..."
Amazing - nothing changes! You can see Gordon saying this on the eve of the general election
The BBC have not gone Thatchertastic ... they have a film to promote. its cost them money and they want to get their money back.
Pure commercial self interest.
Dick - only if you owned up to having a box then you're screwed, cant imagine you would have done that tho?. Otherwise Just tell them where to go and plead the 5th.
TTR - Excellent - getting abuse from me mum. Thinking on, I should have punched him but...
Nah, just confirmed my name. Ich bin Juden?
(Oirish Catholic but I ain't proud)
Humph. I can’t see that detaining me. The time for celebration awaits.
BBC back on form reverting to type on tonights newsnight, lots of tory bashing ranging from Ken Clarke (now there's a suprise) scraping the barrel back to the 1980's (it's all Thatcher's fault you know) to Lord Ashcroft and his income tax (YAWN FFS) not one tory to counter but then Aunty doesn't believe in the right of reply.
It staggers me that the Tories have got away with Ashcroft for so very long.
Ashcroft has got away with it for so long because he aint done owt wrong. Liebor and Blair's Broadcasting Corporation in their desperation to divert attention away from the fecking mess Brown's created just keep on and on and on YAWN!
"The Aternative PM" video is particularly striking - in many ways the same arguments apply today, how little we have learned.
My conspiracy theory about the Beeb is that as Cameron PM becomes ever more likely we should expect slurs, innuendo and generally hostile coverage of the Tories. The BBC don't want no Tory government and we should not be surprised when they make their position crystal clear.
I don't understand the BBC blurb about the "SIGNIFICANCE" of Thatcher's rise "during the 1970s". It implies that something very important happened in the 1970s and it was "significant" because it WAS the 1970s, but that Thatcher's reign throughout the '80s, and two historic re-elections, counted for a mere crock of sh**.
The BBC don't 'arf go on about the 1970s. They became the new 1960s in the 1990s but don't stand up to the same close inspection.
You? Praising the BBC?
The body snatchers have clearly been at work. Will you be pointing and making that horrible noise like they did in the remake movie?
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