For Addicts of STRAIGHT TALK

Fans of Andrew Neil's STRAIGHT TALK programme will be delighted to learn that the programme has a new website with loads of the best interviews now available for download on the BBC iPlayer. This is now about the only proper interview programme on TV now and it deserves a wider audience. Go HERE.

Who Should Replace Jenny Scott?

I think today was Jenny Scott's last day on the Politics Show. She's off for a new career as Head of Communications for the Bank of England. The BBC is still considering who to replace her with and, I understand, will be "trying out" various female presenters alongside Andrew Neil over the next few weeks. Jo Cockburn has already had a runout and I understand Five Live's Anita Anand is also in the frame. Shelagh Fogarty, who presented the weekend breakfast show on 5 Live alongside Andrew Neil many moons ago, would also be worth a try, as her sense of humour complements his rather well.

Which other female broadcasters (and they will definitely go for a female) would you like to see given a trial run?

An Interview with Andrew Neil

Access Interviews is a new website devoted to publishing every interview ever given. A tall order. Rob McGibbon, the site's creator, has also started doing video interviews. he started with Andy McNab and then interviewe Andrew Neil. This is the concluding part of the interview, in which Andrew becomes a little reflective.



You can see the full half hour interview HERE.

So Why Did the BBC Allow Andrew Neil to go on Sky?

I want to return to the subject of a small snippet I wrote on my election night live blog...

"First of all, WTF is Andrew Neil doing on Sky?! I know he's freelance but when you are the BBC's main political presenter you just don't broadcast for the opposition. Period. I suspect BBC head honchos will have been spitting into their G & Ts..."

Now I should admit I got this slightly wrong. BBC sources tell me that Andrew was given their permission to broadcast on Sky after they decided that he wouldn't be appearing on their own election night programme. This was sheer lunacy on their part. It was obvious to anyone with a basic knowledge of politics that Scotland would probably be the issue of the night. There is no one - I repeat no one - in the BBC who knows Scottish politics better than Andrew Neil. He proved that from his first minute of broadcasting on Sky when he called the result exactly right.

So perhaps someone from the BBC could explain why Andrew Neil was surplus to their election night requirements.